Visitors to Daegu will have a new source of information on tourist spots thanks to the efforts of Keimyung University students enrolled in the Tourism English class this semester. For a class project, the students worked in groups to write and record podcasts featuring many local attractions not usually covered in traditional guidebooks.
The word “podcast” is a combination of “I-pod” and “broadcast.” Podcasts are audio recordings that can be downloaded onto MP3 players, like Apple’s popular I-pod, and listened to. There are podcasts available on the internet related to many topics, from learning foreign languages to politics and news. They are also becoming an increasingly popular resource for tourism. Visitors can download walking tours of London or gambling tips for Las Vegas with the click of their mouse. While there are many tourism-related podcasts for North America, Europe and even Japan, class professor Robert Hart believes this is the first time for the technology to be utilized in Korea.
The project was designed so students could create something of benefit to actual tourists, Prof. Hart said. He has contacted the city of Daegu about posting the podcasts on their website but he has not received an answer yet. Another possibility is posting them on a podcast hosting site like blubrry.com.
“The idea of having visitors to Daegu listen to students’ recordings was meant to be a motivating factor,” Prof. Hart said. “Students worked really hard, and I think the fact that they were creating an actual tourism resource was one of the reasons. It also gave them an additional opportunity to practice some of the target language we had worked on during the semester.”
Student groups chose their own topics for the 10-20 minute recordings, which included Daegu Hangyo Confucian Academy, Daegu Arboretum, EXCO, getting around on the subway system, Seomun Market and how to enjoy public baths and jimjilbangs. Food topics were also popular, with recordings covering chicken gizzards at Pyung-hwa market, sanji-guk near Apsan Market, street food, makchang and gopchang, and kimjang and how to make kimchi.
Prof. Hart said he hopes that the podcasts will not only be useful to people visiting for a short time, but also to long-term residents like foreign teachers and military personnel who can learn about some of the unpublicized attractions of Daegu.
“I’m married, and so I have a Korean family here. I can learn about what the locals do for fun,” he said. “For someone without that connection, this is a way to find out about some lesser-known things to do in the city.”
