A Day Trip to Paju
I have badly been wanting to get out and travel more in Korea. I decided on going to Paju because it has been on my list for such a long time. I also chose this place because it is a million times easier to get to than some of the other places I have on my to-go list.
On Saturday, I took the metro to Geumchon Station (금촌역). It took approximately an hour from Yongsan Station. From there, there was Bus 061 from Geumchon Station to directly in front of Byeokchoji Gardens.
Let me say, the weather was extremely hot and humid. The downside of summer here is, it is so miserable outside you don't want to be out. I was very, very hot (it said it felt like 103 degrees). However, I still managed to enjoy the gardens. There was a Roman garden with a bunch of the Roman gods scattered around. It was really calming with the classical music playing on the speakers. I then went to the lotus pond, which was gorgeous. Along the pond on the one side is a beautiful forested lane. Apparently, a scene from Vincenzo was shot there. On the other side of the pond was another forested lane but this side had some interesting curvy trees. It was truly a wonderful experience despite the heat.
The unfortunate side of going to small towns/cities is the lack of regular public transportation. The Bus 061 was even an infrequent bus and it had been pure luck that we caught it. The bus when we were trying to leave, wasn’t even showing up on Naver Maps. I called a taxi instead and we went on our way to And Terrace Cafe. Our taxi driver was having a good time blasting Psy’s Gangnam Style.
The cafe was huge. It was very wide and was two floors. They had so many options for bread and desserts. I ordered a Cobb salad and a lemon ade. I hadn’t eaten anything this day so I was starving and very thirsty. The food and drink tasted amazing. The cafe was beautiful with all the giant tropical plants. The cafe even misted the plants every so often.
Of course, there were no available buses at the time, so we called another taxi. The taxi driver was complaining about all the terrible traffic that the cafe was generating. The road gets blocked easily because it is located on a narrow backroad. On the way to the metro, he was singing along to a Spanish song and also The Rolling Stones. It was hilarious. He also was super funny when he realized he almost went to the wrong station. He explained that he had only briefly glanced at the navigation system and had thought it read Geumchon Station instead of Geumneung Station. I took the metro from Geumneung Station (금릉역) back to Seoul. I was exhausted but it was a worthwhile trip.