Gangjin

강진 청자박물관

The celadon museum in Gangjin, Jeollanam-do displays ceramic vessels made during the Goryeo dyansty (9th to 14th century). This rural area has many kiln sites and is known for redefining celadon wares in Korea. 

We took a city bus from Gwangju to Gangjin. There was no traffic so we arrived within an hour. Firstly, the whole bus was filled with ajummas and ajushis (middle aged women and men). When we arrived at Gangjin terminal, the whole terminal (small terminal) smelled like moth balls! The town center was so small, you could probably run across it in 30 seconds. 

You have to board another bus (local) from the terminal to the museum (30 minutes). The English website says to buy a ticket for Maryang (마량), but when I confirmed with the bus driver (tip: keep the name of the museum in hangul), he said it was the wrong bus. He took me back to the ticket window and told the lady to change it to a different city and I boarded a different bus (although, still going in the same direction as Maryang). I showed the name of the museum to the bus driver and asked him to stop there. 

The local bus is filled with middle aged and older women, hauling their roller carts of groceries. As each woman would get off or board the bus, others would greet them and help with their haul. The people we encountered in this town were so nice- they helped us get to the right direction despite the language barrier. I really took a liking to this town and wished that other parts of Korea were just as welcoming. 

The air here is fresh and clean. The pace is slow and you can enjoy your surroundings without hearing someone dig down deep in their throat to spit (additionally you don't have to dodge spit on the road while walking). 

The museum itself is small, but if you're into ceramic, it's worth the trip. There are many shops outside of the museum to purchase all things celadon. There's even an experience workshop where you can buy an already thrown cup (greenware) and design it as you wish. Maybe they fire it for you but I didn't ask as I was interested in other things. I really wanted to throw a few things for myself, but when I asked I was given the common answer- there is none 없어. This phrase, I've heard numerous times, and each time it doesn't get easier. When asking about things, things that you know are there or you are able to do, often times you are given this answer. It's quite frustrating, but what can you do? Move on.