My 2D1N Andong tour from Busan was an awesome experience. Our journey started from Busan station with a group introduction over a hot cup of coffee at Starbucks. Our tour guide Dony and his assistants Jony and Jack ran us through the details of the tour. Our journey started in a cozy minibus with discussion about the history of Korea, the royal culture of various dynasties followed by lots of chitchat till we reached Andong. We had smoked salted Mackerel which is a traditional specialty of Andong for our lunch along with interesting side dishes and rice near the entrance of Andong Hahoe village.
Walking through Andong Hahoe village was like time travel. I learnt so much about traditional Korean practices like Undol (traditional floor heating system in Korean houses), Stone mill used for making grain powder or Tofu, method used for drying cloths. This tiny village is surrounded by paddy rice fields, lotus ponds, tall mountains, lots of old trees and a beautiful river. Andong residents are staying in these traditional homes and maintaining this cultural heritage for the world to experience this historic city. The mask dance performance was entertaining and informative.
Our next stop, Bongjeongsa temple, was a wonderful place to sit and spend some peaceful time. I came to know about the unique temple stay program here. We got a chance to participate in the inauguration ceremony of Andong night market. The Andong city officials welcome us with beautiful smiles and warm hearts. It was my first experience of open barbeque! Interesting food, drinks and lot of chitchat with our group members (now we call it “our Andong family”) made this experience unforgettable.
We visited Woryeonggyo bridge which is the longest wooden bridge in Korea after dinner. Colorful moon boats floating in the lake and cozy cafes in surrounding area made the night view spectacular. We checked-in in a comfortable hotel in downtown Andong and the first day of the tour was over.
Next day started with the pleasant good morning wishes from our tour guide team and we started our journey towards Dosanseowon Confucian Academy. Dony answered all our questions about Korean history and Confucian culture with witty stories. Story about Korean Surnames was my favorite! When you will meet Dony in your “Trazy tour” don’t forget to ask him about it!!
Andong Soju museum is a place to know more about rich food culture in Korea. The exhibitions about the process of Soju making and various food platters served during different occasions like marriage, offerings to ancestors were interesting.
For lunch we ate “Andong Jjimdak” (chicken with onions, potatoes, carrots, chilies and glass noodles in soy sauce) at Andong market. We bought some delicious desserts and cheese buns in the famous Mammoth bakery.
Our last destination, Manhyujeong Pavilion, is the home to civil servant Kim Gye-haeng during the Joseon Dynasty. A perfect place to take a rest near a waterfall located in the countryside to forget the mundane world.
We clicked a lot of pictures, heard interesting stories, ate delicious food, and made friends during this wonderful Andong tour. I will highly recommend this 2D1N Andong tour with Trazy to everyone to experience Korean culture. Your visit to South Korea is incomplete without this wonderful experience.