The Cheese Factory

Tourist carriage?

The Cheese Maker

On the way to Namwon there was a sign - directing people to the Cheese Village. On the return trip we called in to see this little village, nestled amongst the hills and mountains.

I had not known that Koreans liked cheese, but had found some Australian cheese in the supermarket. They like the rather bland processed cheese - and have not yet gained the taste for tasty cheese or the more exciting natural cheeses.

We learned that this place is more active at weekends, when tourists visit, but there were two busloads of school children.

We had a look in the little shops, and then drove up the hills along narrow cement roadways that had enough room for just one vehicle with rather sudden drops on either side of the road (hoping your driver is accurate!

We came to an area where the students were running around with calves, turkeys, ducks, and geese, but we went on to the cheese factory. A man came out to greet us, speaking English. It turns out he was the owner of the company, and he had learned his cheese making skills on the North Island of New Zealand.

There are apparently five cheese factories in Korea, and they all make processed cheese. He showed us around the factory and excitedly showed us the new camembert cheeses that he is releasing to public on May 1st.

I bought some Gauda (he confessed he'd made a mistake - it should be Gouda, and the next print run should be right!)

The area is being developed as a tourist spot - with new roadways, new pavilion etc.