rural Korea travel

Geumsan Day Trip: Ginseng Fields, River Views and Fish Porridge

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Eojuk (freshwater fish porridge) served bubbling in a stone pot at Gangbyeon Garden, Geumsan

I’ve been to Geumsan more times than I can count — always for the food, always by car, always leaving with the same thought: this place doesn’t need to try hard. It’s a small farming county in the hills south of Daejeon, known across Korea as the ginseng capital (about 80% of the country’s ginseng … Read more

Binggye Valley: Where Ice Forms in the Middle of Korean Summer

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Binggye Bridge footbridge crossing the stream inside Binggye Valley

I visited Binggye Valley on one of the hottest days of the summer, sweating through my shirt before I even got out of the taxi. Twenty minutes later, I was standing in front of a crack in the rocks where the air coming out registered below zero. Ice — actual ice — clinging to stone … Read more