Hello, my name is Mingwan. Today, I went to the Unhyeongung Palace. I will talk to you about the bingo (빙고) of the Joseon Dynasty.
Bingo is not a game. It is another word for a place for storing ice. Bingos were a kind of very big natural ice refrigerator in the past. A long time ago, normal people couldn’t have ice in the summer. They couldn’t find any ice in the summer. Even if they tried to buy the stored ice, it must have cost a fortune. That was why there were bingos for the royal family. In the winter, the soldiers of the Joseon Dynasty carved blocks of ice from the frozen Han River. Then, they used sleds and other kinds of transportation to carry the ice to the big bingos, Seo Bingo and Dong Bingo. They stored the ice in some other small bingos, too. Ice was useful for the royal family. First, the ice was used as medicine. It helped cool down fevers and other diseases, too. Second, it was used as a delicious treat. The royal family could just eat the ice, but they also ate delicious bingsu (빙수).
I saw a bingo at Unhyeongung Palace, and I thought it was pretty big. I like bingsu, and I wouldn’t want to live in the Joseon summer without bingsu!
