By Kavita Mistry 
I am surrounded by racks of poofy skirts. It’s a drizzly day at Jeonju Hanok Village in Jeollabuk-do(North Jeolla province), South Korea, home to more than 700 hanoks — traditional Korean houses with distinct wooden frames and tiled roofs. The rain is no deterrent. I follow tourists and locals into a hanbok rental store.
I am on a mission.
But first, some background. A mix of traditional architecture and commercial establishments, which include cafes, restaurants, souvenir shops and hanbok rentals, Jeonju Hanok Village draws hundreds of tourists with its history and selfie-friendly surroundings. An added perk? South Korea encourages visitors to wear their charming hanbok as a tourist, even offering free entry into some historical sites.
A view of the Jeonju Hanok Village
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement
The employees at the hanbok rental work with clockwork precision and I am immediately shown colourful options in my size. These can be rented for anywhere upwards of 9,000 won for an hour (roughly ₹550 onwards), with additional charges for a hair makeover and ornaments if needed.
Once I pick a lavender and gold hanbok, I am sent to a room at the back of the store, where several women are ready to help me and other customers put the hanbok on. Once we are dressed, there are more women waiting, ready to work on our hair; a partial bun, an updo, or a chic ponytail — all with the many hair ornaments, clips and combs they have laid out.
We have picked one of the fancier hanbok rental stores, which boasts DSLR toting professional photgraphers and colourful backdrops. We pose and then take our hanboks out for a spin, walking down the streets of the village feeling like K-Drama heroines in our floaty skirts (which are surprisingly easy to manage). While several families, couples and gaggles of tourists choose to rent hanboks for even for a whole day and then stroll around, we wear ours for an hour and then reluctantly bid farewell to our Korean makeovers.
Nun’s kitchen
At the Baegyangsa Temple, South Jeolla
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Special Arrangement
In a wood-panelled dining room, lined with shelves of colourful ceramics at the scenic Baegyangsa temple in Jeollanam-do(South Jeolla) province, we gear up to try temple cuisine, straight from the Buddhist temple’s kitchens.
While one can visit the temple for a day and explore the monastery there, Baegyangsa has a popular temple stay programme which comes with the option of meeting and attending a cooking class by Buddhist-nun-and-Chef Jeong Kwan, who featured on Netflix’s Chef’s Table. Despite the fact that she is neither formally trained nor affiliated to a restaurant, Jeong has been instrumental in popularising temple cuisine across the world.
Jeong Kwan
| Photo Credit:
S Poorvaja
The meal we sit down to eat is vegan, onion and garlic-free, with seasonal ingredients largely grown in the gardens there. There is lightly stir-fried lotus stem, mildly-umami kimchi, a comforting bowl of brothy greens, vegetable pancakes, and her speciality — shiitake mushrooms.
Jeong joins us after we finish our healthy, yet hearty meal; and we are instantly starstruck. She meticulously brews green tea and instructs us to slowly sip and savour the warm beverage. “Temple food is good for your health and healing, both physically and mentally,” she says, of the meal we have just had the opportunity to savour. Asking us where we are from, she goes on to speak about the deep connection between India and South Korea, given the origins of Buddhism in ancient India.
Our lunch at the Baegyangsa temple
| Photo Credit:
S Poorvaja
The temple buildings stand against the stunning backdrop of the Baegamsan mountain. Baegyangsa is said to truly come alive in the fall, with stunning autumn colours and the foliage covering the area in hues of reds, yellows and browns.
Soak in the woods
Damyang’s Juknokwon bamboo forest
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Special Arrangement
The Japanese concept of forest bathing, or mindfully immersing oneself in Nature, surrounded by trees and thick foliage is just one among the many wellness trends that has taken over the world in the last few years. And this is why we make a beeline for the Juknokwon bamboo forest in the town of Damyang, in Jeollanam-do. Spread over 3,10,000 square metres, the sprawling bamboo forest takes its healing properties seriously; visitors can choose from eight trails to walk through with names such as Good Luck road, Meditation road, and Old Memories road. (We truly feel ready to heal, while huffing and puffing through a few steep-yet-navigable trails.)
As we walk through a thicket of tall, swaying bamboo, our guide mentions that “bamboo forest bathing” is said to ease stress and boost happiness. Sunlight flickers through the leaves, and colourful lanterns strung along the path make the walk as scenic as it is supposedly healing. There are plenty of tourists, of course, yet the trails never feel crowded or noisy. It’s as if everyone is moving with the same quiet intention: to walk out a little lighter than they came in..
As we walk, we pass hammocks and benches where visitors pause to soak it all in, and even a row of people getting foot baths at sinks that look straight out of a parlour for pedicures.
The Korea Bamboo Museum there offers a quick primer on the evolution of bamboo craft, while the store next door showcases chaesang — the finely woven bamboo boxes and baskets considered an intangible cultural asset of South Korea.
By the time we’ve wandered (and shopped) our way through, we’re desperate for a drink. True to theme, the cafeteria is pouring warm, refreshing bamboo tea. One cup later, we’re happy to believe the hype: consider us healed by Korea. Now, if only I can also wear my hanbok to work.
The writer was in South Korea on invitation from Korea Tourism Organisation
