It’s probably fair to say that for most foreigners in Korea, cherry blossoms are the ecological pinnacle. But, alas, they last for just a few weeks. This sad reality raises two reasonable questions: what other spring-time bounties might be glimpsed, and where can one go in Pyeongtaek to see them?
Regimentally arranged in neat rows and columns upon a strident hill, there protrudes a vast host of innumerable tulips assembled by vibrant hue. Sunshine yellow, popish-purple, and Prussian blue blanket the immediate vista - an extraordinarily colourful introduction to Pyeongtaek’s Agricultural Eco Park.
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| Regiments of tulips |
This mound of earth that these tulips occupy is broadly the same size as those famed burial sites in Gongju, Buyeo, and Gwangju, but its purpose here is altogether more leisurely. Through the narrow pathway between the upright fauna, guided by blue hand-held windmills thoroughly anchored into the soil, there inhabits two grand, serpentine slides—one of metal and one of perspex—that fill the foreground of a delightful panorama where one can survey the entire park, from the tulips the on hill’s slopes, to the field of rapeseed that flank the Botanical Gardens.
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| The Serpentine Swoosh-makers |
But these slides are no ordinary swoosh-makers, but angularly disjointed tubes offering more of an experience than an crash-course on the law of gravity: children drift and shimmy from peak to exit down Pyeongtaek’s longest slides; scarcely is there a face without a smile nor a waiting challenger at the entrance (the perspex structure is easier for young adventurers).
For those successful parents able to redirect their progeny beyond these elongated wonder-trips, the Park expands into a series of mini-sites. To the right, one is confronted with the cacophony of squawks and calls from an array of birds confined within a safe enclosure. There are the usual species, familiar to most playground ornithologists: roosters, chickens, ducks, and cockatiels. But for the aspiring zoologist, the sublime peacocks offer a point of difference.
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| One of many climbable statues |
On route to the rapeseed, playable distractions abound. Intermittent, colourful, and decidedly climbable statuary dot the landscape, but the so-named Honeycomb sandpit proved to have greater magnetism. Zeno, darted towards the hexagonal enclosures and dived in like an eager meerkat. Once there, he engaged in the various operable machines, or interacted with the varying hole-studded surfaces. The parent-veterans of the park had planned ahead, bringing toy diggers, spades, and vesicles for the close-by water fountains so that their junior landscapers and amateur irrigators were sufficiently equipped (I’d suggest future visitors being likewise prepared).
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| Zeno getting to grip with Sir Isaac Newton's Theory |
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| Zeno conquers the over-sized hamster tunnel |
Beyond the sandpit is a large red barn, common in rural Ohio, but oddly placed here. Its primary purpose is to house bathrooms. In the other direction, the near-ground is occupied by numerous climbing frames, tunnels, and physical gauntlets that inevitably slow down the family unit as children explore their rich environs. Behind all this, to the left, lies an area designated for campers. If one goes straight, visitors will see the egg-yolk tinted heads that generously festoon gallant stalks of rapeseed.
Overall, the short trip to the Park is well worth the effort for those wanting a new floral experience, but, more than likely, family units will stay for the Park’s various fun undertakings. And, it’s all free!
[Directions]
By car: 33-34, Cheongo-ro, Oseong-myeon, Pyeongtaek-si, Gyeonggi-do
경기도 평택시 오성면 청오로 33-34
By public transportation: Take Bus No. 98 at Pyeongtaek Station -> Get off at Myeongseong Villa and walk for 12 minutes (about 47 minutes)
* For walking directions, search “Pyeongtaeksi Agricultural Eco Park” using Naver Maps.
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