A bevy of positive adjectives filled the vocabularies of more than 100 Hyundai customers and dealer representatives at the conclusion of the 2006 VIP Korea Tour.
The group made the trek to Korea from the United States and Canada and the agreement by all was that this was an event they would never forget. The attendees had an action-packed week filled with first class accommodations, fine dining, sight seeing, Hyundai touring and great hospitality from the entire Hyundai Heavy Industries and Hyundai Construction Equipment USA staff.
After some long flights, the group made its way to the Hyundai Hotel in Gyeongju City to get some rest to rejuvenate for the week. The adventure started with a journey to the city of Ulsan to see Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) Worldwide headquarters to gain a better perspective of the scope and range of the entire Hyundai organization. The tour proceeded through Hyundai’s massive ship building and engine building factories, which produce 60 ships a year, making Hyundai the world’s biggest ship builder as well as producer of the world’s largest diesel engines. After the shipyard, attendees took a tour of one of Hyundai’s construction equipment factories, which is currently producing 450 excavators a month. After a short bus ride, the group toured Hyundai Motor Company to see the care that is given while building Hyundai automobiles. The day concluded with a gala reception and dinner at the Hyundai Hotel hosted by K.H. Park, COO and executive vice president of Hyundai Heavy Industries.
In the days to follow, Pohang was a destination where the group toured POSCO, the world’s third largest steel producer, with a production level of more than 30 million tons of steel a year. It is considered one of the most admirable and profitable companies in the world, as well as one of the most environmentally friendly. The group saw how the steel is produced and toured the POSCO Museum, which gave a complete history of POSCO and the quality of the steel it produces, as well as the overall history of steel making in Korea.
Why a trip to POSCO? They supply Hyundai with the majority of the steel that is used in ship, automobile and construction equipment building.
The week included cultural tours of Gyeongju, a city rich in history dating more than 1,000 years. The group visited the Bulguksa temple, which is the largest and oldest Buddhist temple in Korea, dating back to the sixth century, as well as Tumuli Park, a collection of 23 tombs (burial mounds) of kings.
In Seoul, the group toured the city that serves as the hub of politics, economy, culture, and transportation for Korea. The group also attended a theatrical performance of Nanta, one of the longest running shows in Seoul’s history. A tour of the Gyeongbok palace and the ceremony of the changing of the guard gave the group a better understanding of the royal court cultural heritage and a feel for the dynamic force of the Korean culture. Then the group was turned loose for hours of shopping in the open market area of Itaewon.
A tour to the northernmost part of Korea and a trip to the DMZ and the monuments, statues, and buildings that have been erected to commemorate the struggles and lives lost for the pursuit of freedom was truly an eye opener for the entire group and something they will never forget.
When the week came to a close Sept. 29, the group came together for a Han River dinner cruise to relax and reflect on the week and to say their farewells to new friends and, at least for the distributors, to plan for new Hyundai equipment deals they will make back at home.
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