2010 Liquor and Ddeok Festival, Gyeongju
It’s Thursday morning which means that we’re down to the final day of the Gyeongju Liquor & Ddeok Festival (경주술과떡잔치) in Hwangseong Park. Unfortunately I missed the Festival’s kickoff Saturday, though I hear it was packed with people and the weather was gorgeous. By the time I got down there on Monday, this week-long bout of dreary weather had already set in. read more
Soju and Ddeok Festival, Gyeongju
As I’ve been trying to get the word out about events before they actually happen, I’m pleased as puddin’ to announce that it’s that time of year again for the Gyeongju Soju (소 주) & Ddeok (떡) , or Liquor and Rice Cake Festival. As always, the festival’s in Hwanseong Park. The official word is that it kicks off Saturday, April 17th and winds down Thursday the 22nd. I’ll be posting the actual daily events schedule as I get it. read more
I know it’s all the trend these days, but I figured it was about time I sat down and wrote out my personal top ten “to do” list for Gyeongju. Some of these I’ve posted on already, and if I haven’t yet, I hope to soon. So here they are in brief; counting down from 10 to 1:
Bunghwangsa Temple, Gyeongju
10. Take a walk around the ancient, 3-storied pagoda of Bunghwangsa (분황사) Temple when the fall leaves are changing. read more
Baru Vegetarian Restaurant, Gyeongju
Being a vegetarian in Korea can be rough. I, myself, am an omnivore, but I’ve got enough vegetarian friends here that I can sympathize. There just aren’t a lot of vegetarian options in Korea. Like with a lot of countries who’ve recently come out of poverty, vegetarianism seems counter intuitive to most Koreans. Since you can actually afford to eat meat 3 meals a day, why shouldn’t you? It doesn’t help that a lot of Koreans don’t really consider fish or seafood to be meat. You might’ve ordered that jjigae (찌개), or stew, with out meat, only to find a fish head floating in it when it gets to your table. read more
Dweaji Sanyang (돼지사냥) Samgyeopsal Restaurant
So I’ve been in Korea for a while now and honestly I’m a bit over the whole fried meat thing. One samgyeopsol (삼겹살) joint taste like another to me anymore… but then there’s Dweaji Sanyang (돼지사냥) . It’s downtown, just a stones through from the Daerungwon tombs and if you’re looking for a different experience with Korean barbeque, I suggest checking it out. read more
King Munmu’s tomb (문무대왕릉)
With friends visiting for the New Year, we decided to make use of our new set of wheels and go exploring a bit. On New Year’s day we made the 45 min. trek over the mountains to Bonggil Beach (봉길해수욕장) on the East Sea, though were a bit too late to catch the sunrise, as is the custom for a lot of folks on New Year’s morning in Korea. It was sunny and warm (for January anyhow), so we had a lovely time bumming around on the beach by King Munmu’s tomb (문무대왕릉) . read more
It’s been a little while since I’ve updated the links, so here’s a run down of a few websites and blogs I’ve dug up in the last month or so.
If you’re new to Korea or want to learn more about Korean food, my friend Pete hooked me up with a link to TriFood.com. It’s focus is on promoting Korean food in the tri-state area of New Jersey, New York and Connecticut, but it’s got a very thorough glossary of Korean Cuisine. Not to mention, there’s a bunch of recipes worth trying out if you’re handy in the kitchen.
Speaking of Korean food, One fork, One spoon is a pretty awesome food blog by Grace Meng. Grace covers Korean cuisine along with a fair mix of Mexican, Spanish and Argentinean. She’s got dozens of posts including Korean recipes and restaurant reviews. Keep an eye out for her Korean cookbook coming out soon. read more
Ha Yeon Ji (하연지) Lotus Restaurant
As promised in my recent post Nak Cheon Won Temple (낙천원사), I got back to Ha Yeon Ji Restaurant (하연지) last Saturday with some friends, and this time I did actually remember to bring my camera. Ha Yeon Ji Restaurant (하연지) is part of Nak Cheon Won Temple (낙천원사) complex , which is new, private temple that’s home to a huge golden Buddha in the front courtyard. read more
Healthy Pumpkin Rice, Cheonghakdong (청학동) Restaurant
If you’re into Korean food but you’re tired of the chain restaurants downtown or student samgyeopsal (삼겹살) joints in Seonggeon-dong, there’s a little road running between the two that’s probably just what you need. On a 3 block strip there are about 20 Korean restaurants and I haven’t been disappointed yet by any I’ve been to. They serve everything from hoe (회) or “raw fish”, Chueotang (추어탕) or “mudfish soup”, bossam (보쌈) or “steamed pork”, to blowfish (복) and yeongyangtang (영양탕) or “dog soup”. read more
2 Story Buddha, Nakch’eonwon Temple
If you look South-East from the ruins of Banwolseong fortress towards Mt. Namsan, you might see something a bit curious. Just across the Namcheon River in the little neighborhood of Gyo-dong is huge gold Buddha. It’s seated in the front courtyard of Nakch’eonwonsa (낙천원사), or literally “Optimistic Moon Temple.” It’s probably one of the newest temples in Gyeongju and if you’re out exploring area and got the time, it’s well worth checking out. read more
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