Typically my Buddha’s birthday celebration amounts to a trip to Insadong to take in the parade and festivities. This year though a spontaneous decision to join my friends Sonia, Renzo, Peter, Paul, Theresa, Lisa, Dele, Keith, Mekhale, Charles, and Lucia on a 3 day getaway proved to be the best decision ever.

Buddha Holiday Getaway Day 2 – Boseong Green Tea Fields

KICK ASS KOREA reason 2

Day two of the Great Buddha Holiday Getaway started off late. After our late return from Yeosu we didn’t start out until noon. Before check out time I did manage to scrounge breakfast which consisted of coffee and egg bacon muffins from the Dunk N Donuts at Gwangju station. It was the only thing I could find besides the overpriced hotel food. I tried to get train tickets to Boseong but they were all booked. Travelling by train is far more preferable than the bus, but we were pretty much out of options as our friends had sped away toward Boseong an hour earlier. The bus was our only option.

The trip takes about ninety minutes. I settled back in my seat, anticipating the coming sights. An older Korean man sitting across from me chatted me up about his recent visit to Canada to visit his daughter and how his return to Korea meant staying with his wife’s family in Boseong. He didn’t seem to eager for that, but he did bring his in-laws a few presents to make his stay more bearable. Glucosamine seemed like an odd choice to me.  During part of the trip he kindly filled me on a bit of the history of Boseong’s Green Tea.

First of all Green Tea will make you live a long life. I guess the glucosamine doesn’t hurt either. The Green Tea of Boseong dominates the region both economically and ecologically. They grow a large percentage of all Korea’s Green tea. It’s a mountainous region with rolling emerald hills ripe for exploration.

Green Tea in Korea began with the most unlikely of origins. During the colonization of Korea some enterprising Japanese recognized the area as a prime spot for growing tea. Soon the entire area was booming with sharply manicured tea bushes running along the hill tops.  With the defeat of Japan the fields became abandoned until capitalistic minded individuals seized upon the opportunity and reinvested in the area. Now several huge plantations dominate Korea’s Green Tea industry.

With his tales spinning around my head the trip ended all too quickly. At the bus station he pointed out the spot where the free shuttle bus picks up passengers bound for the tea plantations. The first of such plantations happened to be the one we planned on visiting: Daehan Daeop Green Tea Plantation. It’s notable because of Boseong Cedar Road.

It’s not to be missed. Twin rows of humongous cedar trees stretch to meet the sky. Each are planted evenly apart to give the trek to the plantation a harmonious symmetry.  To the left on the hillside the beginnings of the green tea bushes follow the path of the trees up into the rest of the plantation. It’s all pleasantly earthy and wonderful.

Just as Renzo and I reached the main entrance to the fields the rest of our friends made it back down. They’d already been up to the top in the time it took us to catch up with them. Disappointing. Renzo wanted to stick with them and skip the tour of the fields but after all the time it took to get arrive I couldn’t justify not seeing the sights. After a bit of cajoling and a brief photo op with everyone we forged ahead into the plantation while half of them started back toward Seoul and the other off toward Busan where we’d planned on meeting up later that night.

I’m glad we decided to see the plantation. The tea fields are breath taking. The steps may be steep, but the climb is worth every sore limb. The rows of green tea almost ripple in the evening sunlight. Sadly, some of the bushes had fallen to the previous harsh winter and never reocverd but as we continued to climb upwards they became greener and greener until you couldn’t even tell that a quarter of the crop fell to frostbite.

Just standing on the hillside and taking in the surrounding countryside made the entire trip worth it. It’s a picture perfect sight that no photo could hope to capture. Not that I and others didn’t try. Families and friends posed for snapshots while children raced along the rows green tea. I couldn’t help but smile. a giddiness was in the air. An ajumma scampered about urging me to pose with her in shot after shot while her friend took pictures.  Even Renzo cracked a smile and got into the spirit of things.

Just as we thought about continuing on to the top a brief glance at the time revealed that we’d have to cut our Green Tea experience short if we wanted to make it to Busan at a reasonable time.

It may have been brief, but it was unforgettable.

The Good:

Magnificent vistas, fresh air, and beautiful surroundings make it a must see.

The Bad:

I can’t think of a thing. I guess it you need pristine and immaculate vibrant green tea bushes then the frostbitten dead ones would be a bit of a downer for you.

The Weird:

There’s a graveyard in the midst of the green tea field.

Prices:

Adult 2,000won
Ages 7 and under Free

Hours:

9:00 am – 8:00 pm (March to October – 9:00am~7:00pm, November to February – 9:00am~6:00pm)

Phone:

Travel Information 82-61-1330

Address:

Jeollanam-do Bongseong-gun Bonseong-eup Bongsan-ri 1288-1

Website:

Daehan Green Tea Planation

Directions: