KOREA magazine [JANUARY 2012 VOL. 9 NO. 1]

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People & Culture

january 2012

keeping the traditionsand culture ofkorea alive

intangible

assets



Contents january 2012 VOL.9 NO.01

02cover story Korea’s traditional culture lives on today.

12

pen & brushPoet Kim Hye-soon shows the power of words.

16peopleSoprano Sumi Jo reveals her humanitarian side.

18great koreanMonk Wonhyo helped spread Buddhism.

20seoulWarm up with hot food at Kwangjang Market.

22travel: MujuEnjoy winter from the mountain peaks of Muju.

24travel: baeksasilFind peace in Seoul’s hidden Baeksasil Valley

02



cover story

TheSurvival of

Korea’SCulTuralheriTage

© Y

o n h a p N e w s A g e n c y

In this modern age o quickly-changing trends and popculture, Korea’s intangible cultural properties are standingthe test o time, gaining recognition in the internationalcommunity one step at a time. by Eunice Shin



www.korea.ne04 | korea | january 2012

It is easy these days to know what’s

happening on the other side o the

world, at any time o day or night,

with the ast growing culture o the

Internet and cutting-edge electronic

devices that bring the web straight into

people’s palms. Tis instant exchangeo inormation leads to lightning-ast

cultural trends, but also endangers more

traditional customs unable to keep up

with the wired community.

Te general public is oen only

exposed to what’s discussed online,

which then results in a skewed

distribution o cultural inormation. And

when it comes to intangible heritage, it

becomes even harder to preserve.

Tat is why it is essential to actively

promote and spread Korean traditional

culture overseas, along with the

trendy K-pop movement. UNESCO,

in particular, has been recognizing

cras rom Korean history since 2001

by listing them as Intangible Cultural

Heritage o Humanity items. Tree more

traditional skills were inscribed onto the

list in November 2011.

perormed ve times a year, since 1971,

the ritual has only been perormed

on the rst Sunday every May, at the

Jongmyo shrine in central Seoul.

It’s not just public organizations

dedicated to cultural preservation that

see the value o Korea’s royal rites.

Radio France, through its world music

label Ocora, produced a Jongmyo

jeryeak album in October, complete

with explanations in French, English

Preserving the Past Taekkyeon (a

Korean traditional martial art), Jultagi

(tightrope walking) and the weaving o

mosi (ramie abric) that originated in the

Hansan region o Chungcheongnam-

do Province, were dubbed intangible

cultural treasures by the UNESCOIntergovernmental Committee or

the Saeguarding o the Intangible

Cultural Heritage in Bali, Indonesia. Te

committee this year added 11 entries to

the organization’s intangible heritage list.

“Tis recent recognition means

that the current generation is not only

trying to preserve the local traditions,

but also trying to hand them down to

uture generations,” said the Cultural

Heritage Administration, a government

organization that seeks to preserve

Korean culture, aer the announcement

was made by UNESCO.

UNESCO rst gave shape to its plan

to protect intangible heritage in 2001,

and Korean cras were some o the rst

included on the List o the Intangible

Cultural Heritage o Humanity. So ar,

over 200 traditions rom more than 80

and Korean. It contains recordings o

a perormance by musicians rom the

National Gugak Center in 2003. Te

album is the rst audio recording o

the entire ritual and is accompanied

with photos o the perormance and a

detailed description o the rite.Radio France, which has introduced

Asian traditional music since 1980, aims

to release one to two albums o Korean

traditional music every year or the

next decade as part o its Korean music

project. For its rst album, it chose

Jongmyo jeryeak and enlisted the aid

o music producer Kim Sun-kuk o Just

Music Entertainment. “It sounds like

noble, rened music, hieratic at times

yet always ull o dignity. I am pleased

to start our cooperation with such a

musical standard,” the producer o

Radio France said.

I traditional music like Jongmyo

jeryeak is too inaccessible to ears more

accustomed to K-pop, gagok might be

just the bridging element needed to help

music-lovers ease into older Korean

traditional genres.

Gagok, which made UNESCO’s

Intangible Heritage o Humanity list

in 2010, is music that was originally

composed to accompany Sijo (a

traditional poetic orm), which was

mostly produced by the aristocracy in

the Joseon Dynasty. Gagok melodiesare typically combinations o wind

and string instruments, such as the

piri (Korean pipe) and gayageumor

geomungo (stringed zither instrumen

Te book Korean Art Song , recentl

published in October, compiled sever

gagok numbers with Korean lyrics, th

English translations and musical scor

Te lyrics to the songs were written b

renowned artists, including poet Kim

Sowol, and the melodies were compo

by notable musicians such as Yun I-sa

and many more.

Te Korean Art Song Research

Institute is planning to publish more

books eaturing other musical genres

according to director Choi Young-sik

“Te book was written to have more

people learn about the beauty o Kor

music and actually make it possible o ©

C u l t u r a l H e r i t a g e A d m i n i s t r a t i o n ; J u n g K y u n g - h w a ( a b o v e l e f t ) ; C h o i J i - y o u n g ( o p p o s i t e b o t t o m l e

f t )

twtaekkyeonm p p f(pp f). a m f Jultagi pwk f j bc (pp). a p f wm pfm Ganggangsullae cc c (bw). a fcm p w mjc bjc (bm).a p f wm w mosi m h, Ccm-Pc ().

nations have been placed on the list.

With the latest additions, Korea

now has a total o 14 recognized by

UNESCO. Te 11 that have been

designated previously are: Jongmyo jerye

(a royal ritual and its music); pansori

(Korean traditional opera); GangneungDanoje Festival; Cheoyongmu(mask

dance); Ganggangsullae(a 5,000-year-

old circle dance); Namsadangnori

(perormances by Korean itinerant

troupes); Yeongsanjae (Buddhist ritual);

Jeju Chilmeoridang Yeongdeunggut

(a shamanistic ritual); gagok (vocal

music genre); Daemokjang (a master o

traditional wooden architecture); and

alconry.

Jongmyo, which was also designated

a UNESCO World Heritage in 1995,

is a Conucian shrine dedicated to the

memorial services or the deceased

kings and queens o the Joseon Dynasty

(1392–1910). Jongmyo jerye is the royal

ancestral rites at Jongmyo, and Jongmyo

jeryeak is the ritual music and dance

perormed or the rite.

Tough the ritual was originally



www.korea.net06 | korea | january 2012

them to sing along or hum,” Choi said.

I music is something that can travel

to oreign continents and reach out to

people overseas, there are also some

intangible heritage items that can only

be understood and experienced when

seen in person. Daemokjang, which

can be translated as “head carpenter,”

was designated a UNESCO Intangible

Heritage o Humanity item in 2010. ADaemokjang, who directs and manages

the construction o structures made o

wood, heavily inuences the completed

presentation o the overall structure.

Building a Future Daemokjang Shin

Eung-soo has worked with many major

Korean traditional wooden structures,

including the ones that are major

tourist attractions. He has worked on

buildings at Gyeongbokgung Palace or

the past 20 years and the restoration o

Gwanghwamun, the main gate to the

palace that was completed in August

2010. He is currently working on

restoring Namdaemun Gate, which was

destroyed by an arsonist in 2008.

It would not be an exaggeration to

say that Shin has had his hands on the

some o the most important traditionalbuildings in Korea, which need regular

maintenance and repair work to stay in

such pristine condition.

“Tere is new technology that

has been developed to make the

reconstruction process easier, but I

believe that traditional homes need to

be repaired ollowing the old ways,” Shin

said. “I would rather use a hand ax than

an electric saw when cutting wood, and

I would rather use traditional cranes to

move large woodblocks into place.”

It is his responsibility to decide how

to maintain the Korean tradition in

those wooden structures. He careully

inspects the overall harmony o each

building and meticulously matches each

decorative ourish to its original. “Te

intricate wood patterns may all seem the

same to laypeople, but the details andcolors are dierent rom gate to gate and

palace to palace,” Shin said.

Since the techniques that he mastered

can only be acquired by experience, Shin

is also working on training carpenters

who can later become Daemokjang. Te

restoration process o each structure he

works on is being recorded or uture

reerence, but how he came to make

each decision is impossible to document.

It is human skill and inherent technique

that make his work so valuable.

Tis is the most crucial reason why

local governments and organizations

like UNESCO strive to nd waysto recognize the existence o such

heritage and preserve it. In modern

times, customs and cultures are being

lost. Tough people still dance, they

no longer wear traditional masks and

perorm as they once did.

Even on Dano, a Korean traditional

holiday that has spawned many

estivals — including the UNESCO-

recognized Gangneung Danoje Festival

— participating in traditional activities

has become more o a novelty than a

cherished custom. Te Gangneung

estival in particular is well known or its

olk play perormances and cultural arts.

