
Yeongju Seonbichon Village
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A visitor to Sunbichon (Scholars’ Village) in Yeongju can see how the yangban or upper-class Koreans used to live. Out by the rear entrance to Sosu Seowon Confucian School, there is a quiet, lonely little footpath. After strolling along the path for a while and crossing a bridge over the Jukgyecheon Stream, you will arrive at Sunbichon Village.
Established in 2004 on a 14-acre site with the budget of 16.5 billion won, the village is the largest single facility in the country where you can revisit the life and times of the Joseon Dynasty. Around 4 million people have now paid a visit to the village.
Since its introduction at the 2006 International Expo Singapore, there has been a steady increase in the number of visitors from Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Taiwan. In 2008 alone, more than 5,000 Singaporeans visited the village.

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Programs offered for those interested in the country’s traditional culture include tteokmechigi (pounding sticky lumps of steamed rice with a big wooden hammer to make tasty rice cake); calligraphy; the printmaking technique of takbon, in which an ink bundle is used to create images from random objects picked up here and there, ancient relics, stone, wood and other textured materials; a traditional wedding ceremony; a crash course in Hangeul (Korean alphabet); tea ceremony; spinning a top; tuho (a game involving the throwing of arrows into a jar); neoldduigi (see-saw jumping), and so on.
- The site is composed of seven houses with tiled roofs, five straw houses, a pavilion, a tower, an millstone turned by oxen, a watermill, a wondumak(a straw-roofed lookout for a melon field), jeongryeogak (a structure set up to honor the loyalty of a faithful retainer, a filial piety of a faithful son or daughter, or the chastity of a faithful woman), a lecture room and a marketplace. Sosu Seowon Confucian School, Sosu Museum and Buseoksa Temple are renowned nearby landmarks. With Sobaeksan Mountain as a backdrop, the village offers a pleasant scenic view.

- A lecture room, a classroom of a private school, a millstone and a watermill combine with each other to recreate the kind of atmosphere in which scholars used to engage in academic learning in the olden days. At the marketplace, you can taste traditional delicacies or have a look at how people used to work at a blacksmith’s or a workshop, and buy exquisite handcrafted goods. 32 guestrooms are available for up to 100 people. If you would like to use a guestroom during the holiday season, you should make a reservation at least one month in advance.
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Please call Yeongju Sunbichon Village (82-54-638-6444) or visit its homepage (http://www.sunbichon.net)