Fated Travel to a Country Radiating Magnificence

by Sumaira Waseem (Pakistan)

A leap into the unknown Korea South

In the summer of 2017, I was given the opportunity to visit the Republic of Korea. It all eventuated, believe me, through sheer fate; it was in February of the same year when I, being the usual bibliophile, was comfortably reading books at my university’s library. I remember feeling the urge to leave, so as to get some rest but subsequently disregarded that whim on another whim, and continued reading. It was after a few minutes that I overheard my seniors – seated across me – about the Korean Government Invitation Program, and that instantly lit my curiosity, so I searched it up before applying for it, not knowing that this single action would revamp my world. After the selection came the quandary: travelling abroad alone. It initially disconcerted me, for I had never left my country, but the tempting opportunity subtly induced a sense of aplomb and so, with momentary conviction, I uttered my approval. The 19-year-old me set off on her journey on the 10th of July, with a young heart full of hope and uncertainty; the profusion of euphoria did well to attenuate the previously rampant trepidation. When I say it was fate, I wholeheartedly believe it to be such. Why, you may ask? Interesting fact: I am a polyglot, and I began learning Korean almost a year before my selection to the exchange programme, leading me to believe that it was indeed a serendipitous opportunity. Enough of this digression — let’s continue from where we left off. A jovial welcome by the hosts was enough to dissipate all the hesitance that had been surreptitiously brewing inside of me. Our first visit was to the Gyeongbokgung Palace, an expansive palace, wherein tourists and locals, some donning a hanbok — the traditional apparel — while others were dressed in their casual attire, observed it with unquenchable amusement. Once I exited the palace, I witnessed there, right across the palace, the Blue House, which is the executive office of the Korean head of state, in its magnificent glory. A quick appraisal of the two preternatural buildings was followed by a state of awe. ‘‘How could two structures,’’ I silently wondered, ‘‘over 500 years apart from each other, be so profoundly consonant?’’ Surely, the past and present coalesced to form this ethereal nation. The Korean cuisine, a cornucopia of vibrant vegetables and succulent meat with a serving of rice and varieties of kimchi, never failed to delight my diversified palate. The meal would initially be obscured by a slightly translucent cloud, indicative of its freshness. To my surprise, it was not only the Blue House and Gyeonbokgung Palace that seamlessly incorporated historic and contemporary elements, many of South Korea’s modern sites held a streak of their magnificent past. One such site was the Jeonju Hanok Village, an area with over 700 primeval houses, which are called Hanok. Most of the people were elaborately dressed in hanboks, along with many traditional accessories. While traversing the Hanok Village, I took the chance to rent a hanbok for myself, and then overlooked the idyllic environs of Jenoju from a window of one of the hanok houses; it felt as if I had travelled back in time, and a grin spread across my face, one so wide that I had to close my eyes to accommodate it.