From riding old-style swings to washing

one’s hair with a changpo (sweet ag)

mix, most o the events are now one-

time experiences.

With valuable cultural heritage

diminishing in everyday lie, designated

human intangible properties remind

us that it is important to look or ways

to keep traditions going. Even though

people’s liestyles will continue to change

as new trends evolve into new traditi

there can be a lesson learned on how

preserve one’s history.

“We cannot orce people to take

a serious role in keeping traditionsalive,” said Jung Kyung-hwa, an ofci

practitioner o taekkyeon. “But the

government and other organizations

specialized in preserving the tradition

can try to support people who are

already skillul in certain endangered

cultural heritages, so that we can be

the central orce or handing down th

tradition to the next generation.”

Te Cultural Heritage Administrat

a major proponent in the eld o

preservation, has acknowledged the

need or greater eorts in protecting

Korea’s history. It has increased its

budget or preservation to 545 billion

won (US$465 million) in 2012, and

one o its top priorities is to continue

preserving and managing the cultura

heritages that are recognized by

international organizations.

2005

gdj F

2009

Ganggangsullae, Namsadangnori ,Yeongsanjae(B ), Jj Chilmeoridang Yeongdeunggut ,Cheoyongmu (mk c)

2001

Jongmyo jerye ( c ) jeryeak (mc)

2010

Gagok ( ccmp b c),Daemokjang (mcp), fc

2011

Jultagi , w fmosi ,taekkyeon

2003

Pansori (p pc c)

a mk c g dj F(pp f). a m pansori p(pp ). a pfmc f Jongmyo jeryeak mc p (p). a dj f (b).

history oF Cultural ProPertiesA total of 14 Korean crafts have been recognized by UNESCO and placed on the List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

From performances to handmade crafts, the traditions of each recognized heritage have a deep and invaluable place in Korean history.

© C

u l t u r a l H e r i t a g e A d m i n i s t

r a t i o n ; Y o n h a p N e w s A g e n c y ( o p p o s i t e r i g h t )



Heritage Administration, studies Korean

culture in order to pinpoint its greatestpoints o appeal and help market it to

the rest o the world.

In addition to its own researchers,

the institute invites outside experts to

help stimulate study. Currently, they are

receiving applications or the 2012 Asia

Cooperation Program on Conservation

Science, a unded program looking

or candidates to research intangible

heritage and architectural studies.

“Since the area o Korean heritage

is so extensive, we need researchers

rom various elds to work together,”

Kim says. Te institute is most recently

looking into how to promote the three

recently UNESCO-designated items o

intangible heritage: taekkyeon martial

art, Jultagi tightrope walking and

weaving mosi ramie abric.

Q. So ar 14 items have been added

to the List o the Intangible Cultural

Heritage o Humanity. What does theresearch institute do to help promote

each item to the global community?

A. We have been producing

introductory videos o each o the

Korean heritage items that has made

the UNESCO list. So ar, nine o the

14 videos have been made in three

languages, including Korean, English

and French. wo o the most recent

designations, taekkyeon and Jultagi,

will be made this year. A video about

08 | korea | january 2012 www.korea.net

© N

a t i o n a l R e s e a r c h I n s t i t u t e

o f C u l t u r a l H e r i t a g e

It isn’t always easy to understand how

valuable historical customs are whenthey don’t have a tangible ormat. It is

even harder or oreigners who are not

amiliar with Korean culture, who must

picture a tradition they have neither

seen nor heard about in present day lie.

At the center o this dilemma is the

National Research Institute o Cultural

Heritage (NRICH), helmed by Director

Kim Young-won, which promotes the

understanding o these ancient arts. Te

institute, a ormer branch o the Cultural

cover story

weaving mosi will be produced in

2013. We distribute these videos to

Korean culture centers overseas and

other international research centers

specialized in studying Korean culture.

Q. It is easier to explain what an

intangible property is when it can be

connected to a tangible artiact. For

example, when explaining talchum

mask dance, it is helpul to rst explain

that tal means mask. I understand theinstitution recently published a book

called Tal and Talchum.

A. Yes, we have been publishing

a book series on Korean intangible

cultural heritage in English. Te most

recent one was published in November.

Te book eatures photographs o masks

and dancers, which were discovered in

the course o our studies (the book is the

culmination o research done by NRICH,

which originally published its ndings

in a 12-volume series). We published

the rst book Onggi (earthenware),

in January, which looks into the skills

and techniques hidden in the creationprocess o the wares. Te next book will

be ocused on exploring needlework

and unique clothing designs by looking

at gat (a ormal hat male adults wore in

the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910) and

nubijang , (a type o needlework). Both

o the books will be available online on

the institution’s website or download at

www.nrich.go.kr.

Q. Te institution does more than

just study history. Te National

Research Institute o Cultural Heritage

recently signed a MOU with the

University o Colorado in the US. Is

that part o the efort to invite more

international interest to Korea and the

work you do?

A. Yes. We have so ar signed MOUs

with various research institutions in

The paThTo preServaTionWanting to keep Korean traditions alive is admirable, buthow does one go about achieving such ambitious goals?

rcfm nrci fChcm b cf(pp).Km y-w pfc mmc ().rc f fc(bm).

Japan, China, Mongolia and France.

Te goal is to not only nd more

details about our historical and cultural

traditions, but also to promote what we

have to the bigger audience members in

the world.

Q. How does signing a MOU help

the institution with its research?

A. It means that we are grant accessed

to the cultural properties possessed by

these other institutions or our researchpurposes. Tis helps connect not

only academics and scholars, but also

students and other culture enthusiasts to

witness rare documents and artiacts.

Q. What is the research process o

studying cultural heritage?

A. Whether the area o study is eith

tangible or intangible, it is necessary

do research on-site, where the traditi

originated. Cultural property not onl

includes artiacts made by nature and

human beings, but also the technique

used to make the artiacts. Tat is

why the National Research Institute o

Cultural Heritage extends its research

area to ossils and natural environmealong with the study o ne ceramics

or perormances such as talchum. It i

important to always go back to where

everything started.



ended up making the nal list.

aekkyeon is a Korean martial art

that involves rhythmic movements

that resemble dance. Tere are roughly

50 ofcial masters certied by the

aekkyeon Korea Association, but

novices also practice the movements

as a orm o daily exercise. “Since the

movements in taekkyeon are very

uid, it is good or exibility when the

body is sti,” says Jung Kyung-hwa, a

10 | korea | january 2012

cover story

www.korea.ne

© T

o p i c I m a g e s ( o p p o s i t e ) ; K

i m D

a e - g y u n ( t o p ) ; Y o n h a p N e w s A g e n c y ( a b o v e )

government-certied taekkyeon expert.

Tough taekwondo is a more well-

known Korean traditional martial

art, taekkyeon’s selection as a heritage

o humanity will hopeully increase

awareness o the art. Jung speculates that

the reason taekkyeon was chosen was

because o its dance-like, yet surprisingly

powerul, movements.

“When people learn a certain

martial art, they expect the skill to look

UNESCO ofcially designated three

orms o Korean traditional culture as

items o Intangible Cultural Heritage o

Humanity in late 2011. Each addition

marked a special signicance in Korean

history: taekkyeon was the rst time

a martial art has been recognized by

UNESCO; Jultagi tightrope walking was

the rst time Korean tightrope walking

was acknowledged; and weaving mosi

ramie was the underdog nominee that

intimidating, so they can eel they are

learning something that might help

them protect themselves,” Jung says.

“However, taekkyeon, at rst glance,

doesn’t really look like a ‘serious’ martial

art, and I think that’s what has kept

people away rom learning the skill.”

Prior to UNESCO’s designation

in November, it was expected that

taekkyeon would be in competition

or recognition with China’s kung u.

But China withdrew its bid beore thecommittee meeting in Bali, Indonesia,

aer ailing to submit sufcient

inormation about the heritage.

While taekkyeon is a martial art

unique to Korean culture, tightrope

walking is considered more like

entertainment, and questions have been

raised over its distinguishing traits.

While the most common orm

o tightrope walking ocuses on the

acrobatic skill o maintaining balance,

the Korean traditional orm emphasizes

the interaction between the tightrope

walker and an earthbound clown. Te

walker perorms a variety o acrobatic

eats on the tightrope, while the clown

exchanges banter and musicians

accompany the act. A perormance with

all these elements is Namsadangnori ,

another intangible heritage.

Although both taekkyeon and

Jultagi were both highly expected to

make it onto UNESCO’s list, it was a

pleasant surprise to see that the skill

o weaving mosi was also recognized.

