North Chungcheong Travel Guide

North Chungcheong, abbreviated Chungbuk, is the only landlocked province in the country. The area is surrounded by lakes and mountains. Because of its geographical location, it was once the central meeting point for expressways and train lines. Although land-bound, the province has no shortage of natural attractions with a bevy of national parks and beach side views to choose from, such as the colossal Mt. Sobaeksan, Mt. Songnisan, Chungjuho Lake and Daecheongho Lake near the presidential lakeside resort. Historically it is best known for being the birthplace of the oldest book in the world, Jikji, printed 78 years before Gutenberg was going to town on a bible somewhere in Germany. As with mostly rural areas, things tend to move a little slower here. The local dialect is a mirror of how the rest of the country would characterize the Chungcheong people: forthright, gentle and more laid back. Their speech patterns tend to be drawn out, making you lean in and listen more carefully. One way you will immediately recognize the typical Chungcheong dialect is the person will end their sentences with a "yoo" instead of the standard "yeo."