Day 3: Nami Island

Day 3

> Nami Island (Namiseom)

Most would recognize Nami island as the filming site of Winter Sonata.

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there are shuttle buses travelling from Insadong and Namdaemun to Nami island directly

(more info on the shuttle bus here)

however, as those two were out of the way, we decided to take the subway to Gapyeong station directly. it tooks us about one and a half hours and one transfer to reach Gapyeong.

once you get out of the station you should be able to see a info booth.

the tickets for round trip shuttle bus is to be bought on the bus.

it costed us about 6,000 krw per ticket.

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this bus schedule is correct as of the time we traveled to Gapyeong in June 2015.

Fare: 6,000 krw for a hop on and off bus travelling from Nami Island to Garden of Morning Calm passing through Petite France

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bus shots coming up!

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before heading over to Nami Island, we had breakfast (picnic style) at the 7-11 the bus dropped us off. the same place we alighted was also the same spot we would board the bus later on.

Capri-Sun + kimbap = love

there's this shop in Gongdeok station near Nature Republic (close to exit #1) which sells the best kimbap hands down. we've had it numerous times and would love to have more.

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crossing the road you can see signs which point towards Namiseom's ticket booth.

there are many huge Korean bbq places  in the vicinity

- probably to cater for the throngs of tourists who frequent Namiseom? 

spot the Malaysian flag!

 

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immigration checkpoint before getting on the ferry to Namiseom/ Nami Island

Fun Fact: apparently Nami Island is a micro nation which declared its independence as Naminara Republic back in 2006, hence you would need a 'visa' is required to enter Namiseom (its basically just your entry ticket)

ferry shot!
* the alternative route was by using the zipwire (something like flying fox) but the slots were full when we arrived, much to our disappointment.

 entrance to Nami Island

Fun Fact: The name Nami island originated from General Nami who died at the age of 28 after being falsely accused of treason. he was known for being courageous in fighting battles. the picture below is the grave of the great General Nami.

the picture above is a poem written by General Nami engraved in a stone.

*totally candid*

- there is also a naminara hotel at Nami island for those who wishes to stay overnight, as for us, maybe next trip!

this is one of my favorite photos.

FYI: it is the track of a miniature train which is one of UNICEF's fundraising projects.

apparently half of the proceeds from the train ride goes to UNICEF.

tourism and charity, sweet!

and this is the part where i got 'choo choo' (?)

not sure if this is how olden houses in Korea build their walls but this is so creative!

*paparazzi shot*

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i would suggest this to be made a picnic trip, just as we did. there are picnic tables provided (though there were also ants) and we noticed that many locals had picnics there too.

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yes they have an ostrich farm there!

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Nami Island is also known for it being the filming site of Winter Sonata (kdrama fans, anyone?)

Fun Fact: the (famous) snowmen from Winter Sonata. in the drama, Jun Sang and Yoo Jin were fooling around making their snowmen kiss before having their first kiss. 

how do i remember this? '1 night 2 days' had a (hilarious) remake of this scene recently so yeah.

real life Jun Sang and Yoo Jin? minus the melodrama.

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the view from the ferry was too breathtaking as a backdrop to miss out on photo opportunities

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next up, Petite France!

Thoughts:

i would've spent more time on Nami Island if possible. maybe stay the night there. you can travel around the island by bicycle and that seemed like a nice way to get around. we reached there pretty early (before 12pm) which i would now advice as the masses started flooding in after lunchtime.  one thing, above many others, which i loved about Nami island was the trees which were in different shades. green, purple, brown. not forgetting the maple trees.

Namiseom was beautiful and definitely worth the trip, as always.