By mid-November (2021), we had shipped our boxes and had nearly emptied our apartment. We had a couple of weekends left before we would move out of our rental apartment (in Seoul) to an Airbnb in Mapo. With most of the packing and paperwork sorted, we were now ready to bid farewell to our friends.…
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The Drive to Hwanseongul Cave Idyllic countryside roads of Gangwon Province Mountains of Gangwon Province After spending about three days in Gangneung (read all about it here and here), we drove further south to explore Samcheok City. Samcheok is also located along South Korea’s picturesque East Coast and is a part of Gangwon Province. Like…
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In the summer of 2020, when South Korea had managed to contain the active Covid cases below 50 per day, we took a week-long exploratory road trip along the east coast. Gangeung (강릉시), a city in Gangwon Province (강원도), was the starting point of our trip from Seoul. The city is divided into multiple regions…
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It’s best to avoid travel during public holidays in South Korea. Tickets get sold out early and getting out of Seoul can be a nightmare. We generally spent most of the major public holidays like Chuseok (Korean Thanksgiving) and Seollal (Korean New Year) either at home, hiking a local mountain, or cycling along the Han…
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Last October, we visited Daegwallyeong Baby Animal Farm. It had rained the whole day and we couldn’t do much after the visit to the animal farm. Thankfully, on the next day, the rain had stopped and the sun was out. While the others slept, Basil and I were up and ready to explore the natural…
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On most prominent public holidays, Seoul resembles a zombie town. I’d only heard about it and never experienced it until Lunar New Year last month. For starters, getting out of Seoul becomes a nightmare. If you have a car, it’s best to leave in the wee hours (around 2 AM) of the morning. For the rest of us…
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In January, Gangwan-do province is a hub for snow festivals, skiing, and ice fishing. Taebaeksan National Park hosts an annual Snow Festival, in the second week of January, when temperatures dip to an all-time low. Taebaeksan is also popular for its sunrise view hike. I generally avoid festivals and tourism events. But, I felt the need to escape Seoul, city life, and…
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Gangwan-do province is popular for its captivating mountain views, dense national parks, ski resorts, and scenic beaches. In winter, a sheath of white covers the region, making it a hub for local snow festivals and hiking enthusiasts. For the Christmas break, we chose to visit Pyeongchang county — the venue of the 2018 Winter Olympics. Pyeongchang is an hour…
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