Te designation o the skill, which has

predominantly survived in Hansan,

Chungcheongnam-do Province, was

uncertain, as the UNESCO committee

doubted there was a concrete process

and method to maintain the tradition.

However, committee members were

convinced aer being shown how

systematic making quality mosi can be,

and seeing the its sustainable benets.

Te skill o weaving mosi in Hansa

has been handed down rom mother

to daughters. Te region has a suitabl

climate or growing ramie, and villag

women are involved in the harvestin

o the plant, bleaching, yarn spinning

and the nal weaving. oday, about

500 people in Hansan still actively

participate in mosi weaving.

“Mosi is as nely weaved as the win

o a dragony. Te more you wear it,

stronger it gets. And to whomever weit, the material gives a sense o elegan

says Bang Yeon-ok, a mosi weaving

master. Mosi is particularly well-suite

to summertime, when the makers we

the ramie more loosely, allowing the

abric to breathe and cool the body.

As signicant as the tradition is,

the decreasing number o people

learning the skill is making it difcult

or the culture to survive. In the past

housewives rom villages in the regio

would come together to weave — tod

there is no group weaving on the sam

scale. “Since younger generations mo

to cities, only the older generations arle to weave,” Bang says.

Tis is not just a problem weavers

ace. Te question o whom to beque

these unique skills to is a burden

practitioners o intangible cultural

heritages have shouldered or years. O

top o that, handing down the origina

skill is crucial as well. Since a cra is

adapted in accordance to each maste

style, proper documentation is vital o

uture reerence.

“Once an intangible cultural herita

is distorted, I think it will be impossib

to undo it,” says Jung. “I think we

need to have a specialized educationa

acility where all types o intangible

cultural heritage masters can share th

ideas and interpretations o each skill

together. Ultimately, the goal is to kee

the tradition alive.”

hough each o the recognized cultural properties are important, the three heritagesmost recently recognized by UNESCO carry a particular signiicance in Korean history.

CelebraTingThe newly reCognized

Taekkyeon mpcc m(pp). apc f Jultagi pfm cw fp w s (f).W By-k pmosi (bw).




pen & brush

The Transcendental

Power of Poetry

Kim Hye-soon

“Poetry should not be concerned with quantity, as long as it

contains a connotative and implicative nature within,” says

Kim Hye-soon, a poet and proessor at the Seoul Institute o

the Arts. “So it doesn’t matter i the poem goes on or 35 pages

or even 350 pages.”

Kim’s career took o since her debut in 1979, when shebecame one o the rst emale writers to be published in the

inuential quarterly Literature and Intellect . Over the past

three decades, she has published 10 collections, helping gain

ground or emale writers in a Korean literary eld dominated

by males. Her latest book, Sadness oothpaste Mirror Cream

(unocial translated title) was published in November nearly

simultaneously with the release o a new English-language

anthology o her work, All the Garbage of the World, Unite!

Kim’s name has been circulated in international literature

with works translated into Spanish, German and English, and

her growing exposure both at home and abroad sends her

globetrotting requently. Te recipient o the Kim Su-yeong

Literary Award (1997) and the Daesan Literary Award (2008),

this poet is still gaining recognition years since her debut. She

most recently appeared at a poetry estival in B erlin in June

2011 beore heading to the Poetry International Festival in

Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

Tough today her international success is no longer

shocking news to the poet, Kim still recalls a time when it was

revolutionary to e ven write as a woman in Korea. “However

How long should a poem be? Aside rom epic poems, many consider poetry to be aconsiderably shorter orm o literary genre. But one Korean poet, a pioneer in theindustry or years, breaks that pervasive stereotype with 35-page poems and anapproach diicult to contain in simpliied words.by Eunice Shin | photographs by Park Jeong-roh

dicult it was to be recognized as a emale poet, I elt I had no

other choice but to create poetry afer I learned how to read

and write,” Kim says. “I elt I needed to write poetry.”

moving past Language Te charm o writing or her

comes rom creating something o value beyond whatlanguage typically oers. Although poetry is written with

everyday words, the nal meaning and emotion o each piece

represents concepts that exceed human language.

“Words can explain that you are a girl, your hair is long and

your coat is brown,” Kim says. “Te words clariy the external

identity o a person, but there can be more there than these

words that are being spoken.”

However, that does not mean that word choice is any less

important. She believes that a poem is a work o art, and a

sense o dignity is needed or some works to become a true

poem. “Even one postpositional particle should be used to

compose a perect structure,” explains Kim as she asserts

that it is important to pursue perect composition in writing.

“People who say, ‘Oh I just tried something because I was

bored,’ should not call themselves an artist.”

Her desire to have control over the total structure o her

works maniests itsel in each title. Tough it seems some o

the sensational titles o her works (her debut piece in 1979

was Te Corpse Tat Smokes Cigarettes) were made to garner

attention, she says that wasn’t her intent. “I simply choose titles



www.korea.ne

that represent the entire content o my poems,” Kim says. “Te

title being unique isn’t my rst concern.”

Te recently published All the Garbage of the World, Unite!

includes the 35-page poem titled Manhole Humanity. Kim

eels choosing the word “manhole” to show the relationship o

interactions between humans was necessary. “Although people

wear dierent perumes and dierent makeup, their ‘piping’ is

all the same underneath,” Kim says. “So it was natural to name

the poem that way, because I was in search o the characters o

humanity that are hidden underneath these açades.”

However, she surprisingly takes little interest in the book

covers, which potential readers might judge her work by. Tecover or the recent English collection was designed by her

daughter who is also an artist, but it wasn’t her idea to work

with her amily. She says it was all arranged by her publisher. “I

just ocus on how to make better literary creations,” Kim says.

Te writer was actually introduced to the English-language

international community through one her ans. Choi Don-

mee contacted the poet, explaining that she wanted to share

the insights o Kim’s work with a range o readers. Te writer

agreed, and Choi got to work on translating the poems,

eventually resulting in several collections: When the Plug Gets

Unplugged (2005), Mommy Must Be a Fountain of Feathers

(2008), All the Garbage of the World, Unite! (2011) and others.

Kim ully entrusts the translating to Choi and, though

the expressions used might be somewhat dierent rom the

original Korean, Kim eels condent in her work. “I considertranslated literature as a dierent genre,” Kim says. “It’s a

dierent work o art rom the original and that’s why I just let

her do her own thing with the work. She knows better than

I what English word choice will appeal to readers most to

deliver the message hidden in the poem.”

RuLes of WRiting Kim eels that one o the basics o writing

poetry is to discard the desire to write well. Tis will enable

a writer to think about how to play with words more reely,

experimenting so that the combination o each can allude to

something else in the bigger picture. Tereore, more layers,

undertones and subtle meanings can be embraced by the

words. “Poems do not present exposition. Once a poem

starts explaining things, it’s not a poem anymore, since it is

no longer implicative,” Kim says with conviction. “Being

expository is the basic human urge, and I help students

get rid o it in their works.”

However, this minimal use o explanation has helped

the general public to perceive her works as dicult

to understand. Kim is aware o the act that people

sometimes read her works and ail to grasp the subtexts. “‘Your

work is dicult’ is probably the phrase I’ve heard most about

my work in the past 30 years,” laughs Kim. But she says it is

the readers’ job to take as much as they can. “I’ve put my work

out there or people to interpret as they wish … the degree to

which each person absorbs the meaning o the poems will be

dierent or everyone.”

Tese dicult works have made her one o the more

popular proessors at the Seoul Institute o the Arts. Although

the general public may have labeled her an abstruse writer,

her students respect her writing style. “Students look to me

to learn what I have learned over the years as a writer, so they tend to respect my comments on their work regardless o how

harsh I am,” Kim says. “But since it is a creative genre, I can

only tell students what not to do, and not what to do.”

Kim studied Korean literature in college at Konkuk

University, but ocused on poetry as she ound essays and

novels did not suit her style. “Poetic language can be used in

novel writing, but the ctional language used in novel writing

can never be applied to poetry,” Kim believes. “I think I would

eel as i I would plunge down to the bottom i I were to write

something that doesn’t work in poetry.”

gendeR games Tough she made her literary debut in the

late 1970s when the eld was comprised only o male writers,

today, Kim nds more and more aspiring emales in her

creative writing course. She hopes that one day, the eld willbecome so dominated by women, that it will have to be the

men who strive to pave their own way and style amongst the

emale literary giants.

For her part, Kim has trailblazed the way or several writers

in her generation, with her unique style unaraid o graphic

descriptions and sensualized imagery. Her 1997 Poor Love

Machine brought to light a conrontational style that discussed

everything rom love to death. For example, Rat , rom the

collection, discovers an existential philosophy in the simple act

o turning on a light, replete with textual cries, onomatopoeias

and a sense o the unknown.

