On Saturday we took a drive down to a Korean Folk Village. The village was created in 1974 to show Korean culture and the late Joseon period, and was created by relocating and restoring actual old Korean buildings and houses. There are over 170 houses, and you see the different ways that people would live in different areas (beach versus mountain versus farm house, etc). We referred to it as a Korean Renaissance festival, and it also reminded me somewhat of visiting Virginia City in Montana, where you can see artifacts in houses and see how people lived at that time.
In addition to seeing all the houses, you walk through markets, see people doing blacksmith work, watch pottery marking, see women weaving silk from actual silkworms, watch dancing, and attend traditional ceremonies. We also saw a farmers' dance, jumped rope, stood on swings, watched a tightrope acrobat, and enjoyed a traditional Korean lunch on the floor at a low table.
One of the highlights of the day was Hudson taking a ride on a horse. While waiting in line, we noticed that one horse was very fast, while the other horse walked slowly around the path. By some stroke of luck Hudson hopped on the fast horse, and galloped his way around the circle on the back of a fast horse (with a driver, of course!). It was a surprise and delight for the adventure loving kiddo!
Another fun activity for Hudson was being taught how to play the janggu drum by a performance group. Hudson jumped right in and one of the performers helped him learn how to play the instrument, which he adored. SO YOU KNOW: You have two drumsticks, and tap twice on one side, and once on the other along with the beat. The performer said it was "Buh Bum, Bum" if you want to get technical. It was super fun and interactive. Afterwards Hudson really wanted to buy his own Korean drum. We were hopeful until we realized that a janggu drum costs around $200 US dollars. We will continue the search for a smaller or replica drum :)
This is truly a living museum, and was a great way to experience traditional Korean history.
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| Waiting to ride the horse! |
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| this is what rice looks like! |
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| Learning to play the janggu, a traditional Korean drum |
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| Gorgeous! |
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| Standing swing |
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| Education building |
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| Beach homes |
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| squash tunnel! |
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| He said he was meditating |
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| Lunch - green onion pancake. YUM! |
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| Prayer flags on a tree |
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| mountain homes |
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| Tightrope walker. I will see if I can add video - this guy was awesome |
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| Hudson loves pagodas. It is so neat to see people all take off their shoes to sit and chat and eat together. |
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| Hudson and his fast horse! By far the highlight of the day! |
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