Where to experience Korean martial arts in Seoul this summer

The Korea Times

The Korea Times

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Where to experience Korean martial arts in Seoul this summer

Posted : 2019-06-05 16:37

Updated : 2019-06-06 10:21

An outdoor taekwondo class taking place at Namsangol Hanok Village, central Seoul, May 29. / Korea Times photo by Lee Suh-yoon

Taekwondo, taekkyeon offered at tour spots around Seoul

By Lee Suh-yoon

"Taekwondo requires as much mental training as physical," says Master Na Da-na, a taekwondo instructor who leads the Seoul City-offered classes for foreign visitors every week. "If you can't control your emotions, you can't control your movements."

Namsangol Hanok Village, located at the foot of Mount Nam, central Seoul, is the perfect site for such training. The classes take place in a cool open-air pavilion by a pond near the village entrance, boasting views of hanok and wooded hillsides. On less sunny days, the training mats are unrolled on the sandy courtyard in front of the pavilion.

"It's nice that the classes are outdoors; the classes we take back in Australia are indoors," said Moon-sun Miles, 42. She took part in Na's class last week with her husband and two daughters during their vacation in Seoul. The family has been learning taekwondo for two years in Australia, their home country.

Taekkyeon performance at Naminsa Madang, Insa-dong / Courtesy of Seoul Metropolitan Government

The classes, funded by the Seoul Metropolitan Government, run from 11 a.m. to noon every Wednesday and Thursday until Oct. 31. They are open for any short- or long-term foreign visitors who reserve places in advance with the organizer (sugary2001@gmail.com). There is no registration or participation fee, and the classes are provided in English.

"The trend nowadays in the tourism sector is allowing direct experiences, not just passive viewing," Lee Eun-yeong, director of the city government's Tourism Business Division, told The Korea Times.

The class is designed for beginners, covering basic jabs, blocks and kicks.

Namsangol Hanok Village Taekwondo Show is held twice a day every Friday through Sunday. / Courtesy of Seoul Metropolitan Government

"It's primarily a self-defense art, not an offensive one," Master Na says. "It's useful when you have to show that one decisive blow. Leg kicks are the body's strongest motion, and taekwondo makes the most use of this."

The classes also cater to long-stay foreigners studying or working here.

Zulzidnie Zulkifeli, 23, a Bruneian exchange student studying at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, says the class helped him relieve academic stress.

"Because of lengthy studies, I didn't have time to do sports or visit places," he said. "The class helped me relieve some stress, requiring me to use my whole body."

Opened in 1998, Namsangol Hanok Village features five restored hanok complexes. The village offers a host of other traditional activities such as archery and straw crafting for tourists.

The city also provides 30-minute taekwondo shows at the courtyard at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. every Friday through Sunday, except in cases of rain or heavy fine dust pollution. The shows feature meticulous movement sequences and flying kicks by professional performers from military, university and elementary school taekwondo groups. To add color, some performances actively incorporate theater and K-pop dance. Visitors get a chance to break their own wooden boards after the show.

Taekwondo performances will be moved to Myeong-dong, Insa-dong and Daehangno from June 3 to Aug. 29, when the site is temporarily closed for maintenance.

Every Sunday, taekkyeon, another Korean martial art, is showcased at Naminsa Madang in Insa-dong until Oct. 27. Myeong-dong and Donuimun Museum Village will also get their own taekkyeon shows from mid-July to Aug. 25. Taekkyeon is a traditional martial art known for fluid and rhythmic arm and footwork.

Namsangol Hanok Village can be reached by foot from Exit 3 or 4 of Chungmuro Station on Lines 3 and 4. Naminsa Madang at Insa-dong is located near Exit 11 of Jonggak Station on Line 1 and Exit 5 of Jongno 3-ga Station on Lines 1, 3 and 5.

sylee@koreatimes.co.kr