Always in search of an enticing weekend get away,  when a friend mentioned this festival last winter I was equal parts gung-ho and yet seriously questioning my desire to spend the weekend in a teeny tiny town surrounded by snow. Ultimately I decided that if nothing else it would be an adventure, and I purchased my ticket.

Our journey began with an over night bus trip into Taebaksan. We left from Seoul around midnight and arrived at 5am on Saturday morning. After a short rest at a jjimjjibang {a Korean bathhouse with saunas, massages, and sleeping rooms} we headed out for a quick bite to eat and then got on to exploring the festival.

The jjimjjibang was about a half mile or so from the festival itself so on our way we got to experience this sleepy little town that seemed to have awakened just for this particular weekend.

The first half of the walk was quiet with just a few locals roaming the streets and an occasional home here and there. The other half of the walk was bustling with different vendors that had set up tents in anticipation of the crowds selling everything from corn dogs to jarred ginseng.

Finally, after serpentining our way through masses of Koreans and foreigners alike, we made it into the festival and set eyes on the towering snow sculptures we had been seeing photos of.  Massive whales and elephants, mushroom houses, PSY, and even a replica of the parthenon; all made of purely snow.

As we made our way around snapping photos of the sculptures we decided it was time to warm up for a bit. And where else would you go to warm up at a snow festival, but an igloo café serving warm coffee and hot chocolate. We found an empty ice table and sat down to enjoy a moment of warmth before heading back out. Surprisingly, it was actually quite warm in that igloo despite sitting on a massive block of ice.

After finishing our hot chocolate, we took one more lap around the snow sculptures before finding our bus headed for home. It was a short 36 hour trip, but an unforgettable Korean experience, none the less.