Let’s go to… Jeonju!

Each year the Hedgers Abroad set out on one of South Korea’s most unique holidays to challenge themselves both mentally and physically to decide Who…Wins…Hangeul Day!!! One of our favorite holidays, this celebration for the Korean alphabet’s creation pits both Stephanie and me against each other in some random challenge that we cook up at the last minute. This year we put a small amount of planning into the conception of Hangeul Day Challenge and we are proud to present the video of our competition.

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Guys… We’re Back!

Gosh guys! We’ve been pretty quiet over here at Hedgers Abroad for the past couple of weeks. A lot has been going on and we’ve been so busy that we had to simply put our blogging on hold. The main reason for this was Ryan’s mom coming to visit us! She has been to Korea twice now. The first time she came, it was our first year, we were still living in Seoul, and we were just Korea babies.

Top Cities in Jeollanamdo

The southwest province of South Korea, Jeollanamdo, often is forgotten about when it comes to tourism. Many people stick to Seoul or Busan and the iconic national parks when touring the country. Beyond these typical tourist destinations, there are areas of the country that are rich in culture and tradition that you simply should not miss out on.

Off the beaten path – Gosapo Beach

We are pretty discreet about our love for beaches and camping over here at Hedgers Abroad, but we’ll let you in on a little-known secret: we would rather camp on beaches in Southern South Korea than do just about anything else. I don’t know if it’s the rhythmic crashing of waves along the beach and rocks or if the cool salt air just makes camping a bit more relaxed, but from May until late July you’ll likely find us loading up our car on for some beach.

Best Beaches in Jeollanamdo

It’s that time of year again: beach season! Beaches all around Korea are “officially” opening for swimming, camping, grilling, and other beachy activities. We’ve lived in Jeollanamdo for a year and a half now and we have done our fair share of beach camping around the province. We’ve noticed, however, that there is a lack of English resources about the beaches here in the southwest corner of the country, so we’ve decided to put together a list of the most popular and largest beaches in the area with a couple of hidden gems thrown into the mix too.

Off the beaten path – Hadong, South Korea

On an overcast Sunday earlier this summer, bored from the bad weather that’d been plaguing Jeollanam-do, Stephanie and I set out to find something beautiful. Living in Jeonnam, we have a good deal of options for beautiful locations, like many other provinces, but one area in particular always comes through. Jirisan National Park has long been a favorite of ours for its beautiful scenery, noisy mountain streams, and incredible mountains.

How To Get Out And Explore Rural Korea

For the majority of people visiting or traveling through South Korea, Seoul (or maybe Busan) is the extent of their experience. These ultra-modern cities offer a great deal to a person wanting to experience today’s Korea, but offers very little if you are wanting to experience something more authentic. Don’t get me wrong, Seoul and Busan are fantastic cities. They provide endless entertainment and a wide variety of cultural elements all rolled into one. Cultures cross pollinate and blend in major cities and this happens in Korea in a really interesting way. For this reason we recommend exiting these major cities

Weekends in Jeollanamdo

Three day weekends mean packing up the car with tents, food, backpacks, and good friends for a beach tour around southern Korea. Buddha’s birthday is a national holiday in Korea and we were given the day off from work. We debated heading to Busan for the lantern festival or just keeping it low key and staying away from the crowds.

And We’re Back!

Our Maycation break is over and we are back to school. But we are only teaching a few days here and there this month since May brings so many holidays and school field trips. That means I will only be in class for a total of two and a half weeks with a lot more desk warming in my down time.

Let’s go to… Seoraksan National Park!

Korea is blessed with many magnificent national parks for such a small country. The sheer number of mountains and amount of coastline in South Korea, coupled with the large population necessitating the preservation of natural spaces, has amounted to 17 national parks. Each park is unique in its own way and we enjoy discovering each park’s special features whenever we get the chance.