A couple weekends ago, our hapkido teacher organized a big kid field trip to Andong in time for the annual Andong Maskdance Festival.  While it’s a three hour car/bus ride from Busan, Andong is absolutely gorgeous and full of Korean history, culture, and natural beauty.

Here are five highlights from our day trip to Andong:

1.  Wolryeong Bridge and Park:  Awesome views of the river and Andong dam.

2.  The Andong Folk Museum: Confession here, folks–I love a good museum.  This one has tons of artifacts and information pertaining to Korean culture during the Joseon period.  I really enjoyed all the displays on daily life and culture, since this is the part of history that really interests me.  Bonus:  all the exhibits were translated into English.

3.  SOOOOO many photo ops:  Everywhere you looked there was something to see, hear, touch, smell, or taste.  I couldn’t stop taking pictures.

4.  The Hahoe Folk Village:  Traditional architecture, folk crafts, a maskdance play, and old school fireworks, all with beautiful Buyongdae Cliff in the background.  The people who live here are the descendants of the Yu clan, who have lived in this village in these homes since the 1500s.

5.  My favorite part of the trip was our visit to Byeongsanseowon.  It’s the beautiful old academy from the Joseon era.  The whole campus just felt so serene, and the fall colors were reminiscent of Carolina falls in the Blue Ridge.  I could have stayed there all afternoon just relaxing and writing and taking pictures.  

Oh, and there are so many other wonderful things about Andong, like eating Andong chicken at an outdoor restaurant near Hahoe Village or tasting apple chocolates or all the amazing people watching along the way.  If you get the chance, be sure to visit.  It won’t disappoint.