Annyeong-Haseyo (Part 3) – The Story From Jeonju

Jeonju is the capital city of North Jeolla Province (Jeollabuk-do), a province in the southwest of South Korea..

this city is famous with the special dish Bibimbap, the Korean paper Hanji, and the beautiful traditional architecture.. 🙂

this is the  first paper museum in Korea.. the Jeonju Hanji Museum..

(Hanji = Korean paper)

Hanji is an extremely durable and high-quality paper, made from the inner bark of the mulberry tree, which grows well in Korea..

the museum has an extensive collection of 3,000 artefacts and a data-base documenting the long history of Hanji..

part of the raw materials and tools used to produce Hanji.. the museum also exhibits different type of Hanji products, which include clothes, wallpaper, lamp cover, necktie and many decorative materials..

demonstration by a Jijang.. the pulp (mixture of fibers from processed mulberry bark, water and natural adhesive) are strained through a bamboo screen, which is shaken back and forth to create a crisscross pattern of fibers on the Hanji..

(Jijang = paper-making expert)

the pulp is then dried by stacking it on a wooden panel and placed under the sun to complete the paper-making process.. ^_*

visitors are given the chance to experience the process of paper making.. me in action.. :p

after drying up, the officer handed to me the paper that i’d made..

haha.. my “masterpiece”.. the Hanji.. 🙂

the officer put a souvenir stamp on my paper.. ^_^

the paper statue.. ^_^

this is the Jeonju National Museum.. the museum houses over 30,000 artefacts, a majority of which were excavated from the Jeollabuk-do area.. 🙂

the Jeonju Hanok Village.. 🙂

(Hanok = traditional style Korean house)

the Jeonju Hanok Village encompassees about 700 homes and represents the largest cluster of Hanok in Korea..

the roof of the Hanok is unique, which curves upward to the sky..

Hanok is generally divided into two sections, the Sarangchae and Anchae.. Sarangchae is where the men gather, and is referred to as the Seonbi room.. whereas Anchae (also known as Gyusu room) is mainly for women.. thus Anchae is situated deep inside the house so that it is secretive and quiet..

another special feature of Hanok is that the house is heated with the ondol system, a unique sub-flooring heating system.. this will keep the house warm during the winter and summer, and the residents can sit and sleep on the floor comfortably.. 🙂

some of the Hanok in this village has been transformed into motels so that tourists can experience the traditional Korean life..

some are transformed into food and souvenir shops..

and restaurants as well.. 🙂

the rest of the city has been developed and industrialized, thus the Jeonju Hanok Village is surrounded by tall and modern buildings.. an interesting view.. 🙂