This week, Bunny and I decided to get out of the madness of Seoul and spend some time at my folks' place in Cheonan. On Wednesday, my parents wanted to do a mini day trip, so after a little digging around on the Internet, we decided to head to a strawberry farm in Nonsan!
The countryside of Nonsan (λ Όμ°) is known for their strawberries, and there are several different farms you can visit. Actually, the previous week, there was a strawberry festival in that area, with different programs and attractions, like making strawberry ddeok, jam, and fancy smoothies, etc. We had just missed the festival, but that probably worked out for the best because we didn't have to compete with greedy little kids eating up all the strawberries. :)
'Sung-Il Strawberry Farm '
Since it was a week day, my parents and I practically had the whole place to ourselves, and we got to talk a lot with the farmers and learn about strawberries. :) The farmers were a lovely elderly couple, who were just so happy and friendly. I've heard that Korean country folk are nicer and happier, and this experience reaffirmed that for me. They weren't jaded by Seoul city life and they were just genuinely kind, jovial people.
This was my first time picking my own strawberries- it was fully awesome! For 7000 won per person, we got access to all-you-can-eat strawberries! That's right, we got to eat the strawberries right from the ground.
*chomp*!
Normally, I would be a bit wary of eating unwashed strawberries, but these were organic and looked so shiny, plump, and juicy, that I just couldn't resist eating them on the spot. I recommend going there hungry so that you can get your money's worth of strawberries in your belly.
And while you're munching away, you can fill up a box to take home, for 7000 won per box. It might seem a little pricey, but just the experience of getting your hands on fresh-out-of-the-ground fruit makes it worthwhile.
Oh, I had so much fun! I felt like a kid again, getting my fingers and sleeves stained with red strawberry juice. The strawberries were so sweet and delicious too~ I literally ate til I had to pee.
It was too bad that the weather wasn't nicer- it was pretty gloomy outside. But thankfully, when we were in the greenhouse, it didn't feel cold at all- or maybe I was too excited by the strawberries to notice.
At the end of our trip, we came away with a few boxes of strawberries (to eat fresh, and also to freeze for smoothies!), two potted strawberry plants, and a jar of farm-made strawberry jam... oh, and some great memories.
They're just asking to be eaten...