However, the poet is worried that there is still a long road

to travel or women to be recognized as leaders within the

Korean literary world. “Male writers are just called writers,

but emale writers are specically called emale writers,”

Kim explains. “And, although there is no such categorization

among male writers, women are typically divided up into

‘young emale’ writers, ‘unmarried emale’ writers or even ‘old

emale’ writers. I nd this system to be so odd and hope that it

will be changed one day soon.”

pooR Love machine(1997)

In the collection Poor Love

Machine, poet Kim Hye-soon dives

straight into the topics of feminine

philosophy and sexuality without

looking back. Complete with the

sensational titles Kim is so well

known for and a biting grasp of

reality, the collection provides an

insightful and dark view into the

world of love and death.

The title poem looks into the

symbolic love of a machine, which

is only revived by the narrator’s

human touch. A sharp comparison is drawn between the mach

and the human heart in simple, enlightening sentences. Althou

the word choice in this collection is not overly abstract, the

illustrative imagery can be interpreted in several creative ways

depending on the reader.

The gritty honesty of Poor Love Machine won Kim the

prestigious Kim Su-yeong Literary Award in 1997. Several of th

poems can be found in the poet’s English-language collection

Mommy Must Be a Fountain of Feathers , including Rat .

RepResentative WoRk

Rat

by Kim Hye-soon, translated by Choi Don-mee

Enter the inside of the sunny morning, and it seems as if

the scream can always be heard. It’s so loud that it’s

inaudible to us. The scream let out by last night’s

darkness. This morning the whitish scream suddenly

disperses then gathers in the air — ah, ah, ah, ah! Do

people know how much it hurts the darkness when you

turn on the light in the middle of the night? So I can’t

turn on the light even when the night arrives. The day of

the first snowfall, I took an x-ray of my body. Then I asked

everyone I met: Have you ever turned on the light inside

your intestine? The darkness with a fluid mass moving

through it endlessly — is this my essence? When the light

is switched on inside my darkness, I buzz like a beetle

pinned down, bung, bung, bung, bung, and shake my

head wildly, my muzzle holding onto a black string.

Struck by the light, I regress, in a flash, from a reptile to a

beetle turned upside down. My dignity is the darkness

inside. Was it hiding inside the darkness? Lights on — my

underground prison, my beloved black being trembles in

it. The damaged walls of my room quiver from the car

lights coming in through the windows. Thousands of

rays of light poke at me — my dark, crouched face. The

day of the first snow, the snow was nowhere to be seen.The houses with lit windows. How painful the light must

be for the night.





people

www.korea.ne

© S

M I E n t e r t a i n m e n t

Since debuting in rieste, Italy, in 1986,

Sumi Jo has become one o the most

sought-aer sopranos o her generation,

perorming in nearly all the major halls

and conquering seemingly impossible

vocal heights with graceul ease.

Last year, the 49-year-old celebrated

25 years o singing, and she is looking

orward to another 25 — “obviously not

always on the stage but in other ways

that I can share and give,” says Jo over

the phone while on tour in Sydney.

A UNESCO-designated “Artist or

Peace,” Jo will be visiting North Korea in

May with a group o Korean-American

doctors to provide ree vaccinations or

children. “In the past, I had about three

chances to visit North Korea but they all

a good cause.”

A Grammy Award winner with more

than 50 albums to her credit, Jo also

hopes to use her ame to raise awareness

about animal protection in her home

country. “I’ve always been interested

in animal protection ever since I was

young,” says the Seoul native, who is

hersel the owner o three dogs.

“I believe it’s important to care or

not only our beloved pets but all living

creatures, to allow them to live withoutbeing abused.” Jo is currently raising

unds to open an education center

where people can learn about respecting

animals and adopt stray cats and dogs.

Another educational initiative she

hopes to pursue is naturally through

music. “I want to continue giving more

master classes or youths. And i I fnd

talented young singers then I’d like

to support them, to help them debut

without going through the hardships

that I had to endure.”

Looking back at her 25 years, there

were many trying moments. Winning

the approval and support o classical

music greats like the late maestro

Herbert von Karajan did not protect her

rom racial discrimination. “Europe [in

the 1980s] was very conservative, and

it was nothing short o a miracle or an

Asian to play a lead opera role,” she says.

However, she was able to persevere

with an iron will. “First o all, I knew

mysel very well, and knew what I

wanted. Everything I’ve accomplished

was planned in advance and I ollowed

through with it; it didn’t happen

overnight. I am constantly pushing

mysel to move orward.”

Sel-discipline, she says, keeps her

going. “Every moment is challenging

in a way. I eel responsible to live up to

the name ‘Sumi Jo’ — I can’t indulge in

alcohol or atigue my voice with long

conversations, or stay up late or get sick.”

Sumi Jo performs at the United NationsHeadquarters in New York in 2010 (opposite). Jocelebrated 25 years of singing last year (top). Jo isone of the world’s greatest sopranos (above).

Star soprano Sumi Jo hopes to share not only music, butalso humanitarian values with the world. by Lee Hyo-won

Art of Sharing

ell through. I wanted to make the visit

not as a musician but as a humanitarian.

I really want to help children,” she says.

Aer her visit was confrmed, Jo

received an invitation to perorm with

the local orchestra. “I said yes, as long

as it’s a charity concert. Te wonderul

thing about music is that it can not only

give joy to listeners but also be used or

She does, however, always take time

or introspection. “I am in constant

dialogue with mysel.” She thus

encourages aspiring singers to fnd inner

peace. “You need to fnd happiness,

leisure and wisdom in order to deliver

songs rom deep within yoursel. Being

able to move people’s hearts is the

greatest weapon, and no cold-hearted

person can touch others.”

Jo has built an extensive career

sharing music with audiences. She ha

interpreted the hallmarks o the bel

canto — and even recently Baroque

— repertoire, but has also reached ou

to non-classical music ans by singin

Korean traditional songs as well as

scores or V dramas such as HBO’s

Mildred Pierce . Te singer even made

surprise appearance on the talent sho

Operastar Korea last May.

“I eel it’s important to connect topeople outside opera houses. I really

enjoy communicating with the young

generation, rather than waiting aroun

in the opera house,” she says. She kee

in touch with ans through social me

and operates her witter, Facebook a

Cyworld accounts hersel.

“It’s one o the ew things that I can

continue to do wherever I go,” she say

Even at the time o the interview, she

was battling jetlag rom tours in the U

and Mexico. Aer perorming in New

Zealand, the artist will be on the road

again or a charity event in Qatar. “I

believe it’s my mission to sing wherev

am needed — to reach out to youths

interact with the public. Music-makin

itsel is a great joy and blessing.”

Sumi Jo’s




great korean

© Y

o n h a p N e w s A g e n c y ; C u

l t u r a l H e r i t a g e A d m i n i s t r a t i o n ( t o p r i g h t )

Te Venerable Wonhyo’s lie began

with his birth in 617, in today’s

Gyeongsangbuk-do Province. He le

home at the age o 15 aer relinquishing

his earthly possessions and went in

search o eminent Buddhist priests

to learn rom. However, he didn’t tie

himsel down to any one o his mentors,

and instead roamed reely rom teacher

to teacher, never depending on any one

person to become spiritually awakened.

When he was 45, he started making

his way to China, where he hoped to

study Buddhism urther. Somewhere

along the way, however, he was orced to

take shelter in an old tomb. During the

night, he awoke and was parched. He

reached or what he thought was a gourd

and drank the seemingly cool, rereshing

water it contained. Much to his surprise

the next morning, the “gourd” had

actually been a human skull, and the

“resh water” was rotten and brackish.

Aer vomiting, he realized the power

o the human mind to transorm reality.

Tis experience o “consciousness-only”

enlightenment would go on to orm the

core o Hwaeom philosophy.

Wonhyo decided to stop his journey

to China right then and there, giving up

his long-cherished dream o studying in

the Middle Kingdom because he realized

that truth was ound in the mind, not in

the physical world.

He returned to Silla, one o

Korea’s Tree Kingdoms, to spread

Buddhism to the public and to study

urther. Upon his death, he is said to

have written more than 240 books, 22 o

which are still in existence. His interest

in a wide range o subjects and his

brilliant thoughts were inuential even

to Chinese scholars, who were known to

quote him.

