Seoul - Namsangol Hanok Village

English
The third and last hanok village to visit in Seoul is Namsangol Village, located right at the base of Namsan mountain, North of river Han. Here, the recreations are superb and make it possible to catch a feeling of how it was life more than 500 years ago.

During Saturday night, there is a night market where people dress like in the 1890s which is well worth a visit -  we missed it as it did not fit with our agenda at all - but anyway... What strikes me the most about hanok is the extent to which this architecture is smart, specially when it comes to heating, called ondol「온돌」and consisting of underground pipes which would channel the heat out of the kitchen - as you can see in below pictures was located out of the home, to prevent undesired fumes from entering the rooms - and ensure warm floors during the entire winter.

Spanish
El tercer y último barrio Hanok que visitamos se llama Namsangol y está situado en la base de la montaña Namsan, que corona la N Seoul Tower. Ofrece una oportunidad excelente de entender cómo se vivía en aquella época, pues las recreaciones son muy realistas.

Los sábados por la tarde-noche hay un mercado tradicional ambientado en 1890, donde puedes experimentar la música, comida y cultura de aquel entonces mientras paseas por las casas. Muy recomendable si os encaja con el plan del día. En la época Joseon, se conocía como el país de las hadas y estaba considerado una de las áreas más bonitas de Seúl.

Nuestra recomendación, salvo que seas un auténtico freak de los templos y palacios, es elegir uno de los tres barrios hanok que os hemos presentado (Bukchon, Ikseong-dong o Namsangol) y visitarlo. Cada uno tiene sus ventajas (Bukchon es más grande y encaja bien con la visita a los palacios, Ikseong-dong es perfecto para ir de compras y a tomar algo, Namsangol ofrece un viaje en el tiempo) simplemente optad por el que más os llame o mejor encaje con el plan de viaje.



The beautiful pond and the mountain scenery sets Namsangol apart from Bukchon and Ikseong-dong.

As a curiosity, there is some time capsule buried in the surroundings

Traditional Korean kitchen located outside the home, the holes on the wall are chimneys for the fire and entrance to the ondol underground heating system.

Another kitchen with plenty of wood ready - winter is coming!

During summertime, windows are wide open so the air can flow freely.

The woodworks are just amazing.