Summer getaway at Daegwallyeong

Visitors look on as cows graze in a meadow at the Samyang Ecogreen Campus, a ranch in Pyeongchang County, Gangwon Province. / Courtesy of the Pyeongchang County Office

• Published Jul 23, 2015 4:36 PM KST
• Updated Jul 23, 2015 4:36 PM KST

Beat the heat with music festival, water parks and ranches

By Kwon Ji-youn

There is no better way to escape the sweltering heat and humidity of summer than with a week-long trip to Daegwallyeong, the Alps of Korea.

And there just happens to be no better time than now as the Great Mountains Music Festival and School (GMMFS), helmed by music directors Chung Myung-wha and Chung Kyung-wha, is taking place at the sleepy resort of Pyeongchang, Gangwon Province. Over the next week it is set to feature a spectacular program that meshes classics with contemporaries under the theme “French Chic.”

The festivities, which will focus on France, a cultural hub for artists, dancers, designers and architects, officially began on July 14, with a Distinguished Artists Series (DAS) performance spearheaded by violinist Kim Nam-yun. The concert gave prominence to the country’s only single instrument and violin ensembles, which, two days later, was followed by a second set of DAS performances that brought the Wonju Philharmonic Orchestra and this year’s Queen Elisabeth Music Competition's grand prize winner Lim Ji-young together. Their performance celebrated the 150th anniversary of the birth of Sibelius with the Finnish composer’s “Violin Concert in D Minor.”

The festival re-opened Friday with a performance by the GMMFS Orchestra and the National Chorus of Korea (NCK), which together staged an appropriately all French repertoire. The first half featured arias by four vocalists and the NCK and the second brought Gabriel Faure’s “Requiem” to the stage under Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France principal timpanist Adrien Perruchon’s baton. The line-up included soprano Hwang Su-mi, mezzo soprano Yayoi Toriki, tenor Chung Ho-yoon and baritone Tito You.

On Sunday, those in Daegwallyeong for golf may want to spend the evening enjoying music by violin virtuoso Chung Kyung-wha and the Raon Quartet in Hoenggye, just a short drive from the Alpensia and Yongpyong Resorts. On July 31, world renowned harpist Lavinia Meijer is set to collaborate with the Gangneung Philharmonic Orchestra and 15-year-old violin wunderkind Lee Soo-been, the youngest-ever winner of the 2014 Young Concert Artists audition.

Other DAS concerts will hit the Alpenisa Resort concert halls and music tents through Aug. 2.

“There is so much more to French music than Maurice Ravel or Claude Debussy,” cellist Chung Myung-wha said in a press event at the Grand Ambassador Hotel in central Seoul, June 8. “French music embodies the work of composers Camille Saint-Saens, Gabriel Faure and Georges Bizet, who dominated French cathedrals and opera houses during the 19th century, as well as Baroque composers of the 18th century. Just as we have over the last two years, we hope this year to provide audiences with an overview with performances that play up the region's unique color, beauty and temperament.”

The mornings (and select afternoons) will be comprised of “Master Classes” to provide young talented individuals with an outstanding learning experience through the integration of finest quality instruction and innovative concert programming. The instructor line-up will include violinists Catherine Cho and Daniel Phillips, violist Roberto Diaz and cellist Lluís Claret. The GMMFS will also stage the world premieres of five performances at the multi-venue festival. For more information, visit www.gmmfs.com or call (033) 240-1360.

Enjoy Daegwallyeong

In case the Great Mountains Music Festival and School isn’t enough to lure visitors all the way to Daegwallyeong, the mountain pass is home to a number of other attractions that will make the trip worthwhile. The four administrative units that make up the Daegwallyeong Special Tourist Zone have something for everyone _ breathtaking resorts, ranches, gardens, national parks and historic sites, among others.

Pyeongchang County, where the town of Daegwallyeong is situated, is the venue of the upcoming 2018 Winter Olympics. Winter sports fans may want to make a quick visit to the country’s largest ski jump, the Alpensia Ski Jumping Tower, before delighting in the resort’s golf course and other facilities. Yongpyong, a neighboring resort, boasts Peak Island, a water park located at an altitude of 700 meters, and Phoenix Park also flaunts a theme park equipped with Korea’s first uphill slide.

Daegwallyeong’s many ranches are a must-visit for visitors looking for an escape from the hustle and bustle of city life. The Samyang Ecogreen Campus is Asia’s largest ranch and has served as a filming location for a number of movies and television series. The Daegwallyeong Sheep Herd Ranch is home to some 200 white sheep, and visitors are welcome to feed them. Just minutes from Alpensia Resort is the Daegwallyeong Baby Animals Ranch, ideal for families with children.

Also fitting for families is the Gyebangsan Auto-camping Site in Yongpyeong-myeon, noted for its thick, natural recreation forest, and the Gyebangsan Food Town, a foodies’ utopia. For those seeking extraordinary experiences, thousands of pollack hanging at the Daegwallyeong Pollack Drying Ground is quite a sight, as is that of parrots riding bicycles, kissing trainers and drawing huge applause after shows at the Korea Parrot School.

The Odaesan National Park in Jinbu-myeon is a hikers’ paradise, with five peaks and an array of temples. Of these, the Woljeongsa Temple is the head temple of the Jogye Order of Korean Buddism’s fourth district, and has a number of national treasures and artifacts, including the Stone Seated Bodhisattva (Yagwangbosal).

The Lee Seung-bok Memorial Hall in Yongpyeong-myeon screens for visitors a film about the life of Lee, a nine- to 10-year-old South Korean boy murdered by a North Korean guerilla in 1968, and nearby is a nature exploration facility for children.

For bookworms, the Bongpyeong Hyoseok Cultural Village in Bongpyeong-myeon is a literature-themed tourist destination that commemorates novelist Lee Hyo-seok, writer of “When Buckwheat Flowers Bloom.” On the other side of town, the Pyeongchang Natural Recreation Forest brags a trekking course well-suited to visitors seeking both leisure and relaxation.

Adventurers will delight in the mountain bike and all-terrain vehicle (ATV) trails that wind through mountains and valleys, and rafting is available at the Odaecheon Stream. Paragliding off the Barwangsan Paragliding Launch Site and horse-riding at the many ranches are other options.

For more information, visit www.happy700.or.kr or call the Pyeongchang County Office at (033) 330-2000.