A respected priest and admired

thinker, he also surprised many with his

unconventional b ehavior. For example,

in his later lie, he gave up his monk’s

robes and married Princess Yoseok

(the daughter o Silla’s 29 th king), giving

birth to a son. Adopting the title o a

layman, Wonhyo would drum on an

empty gourd, an instrument used only

by clowns at the time, singing songs that

contained Buddhist teachings. He went

anywhere he could meet new people,

rom bars to markets, and beriended all

he crossed paths with.

Many consider one o his greatest

achievements to be the popularization

o Buddhism in Korea. In his time, Silla’s

Buddhism had been ocially recognized

or just a century, and was only popularamong the royal amily. Unlike other

priests who led aristocratic lives in big

temples, Wonhyo reached out to the

public with the belie that everybody

could be awakened.

“Wonhyo tried to reach out to

the masses and spread Buddhist

teachings that emphasized the mind.

It was because o him that Buddhism

blossomed aer it came to Korea,” says

Lee Pyong-rae, director o the Institute

o Wonhyo Studies.

Wonhyo lived during a tumultuous

period o Korean history, between the

4th and mid-7th centuries, when the

Tree Kingdoms — Goguryeo, Baekje,

and Silla — ought or dominance o the

peninsula, which was only unied by

Silla in 668. But over

the course o those

400 years, people

sufered unimaginable

hardships rom the

warring.

Wonhyo tried to

embrace all o this

through Buddhism.

“Wonhyo made a major

contribution to the unity

o the Tree Kingdomsthrough Buddhism ... he

was someone who had a

thorough understanding

o the spirit o the age, as

well as a great Buddhist

thinker and religious

activist,” Lee explains.

His lie philosophy was based

on ilsim (One Mind) and hwajaeng

(Harmonization), the core principles

behind his Buddhism. A main theme

o his writings — which included A

WonhyoKorean Buddhism’sNew DawnWonhyo is not someone who can bedescribed in just a ew words. A highpriest o Korean Buddhism, one o the greatest scholars in Koreanhistory, an activist who worked withthe masses and a pioneer who wantedto uniy the Korean Peninsula areonly some o the things he was. Morethan 1,300 years ater his death,Wonhyo is still revered by Koreans.by Seo Dong-chul

Commentary on the Vajrasamadh

Sutra and A Commentary on the

Awakening of Faith — One Mind can

be summed up as the belie that every

human being has a Buddhist nature

and can become Buddha as long as

they restore the true source o their

mind. Every creature is equal and the

jeongto (pure land), a religious utopia

o Mahayana Buddhism, is where

everybody is treated merciully and

without discrimination.

On the other hand, Harmonization

integrated theories o diferent sects a

greatly contributed to the developme

o Korean Buddhism. Just as is indica

by his Buddhist name, Wonhyo

(meaning “early dawn”), ushered in a

new dawn o Korean Buddhism with

studies and writings.

oday, he survives in the minds

o Koreans more than a millennium

aer his death. Wonhyo-ro Street and

Wonhyo Bridge in Se oul were named

aer him, while his lie has been

recreated in numerous novels, plays a

musicals. Tis is most likely because h

message is still relevant or those o u

who live in the 21st century.

A portrait of Buddhist monk Wonhyo, whoseteachings helped spread Buddhism across thepeninsula (opposite). The original text of ACommentary on the Awakening of Faith, whichlooked at Mahayana Buddhism (above). One ofWonhyo’s manuscripts was shown in a specialexhibit in Tokyo (below).




seoul

somewhat akin to hash browns, most

the vendors are located at the market’

main intersection. At its epicenter, in

all directions you can watch as skilled

hands ry plate-sized rounds made

rom crushed mung beans and assort

vegetables atop a large skillet. Once r

to a golden crisp, patrons dip pieces

into soy sauce avored with vinegar a

onions, beore washing it down with

Korea’s signature rice liquor, makgeol

Around dusk, Kwangjang Market’s

hum o activity is ratcheted up a ew

notches. Groups o oce workers,

students, tourists and seniors rub

shoulders atop wooden picnic bench

wrapped in heated blankets. As they e

a handul o eccentric market regular

starts to appear. Among them, “Te

General” dons a top hat and plays the

saxophone. Another nattily-dressed

elderly man may arrive with accordio

portable amplier and microphone

in tow, just in case any diners want an

impromptu karaoke session.

Sitting amongst this rich mix, it’s

obvious that Kwangjang retains Korea

most quintessential charms — delicio

ood and warm-hearted people.

than it seems, some 5,000 shops are

located between Jongno Street’s 4-ga and

5-ga intersections.

For over a century, Kwangjang has

been known or ne textiles. oday,

wholesalers rom better-known markets

like Dongdaemun and Namdaemun

arrive early each morning to purchase

wares or manuacture and resale. Retail

customers come in search o the market’s

hanbok shops, where tailors create

bespoke versions o Korea’s nationalcostume at discounts up to 30%.

In recent years, Kwangjang has also

emerged as Seoul’s premier destination

or vintage clothing. Although retro

boutiques are popular in several o the

city’s trendiest neighborhoods, only

Kwangjang’s upper level can boast 300

shops selling everything rom men’s

couture to women’s accessories imported

rom Japan, Europe and North America.

Nevertheless, Kwangjang is best

known or ood. High-brow Korean

palace cuisine it is not, but it probably is

Seoul’s best single location to enjoy the

sheer diversity o Korean street ood.

Te market’s central arteries burst with

lines o carts carrying vats o simmering

tteokbokki rice cakes, high stacks o pig’s

trotters, ropes o sundae blood sausage

and bowls o red b ean porridge, called

patjuk. Te bright light rom the naked

bulbs that hang rom the rafers is made

hazy by thick clouds o steam.

Among this smorgasbord o Korean

comort ood, mayak gimbap warrants

special mention. Te so-called “narcotic

gimbap” is a miniature version o Korea’s

ubiquitous rice and vegetable roll. Te

name comes rom the assertion that one

2,500-won plate (US$2.12) o 12 rolls

dipped in spicy mustard and soy sauce

won’t be enough.

Controlled substances aside, the

undisputed king o Kwangjang’s snack

stalls is bindaetteok. With a texture

Gorging onKwangjang

For over 100 years, Seoulites have escaped winter’s chill atKwangjang Market. oday, it remains one o the best placesto grab a delicious meal, ind a great bargain, and rubshoulders with a diverse cross-section o everyday olks.

by Matt Kelley | photographs by Choi Ji-young

January is Korea’s coldest month. It’s

when a Siberian high pressure system

brings both gorgeous blue skies and

stubbornly below-reezing temperatures.

In search o warmth, Seoulites ofen

head to Kwangjang Market, a shoppers’

and oodies’ paradise where both a

hot meal and the warmth o authentic

Korean hospitality are readily available.

Established in 1905, Kwangjang is

Korea’s longest-running public market

and also one o its largest. Far bigger

• The best time to visit Kwangjang’s vintage sh

is after 11am, when the wholesale dealer s hav

finished their daily buys. Most shops close at 7

Don’t be afraid to haggle on the pri ce.

• As you might expect, the best time to visit the

food stalls is at major mealtimes. Don’t bother

haggling on the bindaetteok — they’ve been 4

won (US$3.40) each for a decade!

before you go

fm ppsit, clckwis: Th main dintsctin at Kwanjan Makt; a ishvnd insid th makt; whlsalaics; mayak gimbap.

Kwangjang Market

Jongno 5-ga Station,Subway Line 1

8

Mayak gimbap

Vintageshopsentrance



travel: muju

© K

o r e a T o u r i s m O

r g a n i z a t i o n ( a b o v e ; o p p o s i t e b o t t o m )

Hyangjeokbong peak sits at 1,614m

above sea level, but winter hikers can

reach this scenic viewpoint rom a

gondola at Muju Deogyusan Resort. A

20-minute hike aer the ride up will lead

visitors to a snow-covered landscape.

Te dark blue o winter skies contrasts

with the stretches o land below.

As I walk up the trail towardsHyangjeokbong, the summit o Mount

Deogyusan, the surrounding roads, trees

and rocks are covered in white. Last

night’s snow has covered the mountain

in a thick blanket and branches rozen

with snow appear as natural sculptures.

Mt Deogyusan, which stretches

rom Muju in Jeollabuk-do Province

to Geochang in Geyongsangnam-

do Province, is Korea’s ourth highest

mountain and one o the country’s

national parks. Deogyusan means

“gentle mountain with virtue,” which isepitomized in its accessible trails easy to

climb even or children.

In contrast, Hallasan (1,950m), Jirisan

(1,915m) and Seoraksan (1,708m)

mountains are only accessible to

adults with climbing experience and

appropriate climbing gear.

