Destinations Journals – Korea – October

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South Korea, also known as the Republic of Korea, is situated at the southernmost part of the Korean peninsula. It’s a complex and fascinating nation – on one hand, it has modern and flourishing megacities that are as urban as they come, and on the other, a remarkable and rich culture and history, which dates back to 2333 BC.

The Korean Peninsula lies in the middle of Northeast Asia, flanked by China to its west and Japan to its east.

One of the 4 ‘Asian Tigers’ (which includes Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Singapore), South Korea is a major economy in the world with a very high standard of living. It’s also a major tourist destination in Asia, offering a variety of attractions, from serene temples, royal tombs and unspoiled fishing villages, to picturesque mountains and volcanic landscapes.

South Korea’s exports, which amounted to only USD 32.82 million in 1960, surpassed the USD 10 billion mark in 1977 and reached USD 542.2 billion in 2019. The country’s GNI per capita was a paltry USD 67 in 1953 around when the government was established, yet rapidly increased to USD 32,115 in 2019. The country’s GDP more than tripled from USD 504.6 billion in 2001 to USD 1,646.3 billion in 2019, the 12th largest total in the world.

Korea has a unique language and its own writing system, “Hangeul,” which was invented by King Sejong (1397–1450) during the Joseon dynasty. Korean are very proud of this remarkable achievement. Hangeul is a very efficient and easy script to learn and use, and most of all, its promulgation was exactly recorded, which is unique in the world. Hangeul is composed of 14 consonant letters and 10 vowel letters. It can express virtually all the sounds produced by nature and humans.

Among popular tourist attractions in South Korea, modern values are often projected onto historic cultural heritage, or conversely, traditional elements are added to modern spaces.

South Korea boasts of different types of hanok villages. Recently, a hanok village becomes more popular as a new tourist destination for visitors to experience an old village composed of traditional Korean wooden houses other than modern hanok architecture.

A royal palace, which is an indispensable destination for Korean tourism, features distinctly different sentiments between day and night. Tourists flock to the palace during the day to experience a tranquil and relaxed atmosphere. When covered with a veil of darkness, the palace boasts of a different mood.

Among royal palaces that open at night are the four major palaces in Seoul (Gyeongbokgung Palace, Changdeok Palace, Changgyeong Palace, and Deoksugung Palace) and Hwaseong Haenggung Palace in Suwon. Whether tour programs are available depends on each royal palace, but if it is, reservations must be made on the website.

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