Spring is a highly anticipated time of year here here in Korea. It’s a time for cherry blossom festivals, picnics with friends, outdoor concerts and all sorts of social gatherings. Obviously these things have all been canceled and it has left everyone in a bit of funk. Needless to say the coronavirus outbreak has seriously made a mess of 2020, but we were determined to find something to get us out of the house (while still practicing social distancing). So, we rented a car and decided to head up to Paju for a day.
Toktok Ddalgi Land (톡톡딸기랜드)
Our first stop and primary reason for heading out to Paju… strawberries! I’ve never visited a strawberry farm, but always wanted to and Toktok Ddalgi Land seemed to fit the bill perfectly. Due to the coronavirus, they only accept a certain amount of visitor at a time and by reservation only. Luckily, they were able to accommodate us. Even better?They let our furbaby Uyu tag along too!
When we arrived, it was far emptier than we expected. There were only about 5 families and they were all spread out at their own tables. After picking a table, setting our stuff down and watching a quick informational video, we were ready to pick strawberries! There were 5 greenhouses to choose from and we could choose whichever we wanted as long as no one else was in there. This meant we got a whole greenhouse to ourselves and got to pick as many strawberries as we wanted for however long we wanted. On top of that, they were having a special promotion of ₩800 per 100 g. Awesomeness!
Our pup was completely captivated by the smell of all the strawberries in the greenhouse and he made many attempts to snatch them out of my basket. It was a little tricky picking strawberries with him, but once we got into the rhythm of things it was actually a lot of fun! He loves exploring new places.
So after picking plenty of strawberries and taking tons of photos, we headed back to our table. There was a wash station so we could enjoy the fruits of our labor right away and a station with packing materials, so we could take the rest home. There’s also a small cafe that prepares fresh strawberry waffles and strawberry cotton candy. You can even opt to make strawberry jam or strawberry milk with your freshly picked berries.
We decided to split a waffle and just enjoy some of our freshly picked spoils. As for Uyu, he got to try strawberries for the first time. Honestly, he practically swallowed the first one whole. Then he really took his time with the second. Now he’s obsessed and we may have created a monster. What can you do?
There wasn’t much else to it. We got to relax, eat some incredibly juicy strawberries and just enjoy each others company. It was 100% stress free, a great place for social distancing outside the home and exactly what we needed.
Heyri Art Village (헤이리 예술마을)
Since we still had some time left on our car rental, we decided explore Paju a bit more and found ourselves at Heyri Art Village. This place turned out to be a cluster of artistic spaces. There were all sorts of cafes, restaurants, museums, exhibits, performance spaces and shops selling handmade crafts. It’s basically a haven for artists and art lovers alike.
We could have definitely killed more than a few hours here, but unfortunately many places were closed due to the coronavirus outbreak. On the bight side, we did get to check out some awesome places like the White Block Art Center, which had some very cool exhibits and a very nice cafe. What’s even better is that we were able to bring our doggo into all these places (as long as we were carrying him) and we definitely weren’t the only ones. There were plenty of well dressed small pups drinking in some culture. Yes, my dog is more cultured at the age of 9 than I was at the age of 18. Sad but true.
The area is really uniquely designed, as it was primary created with the purpose of “providing spaces for artists-in-residence to focus on their work in an ecologically friendly environment.” As a result, there’s just about as much going on out doors as there is indoors. So even though places were closed, we still had plenty to explore.
All in all, it was a pretty successful first trip to Paju. It was really the ideal way to practice social distancing while still being able to leave the house and a great way to support our local farmers. Plus it was a nice way to tire out Uyu, who was beginning to feel a little cooped up at home. We will definitely be back for more Paju adventures in the future.
Toktok Ddalgi Land (톡톡딸기랜드)
- Address
-
경기도 파주시 조리읍 통일로 96-40 Paju
-
- Phone
- 010-4783-9940
- Website
Heyri Art Village (헤이리 예술마을)
- Address
- Gyeonggi-do, Paju-si, 탄현면 헤이리마을길 82-105
- Phone
- 031-946-8551
- Website
Hi Uyu! We, too, found that dogs love strawberries. Who knew? Uyu looks great in that outfit and it’s wonderful that so many places are accepting of a mannerly pup. Good to see you are well and able to get around; in Socal we’re all locked in. Max loves being with his pack 24/7. Take care.