Te gondola at Muju Deogyusan

Resort is part o what makes the trip

to the summit so stress-ree. Te

2,659m-long cable car transports visitors

rom the ski resort at the entrance o

Deogyusan to Seolcheonbong peak (1,520m). From there, visitors can reach

Hyangjeokbong aer a mere 20 to 30

minutes o hiking.

Dogwoods, Korean rs and maples

O the highest mountain ranges in Korea, not many allow or bothnovice and expert trekkers to experience the beauty o winter.Mount Deogyusan’s accessibility is its greatest appeal, and nature-lovers head to its peaks in the heart o the year’s coldest months.by Chung Dong-muk | photograph by Kim Hong-jin

How to Get tHereTo get to

Deogyusan from Seoul

by car, take the

Gyeongbu Expressway

past Daejeon to Biryong

IC and take Jungbu

(Daejeon-Tongyeong)

Expressway. From Muju

IC take National Road

37 to Deogyusan-ri.

National Road 37 is also great for sightseeing a

highway will circle and pass through MtDeogyusan. Take a bus from Seoul Nambu Bus

Terminal to Muju Intercity Bus Terminal. Buses l

daily at 7:40am, 9:20am, 10:40am, 1:40pm an

2:35pm. From the rear gate of Muju Terminal, t

a free shuttle bus to Deogyusan Resort.

travel information

22 | korea | january 2012 www.korea.ne

Su

vie or one’s attention, but it is the Jumok

(Japanese yew) trees that steal the show.

Jumok trees, which are known or their

longevity but are dicult to calculate

in age, are known in Korea to “thrive

1,000 years alive and 1,000 years dead.”

Beneath the white snow on Deogyusan,

the trees boast geometric branches, red

bark and sharp green leaves.Kim Yu-jung has visited Deogyusan

with her 7-year-old daughter Hye-min.

“I’m glad I visited with my child. I was

worried that this hike would be too

dicult or her, but was I wrong.”

Te scenery aforded at the peak can

be described only by those who climb all

the way to the top. At Hyangjeokbong,

the numerous mountains and valleys

spread out beneath your eet. Te local

saying “below no man and above 10,000

men” best explains this spot. Hikers

can look out to the horizon and even

see neighboring mountains, including

Gayasan, Bigyesan, Jirisan, Daedunsan

and Gyeryongsan.When descending, stop by Deogyusan

Ski Resort or a hands-on experience

o the white snow. Te resort is Korea’s

southernmost skiing and snowboarding

venue with an impressive total area o

over 7sqkm. Te Hotel irol, designed

by amed European architect Karl

Landauer, opened in 1997, augmenting

the area’s natural beauty.

Te areas o Muju, Jinan and Jangsu in

Jeollabuk-do Province are oen reerred

to as “Mujinjang,” using the rst syllable

o each county. Te word, however,

also means “no end” in Korean, and

the people here are known or their

“mujinjang” (endless) sincerity. Farmers

in the area are also known to use only

organic ertilizers, which has led to the

counties being known as the “mecca o

organic arming.”

muju

w hks k h y up Hygjkbpk m Dgyus (pps). vss Schbg pk by cb c (b).fs d ds sk h DgySk rs (b).

a a sas



travel: baeksasil

© J o n g n o - g u O f f i c e ( s e c o n d f r o m t o p r i g h t , b o t t o m ) ; N e w s b a n k I m a g e s ( o p p o s i t e )

Baeksasil Valley in northern Se oul is one

o the city’s greatest secrets, well-kept by

neighbors and hikers seeking its peace.

Groves o tall trees bridge the ground

to the blue skies in this quiet mountain

valley, where the air is so silent that even

the so alling o snow will lightly sound

on dry leaves.

Oen named one o Korea’s most

picturesque landmarks, Baeksasil dates

back to the the Joseon Dynasty (1392–

1910), where it is believed to have been

the site o a grand villa owned by Yi

Hang-bok, a renowned prime minister

in the early 17th century. Te valley wasnamed aer Yi’s penname “Baeksa.” Its

unmatched views o the city led to it

being called a Baekseokdongcheon —

“baekseok” is short or Mt Bugaksan,

hough oten overlooked orits neighboring hiking trailson mounts Bukhansan andBugaksan, Baeksasil Valley oers one o Seoul’s mostpeaceul, hidden inner-city escapes. by Ines Min | photographs by

Kim Hong-jin

24 | korea | january 2012 www.korea.ne

while “dongcheon” means scenic

outlook — and an ancient rock carving

still proclaims that title today.

Te course to Baeksasil begins long

beore the actual entrance o the valley.

Te hike to its entrance can be ound in

the charming neighborhood o Buam-

dong, home to several hole-in-the-wall

eateries and coee shops boasting beans

roasted in-store.

Explorers head north on Jahamun-

gil, a winding road with an incline thatrises and alls with the side o Bugaksan.

Along the path, pop culture anatics will

appreciate Sanmotoonge Cae, better

known as one o the shooting locations

or the hit Korean drama Te 1st Shop

o Cofee Prince. Tough the area is

undergoing new development, pristine

views o Seoul and the seonggwak-gil

ortress wall can still be glimpsed all

along the walk.

At the entrance o Baeksasil, wave

upon wave o majestic trees greet the

eye, welcoming weary hikers into a

pleasant, downhill walk. Strategically

located wooden benches provide perches

perect or reection, as passersby

dwindle to a minimum.

Remnants o Yi’s villa can be ound

nestled in a clearing in the valley.

Tough the building itsel has long been

lost to time, oundation stones stand in

their original locations. Separated rom

the hiking trails by a stream, the outlines

o a pond and hexagonal pavilion stand

in place by the main building.

At the end o the trail, Hyeontongsa

emple peeks out rom a corner o the

mountain, its entrance located next to

a spring that ows down larger-than-

lie boulders. Te vibrantly painted gate

ushers in curious onlookers, beore they descend once more into the city.

Tough Baeksasil Valley ends at

the temple, many will continue on to

make one last stop, near the end o the

trail. Segeomjeong, a small pavilion

designated a landmark within Seoul,

was a resting place or soldiers. Its

name literally translates to “place to

wash swords and pray or peace,” and

the quiet environment it rests in helps

illuminate the name.

Te original date o construction

is unknown, but its current state was

restored in 1977, aer a fre burnt down

A City’s

How to Get tHereFrom

Gyeongbokgung

Station, Subway Line 3,

walk straight out of exit

3. Take bus 1020 or

7022 to Buam-dong

Community Center. Get

off and follow the signs

to Sanmotoonge Cafe.

wHat to eatJaHa Sonmandu

Indulge in fresh, handmade mandu dumplings

and other cuisine.

245-2 Buam-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul

Phone +82 2 379 2648SanmotoonGe Cafe

Visit one of the most picturesque shooting

locations from the drama The 1st Shop of

Coffee Prince.

97-5 Buam-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul

Phone +82 2 391 4737

travel information

S

the structure in 1941. Records show

that it was frst rebuilt in 1748, and

its likeness was captured in a work by

Joseon Dynasty painter Jeong Seon.

Tough the valley’s easy trails will

only take an hour or two, at most, to

traverse, the mini excursion provides

relie rom the city’s bustling renzy o

10 million people.

f pps, ccks: w s s Bkss vy; Hygs tp; c ck h s“Bkskgch”; Sgjg s p c s by sg ss.

festival




festival

© H

w a c h e o n S a n c h e o n e o I c e F e s t i v a l

Freezing Fish Frenzy

Imagine stepping out onto 40cm thick ice, oating atop a

winter stream. Everywhere around you, couples, riends and

amilies peer into the icy waters below that blur with sh.

Flipping, oundering sancheoneo (trout) make or some

o the best shing, and Gangwon-do Province is the place to

be or the winter sport. Te small village o Hwacheon draws

in more than a million visitors each year with the Hwacheon

Sancheoneo Ice Festival. Tis year’s edition is set to take place

rom Jan 7 to 29, and expectations are running high aer the

last-minute cancellation o last year’s events. CNN included

the estival on its list o seven

winter wonders and organizers

are looking orward to a new year

o estivities.

“A total o 1,330,000 peoplecame in 2010, but our chairman

has decided to dedicate our eforts

on the quality o the estival rather

than on keeping a headcount,”

Ice fishing is 12,000 won

(US$10.21) with a

complimentary 5,000 won

voucher that can be used

toward fishing supplies.

Children and senior tickets cost

8,000 won. Other events and

activities can be accessed for

3,000 won to 5,000 won.

