By Chung Ah-young
Traditional markets might be one of the best places to understand the culture of the regions where you are traveling.
For the upcoming "Seollal" or Lunar New Year's Day on Feb. 8, the Korea Tourism Organization (KTO) introduced "Traditional Markets Selling and Buying Fun," markets in six regions that best represent the unique cultures of some popular tourist destinations around country.
Traditional Markets in Gwangju
Malbau Market is a quintessential traditional market in Gwangju, southwest of Seoul. Opening every five days, the market sells fresh agricultural items from vendors from Damyang, Gokseong and Suncheon in South Jeolla Province that are not easily available in other regions. The market, where some 20,000 people visit a day, is famous for its "Grandma Alley," in which elderly vendors sell their vegetables and herbs they have grown themselves at affordable prices.
Songjeong Market is a flea market that also opens every five days and sells fresh seafood, among other things. It also features a 40-year-old blacksmith workshop that produces and sells various kinds of agricultural tools. At the workshop, a skillful blacksmith uses traditional methods to create made-to-order tools. The market also has various restaurants that offer Cambodian, Thai and Chinese cuisine to cater to foreigners who live in the region near the Pyeongdong Industrial Complex where migrant laborers work.
Yangdong Market is renowned for its time-honored shops and for its merchants who joined the Gwangju Uprising — Chun Doo-hwan's brutal crackdown on demonstrations against his military junta — on May 18, 1980. First opened in 1910, the market is considered one of the first department stores in the region, selling a wide range of items, from food and furniture to clothing and accessories. Despite the emergence of larger department stores in recent years, the market continues to operate, housing 680 shops.
Gangneung Jumunjin Seafood Market
Established in 1936, Gangneung Jumunjin Seafood Market in Gangwon Province is located next to Jumunjin Port, which is large enough to accommodate up to 500 fishing boats.
The largest seafood market in the region features both dried and freshly caught seafood and a sashimi center in which people buy fish as well as eat. At the market, visitors can enjoy various types of fish and other seafood at affordable prices, in particular squid, mackerel, pollock, pike and crab. This month is the peak season for blowfish.
The market also hosts a variety of events, such as the Blowfish Festival and Squid Festival. Travelers should visit the market at dawn to enjoy a spectacular view of the boats that are returning from fishing.
Gyeongju Seongdong Market
Gyeongju Seongdong Market is a very accessible traditional market, located just across Gyeongju Station in North Gyeongsang Province, which was once the capital of the Silla Kingdom (57 B.C.-A.D. 935). Back when it was located in the center of Gyeongju City, the market was a small discount market that sold clothes, tools and snacks at low prices. Since moving to its current site in 1971, the market has grown into the city's signature marketplace, housing more than 600 shops with 800 merchants.
Visitors recognize the market by its symbol — large octopuses that hang in front of a fish shop at the market. As part of the Confucian traditions in this region, people serve an octopus during ancestral rituals and family events, as it symbolizes the Confucian scholars. Finally, the market has a famous "buffet alley," in which tiny restaurants offer an eat-all-you-can buffet with more than 20 kinds of side dishes for only 5,000 won.
Jeonju Nambu Market and Youth (Cheongnyeon) Mall
Once called the "kitchen" of the people in Jeonju, North Jeolla Province, Jeonju Nambu Market is very popular among visitors seeking affordable home-style food.
To keep pace with the large discount stores that have opened in recent years, the market opened Youth (Cheongnyeon) Mall in 2012. Housing some 32 shops, which range from restaurants and bars to handicraft stores, coffee shops, galleries and board game rooms, the mall began as a platform for young entrepreneurs, to help address the low employment rates. Now, the mall has become the market's hotspot, catching the attention of visitors with the shops' creative interiors and exteriors. From murals to posters with catchy phrases, the shops are gaining their popularity with a clear message of their unique services.
The night market, which opens at 6 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, is another must-visit for travelers. The market features some 35 mobile vendors selling their various foods and handicrafts.
Jeju Sehwa Folk Market
Jeju Sehwa Folk Market is located on Sehwa Beach, renowned for its white sand and sapphire-blue seawater, in the northeastern part of the resort island of Jeju. The flea market, which opens every five days, turns the tranquil, picturesque area into a hustle-and-bustle tourist spot.
Vendors at the market sell various kinds of fresh fish and fruits, as well as pets, such as cats, rabbits, dogs, turtles and ducks, and agricultural tools, which are rarely available in other markets. The nearby Jeju Women Divers (Haenyeo) Museum offers a glimpse of the island's unique culture and history. "Haenyeo" refers to the women who dive into the ocean water to gather various shellfish and seaweed.
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Onyang Hot Spring Market
Onyang in Asan, South Chungcheong Province is home to some 10 hot springs. Until the 1960s and 1970s, it was a popular honeymoon destination.
The birth of Onyang Hot Spring Market is attributed to these hot springs. The market has some 500 stores and 300 stalls selling fish, livestock products, clothes and other items.
The opening of the Onyang Oncheon Station in 2008 has turned the market into a popular cultural and tourist destination by making it more accessible to the growing number of visitors. Onyang is currently accessible via subway line No. 1 from Seoul, which is recommended for a one-day travel course.
The cafe Yuyujajeok has also received good feedback from the market visitors, as it provides a place for market vendors to host radio programs for children and other people.
After enjoying the hot springs, travelers can visit other attractions, such as the Hyeonchungsa Shrine, Oeam Folk Village and Sinjeong Lake.
Traditional markets might be one of the best places to understand the culture of the regions where you are traveling.
For the upcoming "Seollal" or Lunar New Year's Day on Feb. 8, the Korea Tourism Organization (KTO) introduced "Traditional Markets Selling and Buying Fun," markets in six regions that best represent the unique cultures of some popular tourist destinations around country.
