One of the places in Korea that I simply adore was Insadong! It was true that the things there are very creative and unusual. I just could not restrain myself from shopping. Yet what made me really like the place is the fact that the atmosphere there is a mix between tradition and modernity. Insadong was a unique place that was truly representative of the cultural history of the nation. Besides shopping, there were national antique shops and interesting art galleries as well as traditional stationery shops. The art work there was simply fabulous. Whether it was still art or portrait, everything could be found there. And it seems as though the entire street was full of galleries (I don’t mind spending my entire day exploring it). I found out that Insadong was able to attract both the tourists and the locals to visit. Therefore, not only do the locals get to know more about their arts and culture but the tourists too
(shops that sell traditional things)
(wonderful place that sells lots of arty things)
(art sculpture found in the shopping place)
(my favourite gallery)
(works from my favourite gallery)
(cute and contemporary works from other galleries there)
The other awesome place that I really enjoyed exploring despite the chilling weather was the walking tour at Bukchon. Similar to the Peranakan houses at Paya Lebar, there was a village where traditional Koreans houses (by the aristocrats in the past) were preserved by the government so that the younger generation would be able to get in touch with their traditional culture since most Koreans are living in modern apartments now. Although the traditional houses were retained, there were modern twists to it. Some of the houses were used as galleries and museums to showcase some of their traditional culture too. We went into one of the houses (gallery) which showcase all the different Korean traditional costumes. I am rather awed by all those beautiful and colourful traditional costumes. At the same time, it allowed me to view at the interior of this traditional house. All these indeed give me a deeper insight about the Korean culture. One thing that I found out when we were conducting our walking tours there is that there wasn’t much (any) tourists around. Instead most of the people were either students or the elderly. This actually shows effort by the government on wanting to educate the locals on the Korean traditional culture
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(preserve traditional houses)
(modern interior of the houses) 
(modern interior of the houses)
(the wonderful galleries and museum there- i wan to go to museum of chicken art!!!)
(galleries there that showcase their traditional costumes)
(galleries that showcase traditional costumes)
Although I do enjoy this trip to Korea very much, there were a few places that made me rather disappointed. Being a person slightly inclined towards the performing arts, I was really looking forwards for the public performance at the National Folklore Museum. However, the moment I stepped into the auditorium, the place was so packed with people that I didn’t even manage to get a clear view of the performance. Also the entire performance was conducted in Korean language, resulting in me not being able to understand anything at all. Being stuck in a crowded, noisy and foreign environment simply turned me off. However, majority of the audience there were Koreans (children) and that they seemed to be highly engaged and entertained by the performance. To add on, the entire folklore museum is actually exhibiting the different various aspects of traditional life. It allows me gain a deeper insight into the life of Koreans. From the past trip to the other museum in Korea, I had developed a fondness towards the children’s museum. I simply love how interactive the children’s museum was. However, due to overcrowding in the National Folklore Museum, the children’s museum was closed to public ): and I heard that the museum there was really good therefore I felt very disappointed when I’m able to get to go in. Although it was a disappointing afternoon in the National Folklore museum, I was able to appreciate how the much the government wanted to educate the locals about their own unique culture, like the tailoring of performance for children to let them know more about the traditional performance and having this museum to showcase the different aspects of their traditional life, so as to build on the locals’ sense of identity in the country.
(exhibition)
(exhibition)
(exhibition)
(outdoor exhibition)
(outdoor exhibition)
Even though I didn’t manage to enjoy the time I spent in the National Folklore Museum, but then I really enjoyed the other places that I visited in Korea. This trip not only allows me to understand how much the Koreans embrace the arts and also how much effort the government spent in educating and retaining their culture (:
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