Admission

his January, experience winter to itsullest by ice ishing in Gangwon-doProvince. From seasoned pro to daringamateur, try your hand — l iterally, insome cases — at landingsome o Korea’stastiest wild

trout or a reshcatch. by Ines Min

Fr te t, clckwe: A gru f fre catch ther frt fh f the ay athe Hwache sachee ice Fetval; A a hl u h catch ruly; Tw gare ucceful ther effrt; A wa e wth her catch; Tw ele e wgg fr a re Krea tratal ce le.

says estival PR spokesman Oh Se-bin. “Instead, we are doing

our best to ensure that each individual who comes will be able

to enjoy their time.”

Te main event at the ice estival is, o course, the ice

shing. Most preer to ice sh on top o the rozen stream,

though others with more expertise might opt or lure shing.

Tis year, 11,000 ice holes will be made or visitors and 200

spots or lure shing will be open each day. Kids will also have

a chance to partake, with 500 holes dedicated just or children.

For those who preer to take no chances on the best shing

spots, reservations can be made ahead o time (4,000 o the ice

holes are set aside or reservations). Te remaining holes and

line shing are rst come rst served, so it’s best to arrive early.

Each person is allowed to catch up to three sh, but don’t

worry about there not being enough to catch — organizersreplenish the trout in the stream regularly.

I you’re unaraid o bone-chilling temperatures, try the

hands-on shing pit. Aer stripping down to shorts and a

-shirt, those willing to brave the reezing waters can jump

into a pool o trout and catch their prey with their bare han

Certainly a once-in-a-lietime opportunity, hands-on shin

will take place three times a day (11am, 1pm and 3pm).

However, the best part o the ice estival comes aer all

the hard work has been completed. Successul shers can

enjoy their catch on site, as places to grill or bake are availa

throughout the estival grounds. Alternatively, the sancheon

can be enjoyed as resh sashimi at the sushi stalls, as many

preer the trout raw.

Sledding on Korean traditional sleighs will b e available, a

well as skating, ice soccer and more. Families can explore th

snowman exhibit or wander around cavernous monument

made o ice. Others can go or a stroll on Seong Deung Wa

440m street o lights located in Hwacheon.

Ambitious DIY olks may want to enter the sleddingcompetition, where groups compete or the best homemade

sled. Judged on design, complexity and speed, the grand pr

is 2 million won (US$1,732). For more inormation about t

estival, visit www.naraestival.com (Korean and English).

Catching a trout can take time and patience, so bring a

portable chair to relax into and warm footwear. Don't worry

about fishing gear though, as it’s available on-site!

Tip!

now in korea




now in korea

Te village o Gume, Gyeonggi-do Province, bustles

busily with work around the end o the year. Tis sm

town is home to Korea’s largest production base o jo

bamboo strainers, a traditional cra with a 400-year

history. Tese handmade works can be ound hangin

all around the “village o bamboo strainers,” a symbo

happiness and blessing in the new year.

raditionally, jori was a bamboo strainer Korean

armers used to rinse rice. Te custom was that they

would hang a jori in their house at dawn on the rst

o the year, believing it invoked blessings like bounti

rice harvests in the coming season. Tis custom led tthe term Bokjori, which means a bamboo strainer o

good ortune. oday, people will buy a strainer, place

coins or grain in it, and hang it in their home.

Gume is known or its mountain bamboo, which i

the best material or making the strainers. One-year

bamboo is cut around October, dried and subsequen

split into our parts. It is then soaked in water to so

beore craspeople weave the bamboo into strainers

and all o the work is done by hand.

Choi Bok-soon, who has been making bamboo

strainers or 40 years, says that although they don’t

make nearly as many as they did in the past, the cust

o hanging Bokjori or good ortune has yet to chang

“Over the years, bamboo strainers have come to be u

in more diverse ways. Nowadays, people give Bokjor

presents when an entrepreneur opens a new busines

or a housewarming gi or even as a windshield

decoration or cars.”

Familiar TradiTions More traditional amilies in

Korea will celebrate the lunar new year, which is call

seollal . Tis year’s lunar new year alls on Jan 23, tho

many amilies preer to celebrate New Year on Jan 1.

Tough the typical midnight countdown will be

dicult to nd in Korea, amilies will kick o New Y

celebrations with charye, a memorial service perorm

or one’s ancestors, by preparing a number o dieren

oerings. Aer the memorial service, younger amily

members will perorm a traditional sebae bow to the

grandparents, parents and close amily riends. Peop

will bow to the eldest rst and continue down accordto age. Aer the person bowing wishes a “Happy Ne

Year!” the elderly will typically respond with a “I hop

all your wishes come true this year.”

Without ail, Koreans will eat tteokguk (rice cake

the New YearCelebrating

Around the world, people have many di erent ways to ring in New Year’s Day. In Korea,many hold memorial services or ancestors, have their ortunes read, oer prayers atBuddhist temples or watch the year’s irst sunrise. by Lee Se-mi | photographs by Kim Nam-heon

© K


r g a n i z a t i o n



would say things like “Let all our illnesses y away with this

kite.” Aer the kite was high up in the air, they would cut the

string, as this symbolized the hope that the kite’s message

would come true.

new Year’s PraYers Regardless o religious conviction, it is

a longtime custom in Korea to oer a devout prayer by visiting

a spiritual place at the start o the year. Famous places to watch

the year’s rst sunrise — whether near the sea, on a mountain

or at a Buddhist temple — are crowded with people at the

beginning o the year be cause Koreans believe ortune will

smile down upon them i they watch the rst sunrise.

Chiljangsa, an ancient Buddhist temple in Gyeonggi-do

Province, is one such place to greet the new year. Kim Jung-

soon came here to oer a devout prayer and begin her new

year on the right note, saying, “On the rst day o the lunar

calendar year, I always visit a Buddhist temple. I pray or the

health o my amily, the continued saety o the Buddhist

temple that I belong to, the continued health o the aithul

and or Korea’s prosperity. From the third to the seventh day

o the lunar calendar, I also pray or the many people up in

heaven that help keep me sae.”

Fortune tellers are also quite busy at the b eginning o the

year. It has become a common custom around this time or

people to turn to ortune telling, or saju, at amous ortune

teller stalls, saju caes and websites.

Tere are various ways to tell one’s ortune — through

divination or through academic study — and people will

inquire about everything rom business and work to romanceor money. One ortune teller, who goes by the name o

Domyeong (they rarely use their real name), carries out

predictions based on academic studies about saju.

“Saju literally means ‘our pillars,’ with the pillars being the

www.korea.ne 30 | korea | january 2012

time, date, month and year o your birth. Tis kind o ortune

telling helps people learn about their aptitude and abilities,

and which path to choose in lie, while also helping you better

prepare or the uture,” Domyeong explains.

I visited a saju cae in the afuent neighborhood o

Apgujeong-dong, mere days beore the end o the year. Te

cae was crowded with the year-end rush and, save or the

separate area set aside or ortune telling, it wasn’t much

dierent rom any other coee shop. At one table, two young

women were careully hanging on one ortune teller’s every

word. As i amongst old riends, the three o them spoke

seriously about intimate subjects, at times laughing in a

careree manner.

Most people wait to have their ortune told while having a

snack or sipping on some tea. One 35-year-old woman named

Shin Na-young dropped by on her way home rom work,

revealing she visits a saju cae once every two to three months.

“I love that saju caes are easily approachable and that I

can have my ortune told or un. Although I’m Christian, Idon’t eel uncomortable about getting my ortune told,” she

says. “I’ve been to a lot o saju caes, but I come to this one in

particular because I trust one o the ortune tellers who works

here. When I came one time last year with some riends, we

soup) on New Year’s Day. Tis tradition marks a sort o

birthday or Koreans, as they are said to be a year older upon

eating the soup.

teokguk is made with thin slices o rice cake and stock,

but recipes vary rom region to region. In addition, the color

o the rice cakes, which is white, symbolizes brightness, while

its round shape represents the sun. Tus, eating rice cake soup

is believed to ward o disasters in the coming year by starting

the rst day o the year with light.

People also play a number o traditional games on New

Year’s Day, including neolttwigi (a game similar to see-sawing)

andYunnori

(a traditional board game). In the past, when

women spent most o their days indoors, they enjoyed playing

neolttwigi because it allowed them to see what was happening

outside the walls o their home, by jumping as high as they

could. Yunnori is popular with people o all ages. Played with

our sticks, called yut , the game symbolizes the our seasons,

while also wishing everyone a plentiul harvest.

In days o old, children loved ying kites. Aer attaching

bamboo branches to some paper, they would write Chinese

characters on the main part o the kite or on the tail that

© K


r g a n i z a t i o n ( t o p r i g h t )

were told that we would all get married in the coming year.

And guess what? All o us did. I wonder what I’ll be told wi

happen this year.”

