A Treasure Map

How much of Damyang have you seen?

Unique scenery welcomed me in Damyang where the spring breeze led me. In Damyang, you will be greeted by the past and welcomed by a somewhat strange landscape. The unique scenery I did not expect to see in Damyang made the trip even better. Here are some of the major attractions to visit in Damyang.

📝Text by. Su-bin Cho  /  📷Photos by. Gap-soon Park  / 
🎨Illustrated by. witheun

The Old Alley in Damyang

  • Address
    282-6, Geumseongsanseong-gil, Geumseong-myeon, Damyang-gun, Jeollanam-do
  • Operating hours
    09:30~18:00 daily
  • Phone
    0507-1338-9494

A place where old memories come alive

While trekking on a long, winding path in the forest on the way to Damyangho Lake, I got to a small bridge. After crossing the bridge, I decided to linger for a while and explore a place that seemed to be part of another world. “Damyang Old Alley” showcases Korea’s modern history from the liberation in 1945 to the 1980s. Old memories literally come alive in the alley.
The alley is filled with old boarding houses and stores starting from the entrance, offering a glimpse into what life back in the old days was like. One of the highlights is the old movie theater. At the movie theater remodeled from a 20-year-old motel, the first to catch my eye are movie posters for old films including “General Ttori,” “Gone with the Wind,” and “Purple Noon.” These posters were drawn in the same way old movie posters were made: a scene from the movie was hand-painted, which added to the authenticity. What's even more surprising is that they change the movie posters regularly.
If you want to go further into the past, let’s step inside the building. Retro music is played and colorful lights are flashing in the go-go arena, a type of club that was popular in the past. Soon, you will find your hands raised and your shoulders moving to the music.
Your sense of nostalgia will be aroused by the video rental shop and the video game arcade, both of which have now become a thing of the past in the era of over-the-top (OTT) service. You can actually play old video games including "Street Fighter” for free in the arcade.

Metaprovence

Little France in Damyang

There is a way for you to get a glimpse of Europe without traveling on an airplane. You can visit Metaprovence. Located by the road near the famous metasequoia path, one of the major attractions in Damyang, “Metaprovence” is a compound word combining “metasequoia” and “provence,” a resort city in Southern France. It means “a little French village in Damyang.”
What you first come across at the entrance to Metaprovence are the big sculptures on the fountain, which create an exotic atmosphere. The red roofs, colorful walls, brick path, and street lamps…Every little detail has been carefully designed to look European. It is a perfect replica of a typical European village in every aspect. It is fun to explore every nook and cranny of the interesting alleys during the day. The alleys are filled with nice restaurants and cafes as well as shops selling design items and souvenirs, making Metaprovence a perfect place to conclude your travel to Damyang. Any of the colorful walls can be a great photo zone where taking great photos becomes so easy. Street lamps are turned on as the sun goes down, creating an awesome nightscape. Shops are closed and people are gone while the lights are on in silence, creating a mysteriously quiet ambience. If you want to explore Metaprovence further overnight, booking a room right behind the village is a great idea.
You can walk from Metaprovence to Metasequoia Land, Gwanbangjerim Forest, and Juknokwon, or you can also rent a bike and enjoy a bike ride instead if the weather is great.

Delight Damyang

  • Address
    21-14 Hwabangsongjeong-gil, Weolsan-myeon, Damyang-gun, Jeollanam-do
  • Operating hours
    10:00~19:00 daily
  • Phone
    061-381-7220

Dreamier than a Dream

The landscape of a location can change according to season. It features pink flowers in spring, lush greenery in summer, colorful foliage in fall, and white fluffy piles of snow in winter. In Delight Damyang, however, the landscape remains green all year round.
Media art museum Delight Damyang has 11 themes including “the moon,” “the Story of Damyang,” and “the Lake of Lights.” Even the first theme, “the moon,” amazes you as soon as you see it. Looking at the bright full moon that shines through the trail in the bamboo forest, you will feel as if you were back in Juknokwon. The pond that glitters under the starlight reminds you of a little pond that you probably saw in Metasequoia Land, and the waterfall resembles that in Yongso, Gamagol. If you cut into the roaring waterfall with your hand, the water stream will be split into two. The exhibits in Delight Damyang are a reinterpretation of the major attractions and landmarks in Damyang. Walking in the world of media art, you can compare the virtual nature to real nature, which will add special fun to your trip. You can finish a tour of the museum in about an hour. If you present a ticket to Juknokwon that you bought on the same day, you can get a discount on your admission to Delight Damyang. So it is a good idea to include these two locations as a bundle.

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