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Many people tend to think staying in Hanok (korean traditional house) on a cold
winter day would, without any doubt, be terrible. A prejudice that Korean traditional
house doesn't have proper heating system is prevailing.
But why, then, would foreigners visiting Korea choose to stay in a Hanok? Exotic atmosphere? Nostalgia? The answer is 'wonderful experience' regardless of
seasons.
There's a guest house which is famous for not only impeccably restored Hanok
structure but perfect Korean floor heating system, Ondol.
Introduce you a KunDaeMunJip got the best review in Tripadvisor, the most popular web-site in the realm of travel information.
KunDaeMunJip means 'The big gate house' in Korean. This beautiful guest house
still preserves Korean traditional atmosphere since 1937. Some visitors described
this place as "where you can leave reality behind." and praised "this place has it
all."
As typical Hanok, KunDaeMunJip is characterized by wooden pillars, mud walls and a Daecheongmaru (wooden floor/porch) for temperature control on four-seasons. The old furniture, paper-pasted windows, and crock for pepper paste are adding to the quaint beauty of Hanok.
Visitors can appreciate roof curves being slightly raised to the sky and cannot help saying "it's the fruit of the oriental exquisite craftsmanship!" A big garden is the
pride of KunDaeMunJip. Tranquil garden is filled with a lot of sunlight, and the
breezes add to its coziness.
Houses for KunDaeMunJip stay vary in size; some are very large while others are
small with only bedrooms and a common living room. In each room, there are
beautiful lattice-works on paper-covered sliding doors and windows. Traditional silk bedding makes the whole room warm and cozy.
KunDaeMunJip guesthouse is located in the center of Seoul city which means only a few minutes to all major sites and public transportation. And also it is easy to
approach many noted touring places such as Myung Dong, Insadong, Changdeokgung, Gyeongbokgung(Traditional Palace), Dong Dae Mun, Nam Dae Mun Markets and many galleries. Most of them are within 30minutes walking distance.
Although Hanok has all these many merits, there's one thing that makes traveler
wobbling, the heating issue. To this matter, 'Ondol' gives a definite answer.
As Song Hyun-jeong, general manager at KunDaeMunJip, emphasizes "The Hanok
is the result of 2,000 years of experimenting trying to find the junction between
the architecture and climate of the peninsula." Also She says "Ondol system makes air warm, keeping the temperature of the whole room comfortable. Don't worry about the cold, all rooms are well heated."
Interestingly, Ondol is also used for medicinal purposes in Korea. The Korean
language has the phrase 'sizzling the body' which refers to a sort of fomentation
effect that is created if somebody lies on the hot floor in the cold winter. This have a beneficial effect on tired people, pregnant women and the elderly. All the fatigue of a long journey can melt away on this 'toasty warm' Ondol fomentation.
 Dawoon Jeong Reporter
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