Traditional Markets in Gwangju
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| Songjeong Market in Gwangju |
Malbau Market is a quintessential traditional market in Gwangju, southwest of Seoul. Opening every five days, the market sells fresh agricultural items from vendors from Damyang, Gokseong and Suncheon in South Jeolla Province that are not easily available in other regions. The market, where some 20,000 people visit a day, is famous for its "Grandma Alley," in which elderly vendors sell their vegetables and herbs they have grown themselves at affordable prices.
Songjeong Market is a flea market that also opens every five days and sells fresh seafood, among other things. It also features a 40-year-old blacksmith workshop that produces and sells various kinds of agricultural tools. At the workshop, a skillful blacksmith uses traditional methods to create made-to-order tools. The market also has various restaurants that offer Cambodian, Thai and Chinese cuisine to cater to foreigners who live in the region near the Pyeongdong Industrial Complex where migrant laborers work.
Yangdong Market is renowned for its time-honored shops and for its merchants who joined the Gwangju Uprising — Chun Doo-hwan's brutal crackdown on demonstrations against his military junta — on May 18, 1980. First opened in 1910, the market is considered one of the first department stores in the region, selling a wide range of items, from food and furniture to clothing and accessories. Despite the emergence of larger department stores in recent years, the market continues to operate, housing 680 shops.
Gangneung Jumunjin Seafood Market
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| Jumunjin Seafood Market in Gangneung |
Established in 1936, Gangneung Jumunjin Seafood Market in Gangwon Province is located next to Jumunjin Port, which is large enough to accommodate up to 500 fishing boats.
The largest seafood market in the region features both dried and freshly caught seafood and a sashimi center in which people buy fish as well as eat. At the market, visitors can enjoy various types of fish and other seafood at affordable prices, in particular squid, mackerel, pollock, pike and crab. This month is the peak season for blowfish.
The market also hosts a variety of events, such as the Blowfish Festival and Squid Festival. Travelers should visit the market at dawn to enjoy a spectacular view of the boats that are returning from fishing.
Gyeongju Seongdong Market
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| Gyeongju Seongdong Market in North Gyeongsang Province offers an eat-all-you-can buffet with more than 20 kinds of side dishes for only 5,000 won. / Courtesy of KTO |
Gyeongju Seongdong Market is a very accessible traditional market, located just across Gyeongju Station in North Gyeongsang Province, which was once the capital of the Silla Kingdom (57 B.C.-A.D. 935). Back when it was located in the center of Gyeongju City, the market was a small discount market that sold clothes, tools and snacks at low prices. Since moving to its current site in 1971, the market has grown into the city's signature marketplace, housing more than 600 shops with 800 merchants.
Visitors recognize the market by its symbol — large octopuses that hang in front of a fish shop at the market. As part of the Confucian traditions in this region, people serve an octopus during ancestral rituals and family events, as it symbolizes the Confucian scholars. Finally, the market has a famous "buffet alley," in which tiny restaurants offer an eat-all-you-can buffet with more than 20 kinds of side dishes for only 5,000 won.
Jeonju Nambu Market and Youth (Cheongnyeon) Mall
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| Jeonju Nambu Market in North Jeolla Province has a night bazaar, which opens on Fridays and Saturdays. |
Once called the "kitchen" of the people in Jeonju, North Jeolla Province, Jeonju Nambu Market is very popular among visitors seeking affordable home-style food.
To keep pace with the large discount stores that have opened in recent years, the market opened Youth (Cheongnyeon) Mall in 2012. Housing some 32 shops, which range from restaurants and bars to handicraft stores, coffee shops, galleries and board game rooms, the mall began as a platform for young entrepreneurs, to help address the low employment rates. Now, the mall has become the market's hotspot, catching the attention of visitors with the shops' creative interiors and exteriors. From murals to posters with catchy phrases, the shops are gaining their popularity with a clear message of their unique services.
The night market, which opens at 6 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, is another must-visit for travelers. The market features some 35 mobile vendors selling their various foods and handicrafts.
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| Youth Mall at Jeonju Nambu Market in Jeonju |
Jeju Sehwa Folk Market
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| Sehwa Folk Market on Jeju Island |
Jeju Sehwa Folk Market is located on Sehwa Beach, renowned for its white sand and sapphire-blue seawater, in the northeastern part of the resort island of Jeju. The flea market, which opens every five days, turns the tranquil, picturesque area into a hustle-and-bustle tourist spot.
Vendors at the market sell various kinds of fresh fish and fruits, as well as pets, such as cats, rabbits, dogs, turtles and ducks, and agricultural tools, which are rarely available in other markets. The nearby Jeju Women Divers (Haenyeo) Museum offers a glimpse of the island's unique culture and history. "Haenyeo" refers to the women who dive into the ocean water to gather various shellfish and seaweed.
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Onyang Hot Spring Market
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| Onyang Hot Spring Market in Asan |
Onyang in Asan, South Chungcheong Province is home to some 10 hot springs. Until the 1960s and 1970s, it was a popular honeymoon destination.
The birth of Onyang Hot Spring Market is attributed to these hot springs. The market has some 500 stores and 300 stalls selling fish, livestock products, clothes and other items.
The opening of the Onyang Oncheon Station in 2008 has turned the market into a popular cultural and tourist destination by making it more accessible to the growing number of visitors. Onyang is currently accessible via subway line No. 1 from Seoul, which is recommended for a one-day travel course.
The cafe Yuyujajeok has also received good feedback from the market visitors, as it provides a place for market vendors to host radio programs for children and other people.
After enjoying the hot springs, travelers can visit other attractions, such as the Hyeonchungsa Shrine, Oeam Folk Village and Sinjeong Lake.
