In Seoul there are several theme parks - the largest and most impressive being Lotte World. The budget version of it is Seoulland. I have been there once many years ago. On that same day I also visited a Korean Folk Village. What follows is my memories of that day many years ago.
I was on vacation from my job in Yantai, China and wanted to visit my brother in Korea who was stationed there in the US Army as it's only an hour flight from Yantai to Incheon. I went online and found a homestay family to stay with during this short trip. Upon arriving, I was received by a VERY hospitable family. I immediately wished I'd had a longer vacation so that I could spend more time with them. They went above and beyond expectations in making my first solo trip to South Korea memorable.
My brother and his friend were available to spend one day with me. The father of the homestay family offered to take us all out to show us some sights. We gladly obliged as none of us knew our way around and would love to see what a local found interesting to share with us.
Our first stop was a Folk Village ( https://www.koreanfolk.co.kr/multi/english/ ). We all enjoyed the cultural and historical aspects of the village. There were live performances that were very impressive. There were buildings built in the actual architecture type of the time period. They showed how to make kimchi in earthenware pots dug into the ground. It was all very interesting and memorable enough for me to want to share about it.
Before leaving the Folk Village, our host asked us to allow him to treat us to a traditional Korean dish. My brother and his friend had never experienced a traditional Korean meal before and were excited to venture out of their comfort zones. We dined on bibimbap (if you've never tried it - you should. https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/228240/bibimbap-korean-rice-with-mixed-vegetables/ ). As anyone that's familiar with Korean food knows, Koreans like their spice. And in some homes they make a habit of eating fresh jalapeno like peppers with all the seeds still in it. My brother and his friend dared each other to eat the whole thing. I tried to warn them... but they were in the Army. Their manhood was at stake at this point. I don't think I've ever seen so many tears in my brothers eyes as I did at that moment! hahaha
After the Folk Village, our host took us to Seoulland (http://eng.seoulland.co.kr/eng/index.asp). We were only there for a few hours and I only really remember one thing that we did while there - although I DO remember being exhausted, cold and sore by the end of the night. Our host thought we would enjoy going on Sky X. So we followed him to the ride as he proudly presented it to us....
This... This was not something we had ever even THOUGHT of going on. None of us. My brother's friend had an "out" saying that he wanted to film us on the ride (we have no idea where this footage went.. .but I want it!). So my brother and I got on the ride... we were strapped in together (you can have 1 - 3 people on it at a time)... and... as soon as it started pulling us backwards my brother started screaming. It really was terrifying! There was nothing to see except the earth below in all directions. Over an intercom system they did a countdown and we had to press a button to release ourselves! That was probably the scariest part. Knowing that we had to press a button to send ourselves hurting toward the ground with nothing to slow us down at all. But we did it. My brother continued screaming (this is why I want the video footage. I'm sure it's epic) and all I could do was laugh. Eventually it swung to a stop and we were let off of this terrifying ride. And we survived. We probably wouldn't ever do it again, but we have fun talking about this 1 memory we shared from our day together in Korea.
Having spent a day with my brother in a foreign country was lots of fun and I'm glad we were able to make it happen. I wish we had more time together but that one day was quite memorable for both of us. And if I had never did a Homestay program we never would have experienced any of this. If anything, we would have ended up somewhere more trendy or touristy. But I think the way that day went shows much of our simplicity in enjoying things - we don't need expensive, big and impressive to have fun. I would recommend these places to anyone else visiting Seoul, especially if you are on a budget. They aren't as expensive as some other places but they provide just as much fun.
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