Jeon Sungtae: Wolves Translated by Sora Kim-Russell White Pine Press, 2017, 196pp Originally published as 늑대, Changbi Publishers, 2009 Jeon Sungtae’s Wolves takes us to another world – the world of Mongolia in the early years of this century, a decade after the adoption of capitalism. The country is modernising rapidly, but out on the […]
Places: Jeollanam-do
Exhibition visit: Circulation Metaphor, at the KCC
There’s a little bit of Jeollanamdo in the KCC at the moment. Although the exhibition is co-organised by the Asia Cultural Center in Gwangju, and by the Gwangju Museum of Art, the subject matter of the exhibition strays outside of the city limits into Damyang, Hwasun and further afield. The first work to engage you […]
Nine Confucian academies listed at UNESCO
For visitors to Korea (such as myself) who like to try to get round all the UNESCO-listed world heritage sites, the list just got longer. On Saturday 6 July, the World Heritage Committee included nine Seowon, or Neo-Confucian Academies, in the list. The nine seowon are dotted around the central and southern parts of the […]
South Korea: Earth’s Hidden Wilderness – BBC2 documentary
To complement their coverage of the winter Olympics, the BBC is screening what looks like an interesting documentary covering things you might not often see in coverage of the peninsula. With plenty of Korean experts advising and behind the camera, this should be well worth a watch. South Korea – Earth’s Hidden Wilderness BBC2, 8:00pm […]
2017 travel diary 8: Taean-gun and Chollipo Arboretum
Mallipo beach, Taean-gun, Thursday 4 May 2018, 11:30pm. It was with a slight sense of adventure that I found myself unexpectedly on my own, in an unknown seaside town, at 11:30 at night. There was no way that I was going to settle down to sleep right then, so I left my pension room behind […]
2016 travel diary 22: Daeheungsa and the righteous armies
Gurim-ri, Samsan-myeon, Haenam-gun, Jeollanam-do, 19 May 2016, 6:00pm After our pleasant visit to Iljiam, we walk back down the hill to Daeheungsa, the mother temple, hoping to be there for the eventide ringing of the temple bell before retiring to our lodge at the temple’s entrance. Daeheungsa (대흥사) is said to date back to the […]
2016 travel diary 20: Journey to Iljiam
Nohwa-do, Wando-gun, Jeollanam-do, 19 May 2016, 1pm We regretfully leave Bogildo and its sister island Nohwado behind. We have a bigger ferry for the return journey and I somehow manage to reverse the car into position without hitting anything or anyone. As we sail back to the mainland I am happily wandering around on deck […]
2016 travel diary 19: The Scholar’s Garden #1: Yun Seon-do on Bogildo
Bogil-do, Wando-gun, Jeollanam-do, 19 May 2016, 10:30am Way back in the mid Joseon dynasty, being a scholar official was a troublesome occupation. If you were a dedicated scholar you had to act in accordance with your conscience and the highest principles. Unfortunately, as happens with whistle-blowers today, your conscience could be severely career-limiting. If you picked […]
2016 travel diary 18: Incompetent Foreigner on the ferry to Bogildo
Ttangkkeut Maeul / Songji-myeon, Haenam-gun, Jeollanam-do, 19 May 2016, 6am. Despite the calmness of the previous day, at the top of the hill it was quite breezy. During the night the wind had risen. Always in a strange bed you sleep lightly, and with the wind rustling in the trees and somehow seeping into the […]
2016 travel diary 17: Land’s End
Songji-myeon, Haenam-gun, Jeollanam-do, 18 May 2016, 6pm. We continue our drive southeast along the coast of Haenam County, heading towards our destination for the day: Land’s End. The official name for the village is Songho-ri, Seongji-myeon, but Land’s End Village, Ttangkkeut Maeul, is much better as a marketing tool, ensuring everyone knows its geographical significance. […]
2016 travel diary 16: Yun Du-seo’s historic house
Hyeonsan-myeon, Haenam-gun, Jeollanam-do, 18 May 2016, 5pm. By the time we leave the Jindo bridge area it’s past 5pm. I have a huge range of things on the itinerary that I could try to fit in, should there be time. But to rush anything would not feel right, particularly when the weather is so conducive […]
2016 travel diary 15: Song of the Sword and Roaring Currents – the two sides of Myeongnyang
Munnae-myeon, Haenam-gun, Jeollanam-do, 18 May 2016, 4:30pm. The battle of Myeongnyang, in October 1597, was Yi Sun-shin’s penultimate victory, and the last one that he came out of alive. His final victory, the Battle of Noryang, came in December 1598 in the narrow strait between Namhae and the mainland, when a stray bullet killed him. […]
2016 travel diary 14: Journey towards Jindo and the Myeongnyang Monument
Sancheong-gun, Gyeongsangnam-do, Wednesday 18 May 2016, 10am Sancheong -> Sacheon -> Suncheon We say our farewells to the mayor and tourism chief at the County administrative offices. Kyung-sook is driving me to Suncheon – about 90 minutes’ leisurely drive away – so that I can meet up with Insoon. She is scheduled to arrive in […]
Song Si-yeol, the scholar with the chisel
I have now visited three places where Joseon dynasty scholar-official Song Si-yeol has made his mark. In none of the places did I register the connection until after returning to London; in two of the places I never got to see the mark he left (there wasn’t enough time on the schedule) and in the […]
Looking back at 2013: Culture, tourism and branding stories
In the second of five articles looking back over 2013, we recall some of the tourism and heritage stories that made the news. And we also take a look at some of the stories about Korean food, given the increasing popularity of Korean cuisine of Korea. Arts and Heritage Sungnyemun, the great Namdaemun gate, reopened […]
2013 Travel Diary #20: The temple of a thousand pagodas
Unjusa, Hwasun-gun, Wednesday 11 September, 3:45am. My phone wakes me up at 3:45 am, and I struggle into my trousers, splash some water onto my face, and make my way to the main shrine. I’m the first one there, and soon Kyung-sook arrives, then Wonsan himself. Later, a couple of the temple women join us. […]
2013 Travel Diary #19: Mosquitoes at Unjusa
Suncheon-si, Tuesday 10 September, 12:30pm We head back to the hotel for a quick shower and change of clothes, before lunch at a nearby eatery – a deliciously delicate clam noodle soup. The soup is brought in a large bowl full of a light broth. At the bottom of the bowl is a mound of […]