Candice in Korea
 
A popular activity to do in Danyang is river rafting. I've heard it's one of the best place in Korea! The Namhangang is a long river running all the way from Gangwon-do to Seoul, but most of the way it is very gentle and has very few rough areas to make rafting a thrilling experience. 

I decided to go with a group of English teachers I met from orientation. After kitting up in our helmets and life jackets we carried our raft down to the river and had a quick briefing with our guide. His name was Park Sung Hyeul, but he said we could just call him Rafting Guide- so original.

So off we went shouting 1-2-3-4 to keep our strokes in sync. Because of this, I can now count to four in both Korean counting systems: hana-dool-set-net and eel-ee-sam-sa. 
Due to the lack of rapids we ended up playing many games both on the raft and in the water. Once I was in the water I didn't want to get back on the raft. Ok... well I did, but it was pretty difficult. Firstly, because the guys insisted in pushing everyone off again, and secondly, because I was simply not capable of pulling myself up.

The water temperature was devine and it was so good to cool off from the sweltering heat and humidity. Unfortunately after coolling off you have to carry the raft out of the river and up a flight of stairs which is exhausting but well worth it!

Before heading to lunch, a couple of people went for a swim in the river, but were told to keep their life jackets on! "Swimming in the river is dangerous" I've been told by many of my co-teachers and korean friends; and they are always so surprised when I say that I can actually swim.

After freshening up in the public showers we headed off for lunch - bibimbap, which was included in the rafting fee of  25 000 won. All in all, it was a great day and I recommend doing it if ever one is in Danyang.
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