Muju Resort-Korea ~ Inside My Backpack

20101102

Muju Resort-Korea

5:41 PM JEPOI 3 comments

November 2, 2010

As mentioned in my previous post, I went to Muju Resort in North Jeolla Province, Korea last October 28-31 for the International Conference for International Students (LCIS) organized by the Culture Society of Korea.

Muju Resort is located 2-3 hours away from Seoul, going southward. We did not have any problem in terms of transportation since everything was arranged for us. Selected participants from my University filled up one bus that went directly in front of our hotel in Muju. The view was spectacular when we arrived. It was chilly at around 0 degree Celsius, but the mountainous landscapes and the nice resort layout were all perfect for my 4-day getaway, which I considered as a short escape from my Seoul City life.

The conference was not really very organized and many parts were messed up. We couldn’t blame the organizers since there were almost 1,000 of us, students from different universities in Korea, participating. It was perhaps the largest conference, so far, that I have ever attended.

Chen, my schoolmate from China and Me.

Muju Resort is an integrated resort complex, spreading over 670 hectares, right in the middle of Mt. Deogyo National Park. Koreans know the place as the most famous venue for skiing during Winter. It is however open all year round. It’s like a small town, with shops, bars, night clubs, an amusement park with rides, golf courses, convention halls, hotels that cater to both medium and high end customers, convenient stores, supermarkets, restaurants and even a fast food.

The place is mountanous so roaming around Muju Resort was like hiking. We had to walk for at least 10 minutes, every time, to reach the conference hall from our hotel and from both of them to the restaurant where we had our meals. It was also easy to get lost. I remember we were confused for a quite a number of times as to which hotel building we were billeted, since all of them look almost the same, Austrian-inspired architecture.

This is definitely not for backpackers. I would think that Muju Resort is for family vacationers, school trips and those traveling in big groups.

We also visited Hanok Traditional Korean Village in Jeonju right after the conference.