Don’t sleep on these top 10 things to do in Hwaseong-si. I’ve included some pretty big adventures. About Hwaseong-si Hwaseong-si (화성시) is a sprawling administrative district south of seoul and northwest of Pyeongtaek. The district includes both highly developed and modern cities as well as expansive rural and industrial areas. It’s certainly not tourist central but if you live in the area it’s worth exploring. Additionally, Dongtan exists within the Hwaseong-si administrative boundaries. This city alone provides many weekends of exploring potential. We could do a top 10 list just for Dongtan, however, I wanted to be more inclusive with this list. Tips for Rural Living and Travel If you’ve already read these tips feel free to jump straight to my recommendations for the Top 10 Things to Do in Hwaseong. Keep in mind that rural South Korean tourism and culture planning may not assume international foreigners will visit. This means there may be limited English in some more rural locations. Consider the small towns in your country. Generally, small communities don’t have the financial resources to create information in multiple languages and they focus on the needs of the immediate community. This remains true in rural South Korea. However, rural areas in South Korea do welcome international visitors. You don’t need to feel uncomfortable visiting. The following tools may help you feel more comfortable and engaged in rural areas where English language information and speakers may not be available. Top 10 Things to Do in Hwaseong-si Hwaseong-si has many different types of things to do from modern city shopping to countryside beach camping. I’ve chosen a wide selection of experiences for this particular list. I’m a bit of a blue-collar girl so I’ve included quite a few things that I love that are not fancy. Current Air Quality in Hwaseong-si Air quality and weather change throughout the day. However, having an idea of what the air quality is right now can help make decisions easier. You can download the Air Matters App for your phone to keep current on changing air quality conditions throughout the day. You can even set up alerts. Hwaseong-si Air Quality Lanae Rivers-Woods, MAITLanae Rivers-Woods moved to Korea in 2011 where she lives in the countryside with her family, friends, and puppies. She holds a BSSW (Bachelor’s of Science in Social Work), a MAIT (Master’s of Arts in International Teaching), and registered by the Pyeongtaek Korean Times with the Korean government as a Cultural Expert. Ms. Rivers-Woods used her 15 years experience as a social architect, UX/UI designer, and technology consultant to found South of Seoul in 2015. South of Seoul is a volunteer organization that leverages technological tools to mitigate cultural dissonance in multi-cultural communities. Through South of Seoul, Ms. Rivers-Woods works with independent volunteers, non-profit organizations, businesses, local & federal government, universities, and US military organizations to develop solutions to support English speaking international residents in rural South Korea. Additionally, Ms. Rivers-Woods founded the South of Seoul smart phone app available for Google Play and iPhone. The app provides information a resources for those living and traveling in South Korea. When she isn’t in South of Seoul development meetings or working her day job, Ms. Rivers-Woods loves to be outside at skate parks, the beach, or playing in the mountains. www.southofseoul.net