The plan on my second day in Chuncheon was to visit a waterfall and then get a ferry to an inland island. This was all going to plan until we got off at the wrong train station and ended up stranded in the middle of nowhere which also happened to be devoid of any type of public transport. Walking back was definitely out of the question and so against my better instincts it was time to ask for help. In the end a pair of exotic peaches saved the day when we used them as a bribe to hitch a lift to the nearest town. Luckily the driver wasn’t a crazed psychopath!
A bus trip and a hike up a snow laden trail later we eventually made it to Gugok Waterfall (구곡폭포) which at this time of year was completely frozen and is apparently a popular place for intrepid climbers although there weren’t any there that day.
Away from the ice and snow Nami Island (남이섬) was a very different proposition. The island, which sits in the middle of Cheongpyung Lake, is about 6 kilometers end-to-end so is easily walked around and is accessible by ferry. Famous for its beautiful tree lined roads, the island and the surrounding area is well known for the tv drama Winter Sonata which was filmed there in 2002 attracting many fans on pilgrimage.
After a pleasant couple of hours here it was time for some late lunch and in true Korean style Bulgogi (technically Sam-gyeop sal or 삼겹살 to be precise) was the order of the day, cooked on the back of a metal turtle no less! If you don’t like spicy food then going to Korea is probably a bad idea as about every single dish I’ve ever had there has been hot to some degree (which I love).
So ended my excursion to Chuncheon and it was time to head back to Seoul for my last night in South Korea before my trip to Beijing the following day.
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On my fifth day in South Korea I headed east by train to Chuncheon, the capital of Gangwon province, a much quieter affair than Seoul with more of a country feel to it - they obviously don’t see a huge number of westerners here as the stares I got were far more pronounced. I’ve often been mistaken for an American whilst in Korea due to the massive US Army presence there but in general I’ve found people to be a little more gracious if they know you’re not one of them!
Arriving around lunchtime it was time to find some food and as Chuncheon is famous for its “dak-galbi” (닭갈비), a spicy stir-fried chicken dish with vegetables (as seen before), it only seemed a fitting place to start. In fact Chuncheon has a whole street with restaurants which serve nothing but dakgalbi so there was plenty of choice!
“Dakgalbi is prepared by marinating chopped chicken in spicy red pepper paste with peppery seasoning for about one day. Cabbage, green onions, sweet potatoes, and cylinder shaped rice cakes are then added and the ingredients are all placed in a large cast iron pan. The mixture is then typically stir-fried at the table… Dakgalbi can be enjoyed on its own or wrapped in lettuce leaves for a fresh, crunchy sensation. After most of the Dakgalbi has been eaten, rice is then stir-fried with the remaining sauce in the pan.”
If this has wet your appetite you can learn how to cook it on mykoreankitchen.com 
Once my stomach was full it was time to find a bus to the next place of interest, namely Soyang Dam. Whilst I was waiting a van laden with bananas pulled up and started flogging them to the oldies also waiting - I couldn’t quite imagine spending my whole life selling nothing but bananas but it is nice to see a place where there is still room for this sort of individual enterprise.
After a rather hair-raising bus trip up the side of the valley (more on this later) we arrived at the top of the largest sand gravel dam in East Asia which commanded an expansive view over Lake Soyang. Build in 1973 the dam rises 123m with a depth of 530m and a gross storage capacity of 29 billion cubic meters of water - it was built for the purpose of flood control, water storage and hydroelectric power production. It’s an impressive feat of geoengineering but pales in comparison to what’s been done to the Yangtze River in China.
Walking down to the lake’s edge you can take boat for the other side and the untold mysteries that the misty Majeoksan mountains had yet to reveal… To be continued.
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So it turns out the Jackie Chan, the venerable Hong Kong action film star, has his own chain of restaurants serving his “favorite noodles & dim sum”. One branch can be found in the massive COEX mall located in the Gangnam district of Seoul, South Korea. With over 800 restaurants to choose from (yes, eight-hundred!!) the mall is a little hard to digest and unless you are heavily into shopping (I’m not) then there isn’t much more to do than marvel at the scale of consumerism on display here (with the possible exception of the Kimchi Museum).
Photo by riNux
Getting back to the food… we ordered a selection of (rather expensive) dim sum and noodles but I have to say I was disappointed. Whilst the food was palatable it did not live up to my expectations, especially in the dim sum department, which didn’t seem particularly fresh - as this review also notes they probably cook it from frozen.
Whilst there is a certain novel value to the restaurant I’d probably give it a miss next time.
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Inflationary pressures in China are currently at an 11 year high with food prices having gone up by more than 10% in 2008 alone. Contributing factors include the bad weather which brought China to a stand still during the holidays recently. The government have set up temporary price controls and increased the minimum wage in some areas to try and ease the situation but for some the impact is fairly stark when it comes to buying the weekly essentials.
Earlier today I spoke with a friend in southern China who has just started back at university after the spring festival break. Rather worryingly they complained that the canteen on campus had stopped serving meat with any of the meals because of the price increases. Although they were getting enough vegetables they were feeling pretty hungry but didn’t dare tell others about it as to avoid their parents worrying and giving the university a bad impression (is this what they mean by saving face?).
As westerners this is rather difficult to imagine. We take it for granted that the supermarkets will always be stocked with whatever we want 247. It just goes to show how fragile a system we live in.
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Despite London’s large Chinese population, finding good authentic Chinese food at a reasonable price is somewhat difficult - China Town is OK but generally expensive and the quality/hygiene questionable. However, when you scratch beneath the surface, there is the odd gem to be found and sometimes in the most unassuming of places. One such place can be found south of the Thames not far from where I’ve been working and over the past year has become a popular haunt for Friday lunch of almost mythical proportions. One of my colleagues has kindly written a review which I thought I might share (complete with my iPhone photos) -
An unassuming blue building at the Elephant end of Walworth Road - Indian Cafes, ropey B&Bs, the world famous Ivory Arch nightspot. Not necessarily where one would expect to find a restaurant of any true quality, but then life is full of unexpected pleasures. At the far end are a set of doors that would not look out of place along the Great Wall and behind them lie sublime culinary delights not of this world.
The Dragon Castle menu has all the regular Chinese restaurant favourites - sweet and sour chicken, crispy duck etc - and some unusual but tantalising specialities, but the real draw is the dim sum. The highlight is the scallop and coriander cheung fun - juicy scallops and fresh coriander wrapped in a sheet of glistening cheung fun. Other favourites include the Vietnamese spring rolls, beef balls, sesame prawn rolls - a far cry from the usual sesame prawn toasts. The dumplings are a real treat, steamed or fried, pork or prawn, or both for that matter - I am salivating just thinking about them.
The dim sum specials menu has just been updated with some truly delicious new ideas - mixed seafood dumplings and honeyed venison puffs are the star attractions.
You might think that all this is sounding a little pricey for lunch, but amazingly no matter how much you order the bill is never above £15 per head - perhaps this really is some magical realm!
So go, go now and try some of the joys that I have mentioned, and some that I have not, but make sure you get there by 5pm, because that’s when the dim sum chefs knock off.
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