EBS1’s Korea Travel welcomes the new year of 2026 by sharing stories of neighbors who have steadfastly remained in their places, living quietly and persistently. Titled All Shall Be Fulfilled, the program brings together lives that are not flashy but resilient, where unspoken sweat and silent prayers gather into moments of hope.
From hands shaping fermented soybean blocks in the bitter cold, to a monk’s cup of tea offered to visitors deep in the mountains, to a mother’s footsteps opening a market before dawn, earnest wishes for the new year quietly take root. Korea Travel follows these small yet heartfelt prayers, completing a New Year’s greeting shared among ordinary lives.
▲Within the Embrace of the Seven Buddhas
Chilbulam Hermitage in Gyeongju can only be reached after an hour-long climb up a mountain path. Inside its sanctuary, there are no statues. Instead, seven Buddhas carved into rock stand silently beyond a glass window. Each visitor arrives carrying their own story and wish.
In a place where even a sip of water is precious, Venerable Yejin prepares tea and simple offerings for those who come to pray. Together with Venerable Hyujeong from the Czech Republic, the two monks quietly offer their presence so visitors may set down their burdens before returning to their lives. Within the embrace of the Seven Buddhas, wishes for the new year become prayers.
▲Stay Strong, Even in Sorrow
At dawn in Yeongdeok’s Ganggu Port, Lee Hyang-hwa begins her day. For more than 30 years, she has traveled the five-day markets of Cheongsong selling fish. Once a shared livelihood with her husband, she has kept the stall alone since losing him to a brain tumor a year and six months ago.
The days are grueling, hauling heavy water tanks up and down, and her eyes still redden whenever she speaks of her husband. Yet she finds herself smiling again, thanks to her son, daughter-in-law, and grandchild. Making gwamegi and sharing meals together as a family has become her greatest comfort. Her sole wish for the new year is the happiness of her family.
▲Let Today Be Enough
Winter in the Hakgasan village of Yecheon always begins with steam rising from iron cauldrons. Villagers gathering to make meju together is a scene that has continued for more than 40 years. At its heart is Lee Seong-sik, a grandmother turning ninety this year.
Married at sixteen, she raised eight siblings and spent her life farming and making meju. Though many companions have departed over time, her spirit remains youthful. “Nothing more, nothing less. I just hope today can stay as it is.” Within those words lies a quiet prayer exchanged among elders.
▲Cowboy, Take the Leap
On the slopes of Mt. Seokreung in Geoje, Jeong Gu-il has created a haven for horses. Simply because he loved them, he secured 66,000 square meters of land and now cares for thirty horses. Unable to turn away animals with nowhere else to go, he accumulated debts amounting to hundreds of millions of won, yet never considered giving up.
After obtaining certification as a sports instructor for people with disabilities, he is preparing to reopen his riding experience center, which had been halted by the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2026, the Year of the Horse, he dreams of leaping forward once again alongside his horses.
▲The DJ Holding Flowers
Veteran farmer Yang Seung-ho, awarded the Gold Tower Order of Industrial Service Merit for developing domestic cymbidium orchid varieties, encountered a new turning point at the age of seventy. He became a DJ.
With a listening room built around 15,000 LP records, he is now living the second act of his life, sharing music with others. Beside him, his wife became a barista, delighting in serving drinks made from local produce. “If you live earnestly, your wishes will be fulfilled someday.” True to those words, the couple’s new year is still unfolding.
“May all of our wishes be fulfilled in 2026 as well.”
Korea Travel – All Shall Be Fulfilled airs from January 5 to 9, weeknights at 9:35 p.m. on EBS1.
Reported by News Culture M.J._mj94070777@nc.press
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