If you're planning to visit Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida, cancel your flight immediately. There are are far more interesting theme parks. For example, in Darwin, Australia, there's Crocosaurus Cove, a theme park dedicated to crocodiles, where you can try to escape from 'The Cage Of Death.' (It's fun for the whole family! Bring Grandma!). And in Jeju Island, South Korea, there's Love Land, a theme park dedicated to sex, where you can view sculptures of 140 different Kama Sutra positions. (It's fun for the whole family! Bring Grandma!)
But if you're not crazy about crocodiles or sex, and you love delicious food, check out the Imsil Cheese Theme Park in Imsil-gun, South Korea. It's a 32-acre theme park dedicated to all things cheese, and it's just as delicious as it sounds. According to travel site Atlas Obscura, visitors "can learn about, make, and eat the delightful dairy [product], ride down the slide past the goats to the Cheese Playland, and stroll the walkways checking out the cheese-wheel buildings and various cartoon statues that dot the park." To quote Liz Lemon from 30 Rock, "I want to go to there!" (South Korea's really cornering the market on weird theme parks, huh?)
Imsil Cheese Theme Park opened in 2004 and is located in North Jeolla Province, which is apparently known for the cheese it produces. We take fromage for granted, but it's relatively new to Korea. "Up until a few decades ago, many people in Korea had never heard of cheese, let alone tasted it or made it," states Korea.net. "The introduction of cheese to the Korean diet is traced back to 1958, when a Belgian priest came to Imsil in the Jeollabuk-do region as a missionary, where he raised goats and started to make his own cheese. The governor of Imsil asked him to teach the skill to the whole community."
The park is designed to resemble the Swiss village of Appenzell, and contains a multitude of cheesy attractions: a children's play park, an animal park, a science lab, a milk processing factory, a restaurant, a gift shop, buildings shaped like blocks of cheese and a giant cheese castle. For the cheese-making experience, visitors "can mix their own cheese with water, turning it into the base smooth paste required for a variety of cuisines, from Italian pizza, to fried pork with cheese, spaghetti and fondue," according to Korea.net.
I think I gained twenty pounds just writing about this cheese mecca, and I have no regrets. However, it's going to be a while before I check it out. I'm more interested in Super Nintendo World, a theme park dedicated to Nintendo's famous video game franchises, including Super Mario Bros, Legend of Zelda, Metroid, Pokémon, Donkey Kong, and many more. A Mario Kart ride? Exploring Hyrule? Swinging from trees in Donkey Kong island? Eating mushrooms and jumping on turtles? That's more my bag.
