Back to Nami Island (Food Tour)

As my first year starts coming to a close, I am finding myself torn between traveling or spending my last few precious moments with my host family. This is why I have been looking for more things to do that are closer to home. That way I don't have to stay somewhere, like Seoul, overnight and can just go home in the evening. That may be why this particular tour stuck out.

It was a food tour of Nami Island, a place only about an hour from Hwacheon, and it didn't leave from Seoul, like most tours I want to do. I just had to find my own way to Gapyeong train station and we would leave from there. Perfect. 

The tour included four 'stops.' One beverage, one snack, one meal, and one dessert. When I arrived, I met Heather, a woman who was born and raised in Chuncheon and actually used to work on Nami Island. She was going to be our tour guide. I definitely lucked out this time. She was so kind. Once we arrived on the Island, she gave us lots of interesting history on the Island and why they have the gimmick of being a "Republic of Nami" instead of just a pretty place you can visit. 

Before the first 'stop', the tour guide told us about the history of General Nami and why he was buried on the island, and why the island was named after him. 

The first food 'stop' was a drink. She gave us 수정과. This was a tea, drank both hot and cold (its summer so we drank it cold) made of only three ingredients: ginger, brown sugar, and cinnamon.  It was surprisingly really good. I don't usually like drinks with ginger in them. Traditionally, it is eaten with pine nuts resting on top. 

The second 'stop' was an adorable little snowman bread snack with chestnut paste filling. I'm not a huge fan of nuts, so I didn't really like it, but the snack was absolutely adorable. The snowman, as we were told, is a symbol of Nami island because of the K-drama that was filmed there, Winter Sinota. And if you read my post about Yongpyeong, you may have heard that title before. I have now been to both filming locations of this show and I still haven't seen it. Maybe I should watch it now. 

The next 'stop' was at a restaurant to have a traditional Korean lunch box. This can be filled with different ingredients, but ours was rice, egg, spam, kim, and anchovies (mine was fishless). To eat this, you have to first shake it to mix all the ingredients, then eat it with a spoon. It was really good, and fun to prepare. 

The final 'stop' before the tour ended was the dessert. Traditional Bingsu. However, I don't like traditional bingsu. The more modern stuff is great but Pat (sweet red beans) and the almonds in it is a big turn off, so Heather was gracious enough to get me some ice cream instead. So accommodating. 

We were given some time to roam afterward, that I used to go to the gift shops, then it was back to the train station and back home we go. 

It was actually a really nice way to spend a Saturday, and I learned a lot more about Nami Island that I didn't know. The food was good, especially the lunch box and I am really glad I went.  Thank you Tasty East Tours for the great tour!

*All photo credits go to Tasty East Tours