Refreshing scent of spring attracts visitors.
(Published March 26, 2013)

[Gyeeonggi place for spring outing ②] The spring wind carries and brings to our hearts the refreshing scent of grass leaves and the sweet smell of fruits of Yangpyeong County and Osan City areas. When we enjoy the scent of flowers and stroll along the riverside, it feels like the garden of heaven. Here is the second tourist spots of Gyeonggi Province where you can forget your weary routine and busy city life but feel tranquil as in the country house.

☞ Spring outing course carrying the scent of the fruits

Yangsoo-ri Strawberry Experience Farm → 10km (13 min.) → meal (Lotus Noodle Soup) → 7km (12 min.) → Wild Flower Botanical Garden → 12km (23 min.) → lodging (Dream Ripening Farm pension)

■ Into the full smell of strawberry, ‘Yangsoo-ri Strawberry Experience Farm’

◇ Strawberry farm experience, where visitors can pick and take the strawberry by themselves from the clusters of the plump fruits, is No.1 program in popularity to those who go out for outing. ⓒ G-News Plus

It’s the season of strawberry. The sweet scent of strawberry brought by warm spring wind excites our hearts. These days the strawberry experience farm is crowded with visitors. As visitors can pick and take the strawberry by themselves from the clusters of the plump fruits in the farm, it is No.1 program in popularity to those who go out for outing.

The strawberry experience farm located within Yangsoo-ri Organic District does not use agricultural pesticides or chemical fertilizers but cultivates the fruit in the eco-friendly method. In the farm, visitors can pick and take the strawberry in the container they select by themselves and make strawberry jam as part of the experience program.

In addition, there is a small animal farm where visitors can feed and touch animals such as donkeys, mountain goats, goats, and rabbits. The day in the strawberry farm in the warm spring will stay with you as a fragrant memory.

Charge: Strawberry picking, KRW 15,000 for adults (1kg), KRW 10,000 for children (500g)/ Jam cooking, KRW 16,000 for 500g 2 bottles
Contact: 031-774-2143 http://www.daesik.co.kr (reservation required)
Address: (Yangsoo-ri Strawberry Experience Farm), 796-1 Yangsoo 5-ri, Yangseo-myeon, Yangpyeong County, Gyeonggi Province

■ A bowl of an air of spring ‘Dumul-meori Lotus Noodle Soup’◇ In a bowl of ‘Lotus Noodle Soup’ with full fragrance of lotus, you can feel a strong air of spring. ⓒ G-News Plus

There is a restaurant that cooks food using lotus cultivated in the garden of water and flowers, Semiwon. It is Dumul-meori Lotus Noodle Soup, a 10 minutes distance from Dumul-meori. Its famous dish is a noodle soup with three colored noodles of lotus seeds, lotus roots, and lotus leaves. From old times, lotus has been widely recognized as healthy food with all of the seeds, roots, and leaves edible without wastes. Visitors can feel a strong air of spring with a bowl of full-lotus-fragrant noodle soup.

Charge: Lotus noodle soup (For 2 or more people) KRW 6,000, Lotus leaf rice KRW 7,000, Lotus leaf dinner KRW 32,000
Contact: 031-774-2938 (closed on Mondays)
Address: Lotus restaurant (Dumul-meori Lotus Noodle Soup), 329 Guksu-ri, Yangseo-myeon, Yangpyeong County, Gyeonggi Province

■ Feast of mood of riverside and fragrance of flowers, ‘Wild Flower Botanical Garden’◇ Wild Flower Botanical Garden has various attractions including wild flower garden, botanical garden, tropical botanical garden, and labyrinth for children. ⓒ G-News Plus

Wild Flower Botanical Garden is a botanical garden where visitors can enjoy mood of riverside and fragrance of sweet flowers. Strolling along the trail following the relaxing spring sunshine around the riverside of Namhangang River, you can feel as in the garden of the heaven. The garden includes Herb Garden full of fragrance of the Mediterranean region, Wild Flower Garden exhibiting endemic wild flowers of Korea, Botanical Garden, Tropical Botanical Garden, and Labyrinth for Children. In addition, it has more attractions including Nature Ecological Museum where visitors can look through the ecosystem including various insect and fish specimens, and Dinosaur Egg Hill.

Charge: KRW 7,000 for adults, KRW 5,000 for teenagers, KRW 4,000 for children
Opening hours: 09:30 to 18:00(It may vary per seasons.) / Open year-round
Contact: 031-772-1800 http://www.nemunimo.co.kr
Address: (Wild Flower Botanical Garden), 210-37 Obin-ri, Yangpyeong-eup, Yangpyeong County, Gyeonggi Province

■ Escape from daily routine, ‘Dream Ripening Farm’◇ ‘Dream Ripening Farm’ pension lets visitors forget their weary routines and busy city lives and relaxes visitors as in the longing hometown. ⓒ G-News Plus

There is a place where you can relax from the entrance because of the welcoming face. Dream Ripening Farm Pension is the very place, where you can forget your weary routines and busy city life but relax as in the longing hometown.

As it also runs the experience farm, visitors can experience food making activities such as mugwort gaettok (Mugwort Pancakes), enzyme healthy tea and jam making, ecological experience, and folk experience. Visitors can enjoy happiness in various ways by taking a walk along the trail, and enjoying in water or sand bath in red clay with the fragrance of the garden flowers.

