Posted on June 15, 2012, 1:23 am, by QT Luong, under
Locations.
In South Korea, I had stayed at hostels and at a “love motel”. In the fishing village of Seongsang Ilchulbong, I was going to try a third category of accommodation, a “minbak”: room for rent in a private home. Arriving quite late after hiking Mt Halassan, disoriented after getting out of the bus, I called […]
Posted on April 17, 2012, 5:05 pm, by QT Luong, under
Locations.
When I strolled the streets of Daegu (fourth largest city in South Korea), I saw a pedestrian street lined up with retail stores for many outdoor gear brands, including Millet and Lafuma, two French brands that I’ve hardly seen anywhere in the US. On the Namsam Mountain, near Gyeongju, there were as many hikers as […]
Posted on March 21, 2012, 11:00 am, by QT Luong, under
Locations.
Upon arriving in Gyeongju, I headed towards the Hanjin Hostel, conveniently situated a few blocks from the bus station. When traveling overseas solo, I prefer to stay at hostels because the management is usually a useful resource, and speaks English, a big plus in a country with a strange script. I’ve found that hostels often […]
Posted on March 14, 2012, 11:00 am, by QT Luong, under
Locations.
The rest of the World Heritage sites are scattered around the country. My schedule was made possible by two factors. South Korea is a country of compact size – an hour by plane from north to south. The transportation infrastructure is very efficient and quite inexpensive. In the morning, I took a high-speed train from […]
Posted on March 1, 2012, 4:58 pm, by QT Luong, under
Locations.
When traveling to a country for the first time, I often select places to visit based on the UNESCO World Heritage list. The international program lists and helps preserve sites of outstanding cultural or natural importance to the common heritage of humanity. What makes it significant is that although listing of a site is approved […]
Posted on February 16, 2012, 1:38 pm, by QT Luong, under
Locations.
Last fall, before I traveled to Vietnam for a family visit, I noticed that most flights had connections in Seoul. Thanks to my wife and sister-in-law influences, I’ve watched a few 15-episode Korean TV dramas, but I’d never been in the country, so I was curious to check it out. While on the Asiana (excellent […]
