Visit Vigo

Discover Vigo with PARK CHU YOUNG

Do you remember your first day in Vigo? What was your first impression of the city?

Well, before I came here I was like “Okay, I’m going to Vigo, but I don’t really know anything about Vigo”. I knew it was a small city in Spain, but that was all I knew. I didn’t have any idea of what I was going to find. But then, when I arrived, I noticed the weather and I could see that the city was really beautiful because all the buildings that are somehow old. I thought that it was a very beautiful city since all the buildings in my country are new.

Do you remember anything that happened to you during your first days in the city that made you see how people really are in Vigo?

Yes, I remember my second day in Vigo. I decided to go and have a look around the city and, when I was standing at Plaza Compostela, in front of the Nagari Hotel, someone passed by me and then came back to ask me if I needed anything. That really surprised me because I thought that it was really kind.

Were you surprised because they were trying to help you?

Yes, I answered that I was just looking around and that person asked me “May I help you? Do you need any information?” and I went like “That’s really nice, thank you so much”.

Do you have a special place that you like to go to?

Sometimes I go to Samil beach or to a coffee shop and sit at the terrace when the weather is good. From June when I arrived at Vigo the weather was really nice until October or so. Even though in Vigo rains quite a lot, from spring to the end of October the weather is fantastic.

What can you tell us about the Galician food? Do you like seafood and fish?

I like both. I really like Galician food. I even like typical Galician dishes like “cocido”. We have something similar to "cocido" in Korea. We have similar dishes to "paella", "cocido", and I enjoy especially, "marisco" (seafood).

Did any type of seafood look strange to you?

I don’t know, maybe "percebes" (barnacles) were a bit strange for me at the beginning, but I like them. We have something similar to "percebes" in Korea but we don’t usually eat so much of it.

Did you know that the british newspaper The Guardian consider Cíes Islands beaches in the top ten beaches of the world?

Yes, many people have told me that. I’ve heard that the islands are really beautiful, especially Rodas beach. It’s a place I would like to visit because everybody told me that it is beautiful.

Do you think Vigo is known in Korea?

I mean, when someone from Korea decides to come to Vigo they probably will be thinking “Okay, why should I visit Vigo? What’s there to see?” But I´m sure if they come here they will really like the place, the food and all the other things Vigo has to offer to visitors. I mean, when I came here I didn’t know where to go in order to see something special about the city.

So do you think people need more information about Vigo?

Yes, I think so. I mean, many people from Korea come to Santiago, which is only forty minutes away, from places like Porto or Madrid but they don’t come to Vigo because they don’t know much about the city.

Let’s talk about football now. Do you think people in Vigo are very fond of this sport?

Yes, they love football. Sometimes when I’m walking around the city people come to me and say “Hala Celta”. Everyone in Vigo loves football. In Korea football it’s not as popular as it is here.

As you know, the idea behind this interview is to promote Vigo in Korea. You have been recently named honorary ambassador of Vigo. What does this initiative means to you? Do you think it will work?

Yes, I do hope it will work. As a matter of fact, I see Korean people at every game we play in Balaídos, so maybe now thanks to the initiative more people will come and visit the city.

What would you say to someone from Korea who wanted to come to Vigo? Would you recommend anything in particular?

I think the food in Vigo is amazing and I have a number of restaurants that I really like. I think that if someone from Korea decides to go to any restaurant in Vigo, they would be pleased. The Ría of Vigo is also very nice and I really like Samil. It is a very long beach, very similar to one we also have in Korea.

You know we have another language in Galicia apart from Spanish. Do you know any word or expression in Galician?

I lived in Brazil for a year, so I speak Portuguese. Many people have told me that Galician is similar to Portuguese, but for me it is still quite difficult.

Thank you very much, Mr Park,

Statements, comments and image of Mr. Park Chu Young are taken from the interview granted on May 24th 2013 in the sports facilities of RC Celta in A Madroa, with collaboration of Real Club Celta de Vigo.

These statements show Park Chu Young personal opinion about his stay in the city of Vigo between years 2012 and 2013.

This interview belongs to the project “Promotion and impulse to the touristic commercialization in the Asian market” developed as a part of the Vigo Touristic Competitiveness Plan (PCTV), Urban and Ria Tourism, with the participation of Turespaña, General Tourism Secretary of Xunta de Galicia, Vigo City Council and the Provincial Federation of Hospitality Businessmen of Pontevedra, and has been co-funded with the European Regional Development Fund (FEDER 2007-2013).