South Korea Trip Day 4: 12 February 2014, Wednesday - Snow-skiing Time!
韩国之旅第四天：2月12日2014年, 星期三 - 滑雪时间到了!
Attractions for the day:
Yongpyong Resort 龙平豪华度假村 [Google Maps Link]
Accommodation for the day:
Yongpyong Resort Dragon Valley Hotel 龙平度假村龙谷酒店 [Google Maps Link]
We started the fourth day of our trip with a buffet breakfast at Hanwha Resort's banquet hall. The awesome spread of bread, pastries, cereals, porridge, sausages, eggs, noodles, rice, salad etc., was a great start to a new day in Korea.
Cute Pororo utensils for the kids.
A wide array of mouth-watering food to feast on.
Some salad to kickstart the breakfast.
Good food to start off the new day in Korea.
After the hearty breakfast, we made our way back to our rooms for a final appreciation of the surrounding scenery. Snow-covered mountains and trees painted a beautiful picture right before our eyes. One could really be mesmerized by such scenic views and do not wish to leave that place. However we had to leave for another destination soon, so we dragged our luggage out of our rooms reluctantly. The coach then brought us to our next destination.
The contours and different shades of the mountains conjure up a magical spectacle.
Sun rays making an excellent photo-taking opportunity.
The next place of accommodation was Dragon Valley Hotel at Yongpyong Resort. It was much colder at Yongpyong Resort probably because it is at a much higher altitude, which made it a good place to ski. By the time we reached the resort, the temperature was -9.8 degrees Celsius!
Our next stay is at Yongpyong Resort's Dragon Valley Hotel.
Can't imagine that the temperature was almost 10 degrees sub-zero.
Dear warming herself up with the fireplace right in the middle of the hotel lobby.
The river was frozen and the view was magnificent.
We were quickly brought to take the gondola up to the peak called Dragon Peak where pros would ski down the slopes. The ride took about 20 minutes and we admired the view from such a height.
Time for some snow-skiing!
A snowman greets us on our way to take the gondola.
Look at all the icicles hanging from the roofs.
View from the gondola.
Enjoying the magnificent view of the mountains from the gondola.
We can only get such views at the top of Dragon Peak.
Top of the world!
Once we reached Dragon Peak, we were told to assemble right at the bottom of the gondola ride by a certain time. So we had some time to roam around Dragon Peak for some picture-taking. The breathtaking view of all the mountains around the area was so awe-inspiring that we probably took well over 50 pictures at Dragon Peak alone. There was an area with many trees which had only bare branches but all covered with snow. It was almost like some Japanese or Korean drama where it was shot at some snow terrains. There was also a Holly's Coffee joint at Dragon's Peak for visitors to have a cup of coffee while admiring the view, or just before they ski down the slopes.
A nice backdrop for a good photo.
Dear is shaking snow off the branches.
Feels like we're in the set of Frozen.
A coffee joint at Dragon Peak makes a nice stopover for a cup of coffee.
Descending back down for lunch.
We headed back down by taking the gondola ourselves and gathered for lunch. We were then brought to a restaurant for some BBQ pork ribs, coupled with tons of side dishes. Yummy!
And it's lunch time!
BBQ pork ribs for lunch.
Looks like they're holding the Winter Olympics in 2018.
Right after lunch, we were then brought to a shop which rents ski equipment and outfits. They had some cool-looking ski-wear as well as all sorts of interesting equipment to have fun in the snow. From then on, we were brought back to the ski resort where we could then do anything we liked until dinner time. We then visited our hotel rooms, changed into our ski gear, then proceeded outside to have some fun in the snow.
We look like professional skiers now.
Comfy-looking room to spend the night at Yongpyong Ski Resort.
All the standard items in a hotel room.
We can see the ski area from our rooms, although kinda blocked by some trees.
Nice little area at the door for our shoes.
We went out into the snow and it happened to start snowing. Too bad it was not a good idea to take pictures out in the cold weather as it might damage my camera. Therefore it was quite a waste that we could not capture all the fun we had at the ski area. There were some guides who taught us how to move, get up, fall down and ski in a short skiing crash course. In no time most of us were having fun skiing in the snow. However it was quite a tiring activity since we had to literally walk up the slopes ourselves until we reached a certain height, before we could ski down the slopes. And the difference in temperature between our warm and sweating bodies with the actual snowing weather was quite an uncomfortable experience. Dear and I then went back to our rooms to rest after about an hour in the snow. Truly a very fun and exciting experience to try out skiing. But it is also quite an expensive hobby since the ski equipment and outfit were quite costly.
At around evening time, we gathered for dinner. The menu was dried pollock soup with homemade beancurd. Something different compared to all the other meals which contained lots of meat, so this meal was pretty refreshing. And too much meat is bad for health lol. After the dinner, we were then brought back to the resort where it was free and easy for the rest of the night.
Plenty of side dishes to go with our dinner, as usual.
It's dried pollock soup with homemade beancurd.
We explored around the ski resort area. It was actually quite big since there was a mall near our hotel room building. We walked out into the cold weather and then into the mall. There was a supermarket, as well as many restaurants, pubs, an arcade, a bowling alley and many others. We grabbed some drinks from the supermarket before walking around the mall. They actually had cosmic bowling (bowling in the dark) there! Always wanted to try it. But not this time round either since we just wanted to have a nice stroll before heading back to our room. We headed back out into the open where the temperature was a freezing -12 degrees Celcius! What was more awesome was that there were still some people seen skiing down the slopes!
Traveling through a time tunnel.
Where in time shall we head to?
Just enjoy the present, cos the present is a gift.
All restaurants have racks on the outside for customers to place their skis.
There's actually cosmic bowling here too!
It's almost 9pm and the temperature got even colder to -12 degrees.
Yet there are still people skiing!
We
walked back to the entrance of Dragon Valley Hotel, where the large
standees of the lead actor and actress of the Korean hit drama "Winter
Sonata" were found. Had to take some pictures of them. There was also a
sleigh with some deers made of wires, which were probably left there
since last Christmas. Had to take some pictures with them too lol. And
that marked the end of our fourth day in South Korea. We're heading home
soon! Aww man!
Dear being pulled on a sleigh by deers.
The main characters of Winter Sonata.
Fans of the drama would certainly love this place.
Long and huge icicles hanging outside our windows.
Dragon Valley Hotel
Address:
Tel: +82-33-330-7111
Website: https://www.yongpyong.co.kr/eng/room/hotel.do
For a list of the hotels/resorts available for booking in Gangwon Province via Agoda.com, click here.
To make a booking at Yongpyong Resort Dragon Valley Hotel, click here.
Links to our South Korea Trip 2014
Day 1 - Jeju Island 济州岛
Day 2 - Jeju Island 济州岛
Day 2 - Jeju Island - Trick Art Museum 济州岛 - 幻觉艺术博物馆
Day 2 - Jeju Island - Jeju Glass Castle 济州岛 - 玻璃城堡
Day 2 - Jeju Island - Teddy Bear Museum 济州岛 - 泰迪熊博物馆
Day 3 - Nami Island 南怡岛, Seorak Waterpia 韩华温泉水上乐园
Day 5 - Everland 爱宝乐园, Lotte World 乐天世界
Day 5 - Everland 爱宝乐园
Day 5 - Lotte World 乐天世界
Day 6 - Ice Gallery 冰雕艺术体验馆, Myeondong 明洞, Namdaemun 南大门, Jump Show JUMP 演出
Day 7 - Mapo Agricultural and Marine Products Market 麻浦农水产物市场
Souvenirs
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