Andong (19-21 Jul 15)

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After one week, it was time to leave the capital to check out the other parts of the country, and I took the 2.5h bus ride south to the smallish city of Andong in the Gyeongsangbuk province. Andong boasts in its vicinity the Unesco site of Hahoe Village, with its two thousand year history of traditional Korean culture and village life, and I would spend a couple of days here en route to my other intended destinations further south.

Arriving at Andong was a bit of a surprise, and I was immediately struck by how quiet the place seemed, despite it being a well-known stop on the tourist trail, and a population size of several hundred thousand. It was also a stark contrast to the hyper modern and busy capital, with sleepy shops with nary a customer in sight, and darkened and empty streets by about nine p.m. at night. The public buses also seemed slightly older, and the downtown area was spotted with uneven footpaths, and some quite visible signs overdue maintenance. In some ways it reminded me of Yichang, another smallish-mid sized town that I'd seen in Central China just a few weeks ago, except that Andong was much less crowded. The big attraction near town of course was the Hahoe Village, a community of a few hundred living in thatched roof houses, with many still seemingly continuing with traditional ways of life, and it was a pleasant half-day walking around, contemplating visions of days past in the Joseon Kingdom...

Stayed at Motel Galleria.

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Photos

Hahoe Village
Unesco site, dating back two thousand years. Very well preserved and still home to a few hundred people, maintaining a relatively agrarian lifestyle that is probably not to different from days of yore.

Traditional Masks of Hahoe
Originally made to satirise the upper class and pretentious, they played an important part in entertaining plays, dances and musicals.

Wishlocks
A Korean melodrama classic. I didn't really spot any in Seoul but they present themselves here in Andong. You buy a small bottle with the lock attached, write your wish (usually some sappy thing with your lover) on a small slip of paper, put in the bottle, lock it to the grilles, and hope for the best!

Digital Contents Museum
They screened a cool 20 min 3D animated film called Mituri, a touching love story set in a more traditional Korean era hundreds of years ago that wasn't actually too sappy. Apparently Mituri refers to traditional straw sandals that played a central role in the film.

Downtown Andong
A surprisingly sleepy and quiet smallish town that was a stark contrast to Seoul.

Downtown Andong
The confluence of the downtown shopping area, which is really just four rather short radiating streets of a few shops.

QE2's Visit
Nope not Quantitative Easing but Queen Elizabeth II, who visited a few decades ago. Look carefully at the faded wallpaper photo and you'll spot her. The mock-up spread was the feast prepared in her honour.

Hahoe Village
Beautiful scenery.

Hahoe Village
Typical face of Korea - the old juxtaposed with the new.

Hahoe Village
Classic thatched roof Hanok.

Hahoe Village
This must be some kind of special old tree too.

Hahoe Village
Hard to be disatisfied with the view.

Hahoe Village
Roofs.

Hahoe Village
Proof that Christianity has really penetrated Korea, even in the rural outskirts.

Hahoe Village
An elderly farmer stopped to carry out a monologue with me in Korean after he saw me taking photos of his crops. He must surely have realised I wasn't Korean and didn't speak the language, going by my lack of response and mere polite nods, but he carried on anyway for several minutes, even demonstrating how he pulled weeds out from the ground.

Hahoe Village
More of the famous masks.

Nakdonggang
Or at least I think that's the name. Definitely not the Hangang in any case.