Ibike Korea People-to-People Program
Photo essay: Korea
Cultural Heartland
(Hanguk Munhwa Jungsimji / 한국 문화 중심지)
The best
metaphor for conveying the experience of bicycle touring in South Korea is
a two-wheeled
kaleidoscope: With every turn of the wheels there is a fascinating
shift of perspective, color, texture and composition. The towns are
colorful, the villages are quaint, the temples are solid, majestic and
ethereal, the farmland has colors, hues, geometry and
texture, the coastline alternates between rugged and expansive, the mountains
thick and layered, and the streams are past, present and
future all at once. The essay suffers from not enough ways to say,
"It is beautiful." One member of the group described Korea as "95%
beautiful." On every page where it is left unsaid, you can add in
your mind, "And it was beautiful." The pictures are only snap shots and don't
do justice to the country. For every city picture there are a
million more. For every farm valley picture there are a million more. For
every temple picture there are a million more. For every face picture
there are a million more. To understand the enrichment of bicycle
travel in South Korea you need to not only see everything that is shown
here, but everything that is not shown as well. It is well worth a
personal visit. And, it is beautiful.Here is a photo essay of the Central Cultural Heartland tour. Note we don't follow exactly the same route on every trip. Comments, corrections, clarification and supplemental information are welcome.
Click on a Globe to Explore Korea with Us
Note: Firefox & I.E. each render html files differently so these pages may look a little odd, but the content is all there.
Photo essay: Bicycle Tours
[라이프] “쉴라(신라) 매력에 푹 빠졌어요” English translation without photos
남녘땅 누비는 국제자전거재단 대표 모저 English translation
Korea Bibliography
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