K-Shuttle must-see the routes

Chuseok vacations are usually boring for the internationals, although Korean love these vacations as they have to visit their home lands to meet their ancestors and enjoy with their families. Seoul seems to be dead these days, the fast and “Pali Pali “life of Seoul become steady with almost no charm. It seems like life stuck in Seoul, the soul of Asia. 

In such a situation if you get a chance to go out and explore those parts of Korea who otherwise will be difficult to visit, is a blessing to me. Thanks to K-Shuttle Bus service for making these vacations meaningful for me.

My journey begins with 6 foreigner friends and my Guide from Seoul to Busan. The bus was really comfortable offering coffee and cold water. As we were only 8 people travelling in the bus so it was quite easy to get the seat of our choice. Beside me from Pakistan I have my friends from China, Thiwan, US and Senegal. They were really amazing people and they made my trip memorable. They gave us a K Shuttle passport which is supposed to collect stamps from the historical sights.  

On way to Busan, most of the time we were sleeping and the rest of time enjoying the beauty of Korea from the window of Bus. Korea is going to be yellow soon as autumn is coming soon. We had lunch on way as K-Shuttle don’t offer Lunch and dinner, they only offer breakfast.  We reach Busan around 1 PM and we had a free time of 3 hours. So we selected to go to Hyundai Beach, one of the famous beaches of the Korea.  It was a lovely seen of Haeundae beach as we reached through subway. 

The beach was well crowded where families and couples were sharing their love and existence. We also have lots of fun, playing in water, walking around the shore and enjoying the cold sand of beach.  The preparation for Busan Film festival 2012 were at paek, the stage was about to reedy and it was creating a sense of excitement among the visitors. After having 3 hours of joys at Haeundae beach we back to our spot and take our bus to our hotel. 

 We had our dinner on way to hotel. Our hotel was quite comfortable with many facilities and the best was the free Wi-Fi. We shared our todays experience with our families and friends.  It was too late to go to bad as tomorrow we had another awesome day waiting for us.

It was a good day Oct03, 2012, after having a heavy breakfast we started our journey . Our first destination was Gyeongju Bulguksa temple.

Bulguksa Temple - 불국사 (佛國寺) (6th to 9th centuries)

Never intended as a major temple, Bulguksa has become famous as one of the few surviving examples of Silla architecture. According to legend it was founded in 535 as Hwaeombeomnyusa temple. King Pob-hung built it for his queen, who prayed here for the welfare of the kingdom. Although most of Bulguksa is a reconstruction, the foundation stones and the pagodas are original. According to the 'Samguk Yusa' (Memorabilia of the Three Kingdoms) the original Bulguksa was designed by the legendary architect Kim Daeseong, who overcame extreme poverty and ugliness to become a great believer in Buddhism. the young Kim grew up faithful to Buddhism and as Prime Minister gave it official support. He personally designed Bulguksa as a memorial to his parents. Any how it was nice effort t explore the oldest.

Our next destination was Andong traditional village which is considered as the world heritage. Actuall an international festival named as the “Mask Dance festival was in progress at the moment.. It was really a traditional village similar to my country. It has a river lying beside named as “Nakdonggang”.. There was a large number of visitors visiting Andong village. The dance mask festival was at peak when we arrived. All the performers were amazing with nice artistic skills representing their culture and traditions in true ways.. After this I make a quick round of the village, having a look on inside and outside the houses, its farms, cultivations, and the living of people.

It was really impressive for me, the way they work, they way the preserved their culture and the way they are promoting. A hill situated behind the monument leads to the filming location of the popular drama 'taejo wanggeon', based on the life of King Taejo. Due to its historical roots, the Andong area has become a popular backdrop for numerous television dramas. It was a nice trip..:)

We have to Move to our Hotel. Our stay was planned in Wonju. Wonju hotel was also comfortable but with no wifi. We have a walk in Wonju city and that was really nice. Our tour guide offord us a coffee an we have a long discussions on our interests, like and dislikes and much more. We went to bad at 11 PM.

It was our 3^rd  and last day of visit. Our guide told us that we will be having 3 visits today. So we need to hurry. Our first destination was woljeonga temple. Woljeongsa Temple is located in the forest of the valley east of Mt. Odaesan, and it is composed of 60 temples and 8 monasteries made into one large temple. It was nicely located temple and has a nice track towards it covered by many oak trees touching the height of sky, creating a sense of love and romance. There is a temple stay site in this temple and monks were busy in worships.

Our next destination was winter Olympic stadium 2018. Located 182 kilometers southeast of Seoul, in the spectacular southern part of Gangwon Province, Pyeongchang sits at 700 meters above sea level in one of the most rugged, mountainous regions of the country, an area often referred to as “Korea’s Alps.” With typically heavy winter snowfall and a variety of ski slopes, Pyeongchang is among the most popular skiing and snowboarding areas in Korea. Today, Pyeongchang boasts six major ski resorts, includingAlpensia, Pheonix Park andHigh, the most in any area in Korea. 

  Alpensia Resort is located 700 meters above sea level, an altitude which is said to be ideal for the human biorhythm. The resort is a mega multi-tourist complex with ski slopes, a golf course, a water park, a hotel, a condominium, and convention halls. Most importantly, Alpensia Ski Resort offers six slopes of different levels, an exclusive slope for snowboarding, and a long-distance slope for sledding—each of which is covered by snow of the highest quality. 

 The resort also features the Ski Jumping Tower, a landmark of Alpensia Resort and a famous filming location of the movie ‘Take Off,’ as well as the Alpine Coaster, which reaches speeds of up to 40km/hr. The main stadium has seating for up to 15,000 people and the resort offers a well-equipped cross-country course. During the 2018 Olympic Winter Games the Alpensia Resort will host the ski jump, cross country, biathlon, luge, and bobsleigh competitions.  We had a nice look on the area around the Stadium for the observatory which was really touch and attractive.

Our next destination was Traditional Korean House with 99 rooms. This site is a good representation of the ancient upper-class housing style. This vast 99-kan* house is a privately-owned national cultural asset, and has been designated as the Important Folkore Material No. 5. It was created during the 11th generation of the Hyoryeong family, a royal family during the Joseon Dynasty.

  It has been well preserved for 300 years or for 10 generations. eolhwadang is frequently used as a backdrop for historical dramas. The interesting thing for me was the presence of LIBRARY inside the old house. I was really impressed by the way they preserved the heritage.

 Our final destination was Gyeongpodae beach. Located 1 km away from Gyeongpodae, Gyeongpo Beach is a sand bank formed between Gyeongpo Lake and the ocean. This beautiful beach extends to a length of 6 km and is covered with fine sand. It is a very well-known tourist attraction within Korea: a flawless combination of nature and cultural relics. 









Gyeongpo Beach is famous for its picturesque sunrise and tranquil moonrise. There are other nearby attractions in the area, like the pine forest (4 km) and wild roses, which grow in various areas around the beach. Those who enjoy ocean fishing can take a boat to the mall rocks just off the beach. There is an endless line of tourists.

It was really awesome to enjoy on the sand with the blue water touching feet. There were of a number of tourists enjoying their best moments with their partners. We had a real fun. After that it was time to come back home, although I never like but we have to reach Seoul before 9PM. So soon after the visit finish we take our way back Seoul.

Thanks to K Shuttle for this awesome opportunity. I wanna be part of more tours with K shuttle.