Charge: KRW 150,000 to 200,000 for Grand Room, KRW 100,000 to 200,000 for Family Room, KRW 50,000 to 80,000 for Bungalow Room
Contact: 031-774-1776 http://www.dreamfarm.kr
Address: Dream Ripening Farm (Greenmax), 298-1 Wangchang-ri, Gangha-myeon, Yangpyeong County, Gyeonggi Province 

☞ Spring outing course carrying the fragrance of the grass

Mulhyanggi Arboretum → 3km (7 min.) → Osan Joongang Market → meal (Sundae Gukbap in the market) → 9km (19 min.) → Bojeoksa Temple → Walk (2 min.) → Semadae

■ Refreshing fragrance of the grass brought by the spring wind, ‘Mulhyanggi Arboretum’
◇ Mulhyanggi Arboretum, located in Osan City, was created in about 100,000 pyeong area with the theme of ‘The Encounter of Water, Tree, and Human.’ ⓒ G-News Plus

Rustling spring wind tickles the tip of your nose. If you want to go somewhere following the spring wind, why don’t you feel the vibrant air of the spring in the arboretum full of refreshing smell of the grass?

Mulhyanggi Arboretum, located in Osan, was created in about 100,000 pyeong area with the theme of ‘The Encounter of Water, Tree, and Human.’ Topiary Garden exhibiting various shapes of plants such as birds and animals is the best beloved space by children.

It consists of 20 theme gardens including Wetland Ecology Garden and Wetland Plants Garden to see the ecology of the wetlands, Fruit Trees Garden, Insect Ecology Garden, Labyrinth, and Forest Exhibition Area, and 1,700 plant species. To preserve the environment in its natural state, there are no snack bars or restaurants but the rest areas in the forest for lunch. Also, there are no trash bins. The fragrant spring’s arboretum provides visitors with marvelous experience.

Charge: KRW 1,000 for adults, KRW 700 for teenagers, KRW 500 for children (parking fee : KRW 1,500 to 3,000)
Opening hours: 09:00 to 18:00 (Winter season 17:00, Closed on Mondays)
Contact: 031-378-1261 http://mulhyanggi.gg.go.kr
Address: (Geumam-dong) 211 Cheonghak-ro, Osan City, Gyeonggi Province

■ Long history and tradition of ‘Osan 5-day Market’◇ Osan Market has a long history and tradition enough to appear in ‘Hwaseong Gwolliji’ published in 1792 (16thyearofJeongjoDynasty).ⓒ G-News Plus

Osan Market even appears in ‘Hwaseong Gwolliji’ published in 1792 (16th year of Jeongjo Dynasty). That refers to the long history and tradition of Osan Marketplace. In addition, it ranked the second place among 1511 traditional markets in the nation in terms of vitalization level of traditional market. The traditional market of 100-year history is held when the last digit of the date is 3 or 8.

When the market day comes, the whole Osan region is busy and the marketplace crowded with people seems like a vibrant festival with generous merchants offering more than needed. Moreover, ‘Sale day’ is held on Friday of every last week, fascinating visitors with exclusive specialties of Osan Market.

Contact: 031-376-4141~2 http://blog.naver.com/osanspt
Address: (Osan Joongang Market), 862 Osan-dong, Osan City, Gyeonggi Province

■ Specialty of Osan Market, ‘Sundae Gukbap’◇ The most famous food in Osan Market is Sundae Gukbap, so there are more than 20 Sundae Gukbap restaurants in the market. ⓒ G-News Plus

The most famous food in Osan Market is Sundae Gukbap, which is beloved by hungry market crowds in every market. There are more than 20 Sundae Gukbap restaurants in Osan Market, among which Daeheung Restaurant of 50-year history is representative. In fact, it is rather Head Meat Gukbap than Sundae Gukbap. It is cooked in the traditional method by using coal briquette, and characterized by the clean taste of the white soup with head meat and radish leaves kimchi fermented for 1 year. Also, Booyong Restaurant’s Gukbap of clean and light taste is popular with young visitors.

Daeheung Restaurant: 031-374-4723 (shop no. C3-601, Osan Joongang Market)
Booyong Restaurant: 031-377-1402 (shop no. C2-253, Osan Joongang Market)

■ Tranquil Temple over the castle, ‘Bojeoksa Temple’◇ Little temple in Doksan Castle, Bojeoksa Temple ⓒ G-News Plus

Bojeoksa Temple, located within Doksan Castle, was built in 401 (10th year of Asin Dynasty of Baekje Era). Today’s main temple was newly built in 1920. It is told that after one old couple who had only 1 doe of rice left offered the rice to Buddha and then back to home, their storehouse was filled with rice. For the grace of Buddha, the couple offered more thereafter. The temple name ‘Bojeoksa’ was derived from the story. The little temple is located in tranquil state over the castle.

Contact: 031-372-3433 http://www.보적사.kr
Address: (Bojeoksa Temple) 150 Jigot-dong, Osan City, Gyeonggi Province

■ An air of spring having special history, ‘Semadae (Doksan Castle)’◇ Doksan Castle, built in Baekje Era, was the strategic position until Japanese Invasion of Korea in 1592. ⓒ G-News Plus

Doksan Castle, built in Baekje Era, was the strategic position until Japanese Invasion of Korea in 1592. Semadae is located in the highest position of Doksan Castle. During the Japanese invasion, General Kwon yul took white horses to the high position and pretended to wash them by pouring white rice so that enemy forces believe the castle was rich in water. Accordingly, the Japanese troops believed so and dropped back from the castle. Semadae is the place of the story. Walking along the castle, you can enjoy the curling-up air of the spring.

Contact: 031-370-3063 (Culture Dept. of Osan City)
Address: 155 Jigot-dong, Osan City, Gyeonggi Province

ⓒ G-News Plus News | Lee Joon-kyun eyekle0723@kg21.net

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