Chinn Stew: Namhae (from Mary)

Sunday was Chusok in Korea. Chusok is the Korean Thanksgiving. It is probably one of the biggest holidays in Korea. All of the businesses close and everyone goes home to their families. At Handong, all of the dormitories, offices, restaurants and stores closed. The international students had to move into a temporary place while the dorms shut down. The faculty housing did not close. Our family decided to travel during the Chusok break. We rented a car and went to many places.

One of the places we went to is Namhae Island. Namhae is on the center tip of South Korea. It takes about 5 hours on the bus from Seoul. It took about 3 hours from Pohang. Namhae is one big island with almost 70 small islands that make up the county. There are about 50,000 people that live in Namhae.

The most interesting thing about Namhae is the German Village. It was built for the Koreans who went to work in Germany and returned. In 1960 about 20,000 people went to work in Germany because Germany was short on certain type of workers. The workers sent money back home which helped raise Korea’s economy. The government was thankful and told them if they stayed in Germany for twenty years, when they returned, they will be able to buy land for very cheap. Many people took the offer and stayed in Germany for twenty years. When the workers returned with their German families, they built the German Village.

Namhae is known for its beauty and the Oktoberfest. The Oktoberfest is a festival for drinking but there are many fun activities and performances. When I went there, they did a drum performance and a dance with ladies dancing in traditional Korean dresses and big fans. I really liked the drums because the songs had a really enjoyable and fun beat. There were also face-painting and balloon animals. I got my face painted but didn’t get the balloon animals because I was watching the performances.

At the Oktoberfest you can get some really yummy food like sausages and crepes. The sausages were very good. They were warm and came with a slice of bread to make a sandwich. The crepes were large, very thin and doughy pancakes with a choice of cherry jam or chocolate sauce. I chose chocolate. It was good.

There is a bridge to Namhae that was inspired by the golden gate bridge. The bridge connects Namhae to the mainland. They look similar but not exactly the same. You get a good view of the ocean while driving across the bridge.

Namhae Island