Yu Sang-joon, who has run a saju cae called Jaeminan

Jogakga (Te Fun Sculptor) since 1995, says, “It’s nice that

you can have your ortune told in a un and amiliar way he

so as not to make the whole thing weird or scary. You migh

not believe it, but some o the people who come here includ

doctors, stock traders and proessors.”

Yeonam, a ortune teller at Yu’s cae, reads ortunes by

interpreting the patterns o scattered coins or rice. Howeve

she’s the rst to admit that you should not just blindly trust

the ortune you’re told. “It would be wrong to ask me to dec

something or you while I’m telling your ortune,” she expla

“Your decisions should be made by you. What I tell you sho

merely provide ood or thought. People’s ortunes are alwa

changing, and the uture is not set in stone.”

People gain hope rom the words o ortune tellers, who p

the role o an adviser or those at a crossroads. Whatever yohopes or dreams or the coming year, it can’t hurt to visit a

saju cae and see what might lie in store or you in 2012. W

knows? It might even be un and give you a little something

think about.

F ppt btt, cck: a py t Chjg Tp Gygg-Pvc; b f tt tteokguk c ck up; Bokjori bb t f g uck Gu; a ftu t tpt th ftu f cut; Tp vtt th hp h tt t.

entertainment




© K

B S

In Korea, the most popular brand o comedy

is known colloquially as “gag concerts” (sketch

comedy). Gag concerts got their start in 1999, a

time when Korea was suering in the wake o the

Asian nancial crisis. Te reality acing comedians

at the time was not that dierent rom the

competitive atmosphere the nancial crisis had

brought about or everyone else. ypical comedy

shows had been pulled rom V, and comics were

mainly perorming on stage at small theaters when

gag concerts came on the air.

Te new shows came to represent a break rom

the conventional comedy productions made

locally. Whereas earlier sketch shows were

written by writers, perormed by comics and then

aired, gag concerts were shows heavily edited by a director

aer being perormed. Tis new system led to a rise in

competitiveness, as comedians had to truly gain a lot o laughs

in order to avoid being edited.

Over the past decade, gag concerts have come to evolve

with the people’s tastes. In its nascency, gag concert sketcheswere mainly about sel-deprecation, reecting the general

atmosphere o depression present in society. Te perormers

would make themselves the laughing stock by doing

something humiliating. Tey’d pick up something o the oor

Gag concerts mock politics and current events more reque

and more boldly than ever beore. Members o the Nationa

Assembly are not immune to their crosshairs — something

that is unprecedented in Korean society. Subjects even inclu

the president and high-ranking government ofcials.

wo examples are the sketches Praying Mantis Kindergar

and Emergency Committee. Te ormer parodies the adult

world through the eyes o a kindergarten teacher, while the

latter satirizes Korean bureaucracy by showing ofcials mak

excuses in an emergency instead o trying to solve a proble

Interestingly enough, there has been little political

pressure — so common in the past — in the wake o these

conrontational parodies. In a sense, politicians have

developed a symbiotic relationship with popular culture,

and the public’s enjoyment o these gag concert parodies isbecoming something even the politicians cannot touch.

Tough some gagmen still depend on slapstick, the genr

gag concerts has changed dramatically over the years. Com

tastes are proving a unique window into Korean society.

and eat it, grind a radish with their teeth or

pull an ugly ace. Tere was even a sketch

where all the perormer did was hit his head

incessantly. Tis genre o slapstick lasted or

years on V.

Te ormat o tough competition also

meant that comedians only perormed

certain sketches or a ew weeks, at most.

Tere was, however, one in particular that

survived our years in the industry, rom

2007 to late last year. Darin (Te Master) was

a typical slapstick eaturing a “master” (Kim

Byeong-man), a sel-styled expert o things

such as acrobatics. In truth, he was nothing

but a quack. Te character’s audaciousness

drew laughs rom audiences time and again,

insuring the sketch’s lengthy run.

In recent months, the trend o slapstick

sketches has been replaced with a more verbal

comedy, in which perormers use their wits

to make people laugh. Tis has led to a rise

in more realistic subject matter in sketches,

which has struck a chord with the public. A

case in point is Aejeongnam, which eatures a

quick-witted comic who answers questions on

ambiguous social situations with clever quips.

For example, questions posed in this

comedy routine include “Who should have

the last bite to eat?” or “Who should you give up your seat

or on the subway, an elderly lady or a pregnant woman?”

Aejeongnam replies: “Te last bite should go to whoever picks

up the tab.”

Now, people will bring

up Aejeongnam in

conversation, when

conronted with hard-

to-answer questions

in real lie. Te show’s

popularity is proo

that the general public

now preers verbal comedy to

the sel-deprecating slapstick. Tis can be

interpreted as Koreans longing ormore realistic communication and

honesty.

Alongside this trend, parody has

emerged as a mainstream element o comedy.

The cast from thesketch Darin pose(opposite top). A scfrom an episode of Emergency Commit

which satirizes Korbureaucracy (opposbottom). Darin follothe audacious acts o“master” (above). Asketch show on KBS(left). A character othe sketch PrayingMantis Kindergarte(below left).

Comedy is oten an accurate relection o what’s happening in society. here is

perhaps no better example o this thanCharlie Chaplin, who mocked the dark reality o the Great Depression with his

slapstick comedy. In Korea, what kind o comedy best captures the reality o the

day? by Jeong Deok-hyeon

Comedyof Truths

sports



www.korea.ne

altogether because o strong winds th

change direction requently.

Tough the situation on the

eld suggests that luck, and n

archery skill, will determine

which color medal is won,

Oh disagrees. “A gold me

cannot be won solely on

archery skills alone, and

the surroundings are poo

they must be overcome,”

believes.

With the help o the Ko

Archery Association and

Korea Institute o Sport Scien

the winds on the London Olym

Archery Range are being analyzed

Rather than hope the wind stops on

a draw, the Korean National Archery

eam members will need to develop t

ability to shoot arrows depending on

predictable wind changes.

“We are in the process o analyzing

the winds at Lord’s Cricket Ground,

which will be the venue or the Londo

Olympic archery competitions. We

are planning to train on Jejudo Island

where there are strong gusts o wind,

and on the East Sea coast in Gangwo

do Province, where the winds are ver

similar to those in London,” Oh revea

With such thorough preparation,

does the Korean National Archery e

have any weaknesses? Oh says yes.

Foreign athletes can gain experience

in international competitions withou

being stressed about National eam

qualiying matches, whereas Korean

athletes with overseas experience are

rare due to heavy domestic competiti

Tis is why the coaching sta stres

the importance o a well-rounded

training experience. “We cannot havea alse sense o comort and relax ae

mastering technical skills. We need

to be two or three levels ahead o the

competition to win the gold.”


“We will win gold in Robin Hood’s

home country, the United Kingdom.”

Tis is the mindset and mission o the

Korean National Archery eam, the best

in the world, as they begin training or

the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.

Korea has won a total o 16 gold

medals in the span o seven Olympic

Games, rom the 1984 SummerOlympics in Los Angeles to the 2008

Summer Olympics in Beijing. At the

2008 Olympics, Korea won two gold,

two silver and one bronze medal, and

the small country is consistently one o

the top competitors in archery.

Koreans have long excelled in the

sport throughout their history. In the

past, China called Koreans “Dongi,”

which means Easterners who shoot

well with a bow. Even the progenitor o

the ancient nation Goguryeo (37BC–

668AD), King Dongmyeong, was amedor his skill with the bow and arrow.

Te eld o archery is so competitive

that people at the training acility where

the national team practices say that it is

more difcult to be chosen or either the

Korean National Archery or aekwondo

eams than to win a gold medal in the

actual Olympics.

Tis level o competition is due to the

act that there is a large pool o talent

in terms o archers in Korea. Even the

amed, multi gold-winning Im Dong-

hyun — known or his talent despitebeing legally blind — is not guaranteed

a returning spot on the National eam

each year. “Although Im is one o the

top people in the sport, there are many

others in Korea with a similar level o

talent,” says coach Oh Sun-taek.

Te Korea Archery Association

holds several rounds o

qualiying matches to choose

a total o 12 male and emale

members or the Korean

National Archery eam.

From this elite group, more

qualiers will be held in

March and April to decide

which six will go on to the

Summer Olympics.

General manager Jang

Young-sul has announced the

start o intensive stamina training

and eld exercises on mountains.

Te team cannot be guaranteed

the gold with archery skills alone.

“Olympic Game schedules are tight

with preliminaries early in the morning

and the nals the same evening,” Oh

explains, and without the stamina

to compete all day long, it would b e

difcult to earn the gold no matter how

on-target one’s aim is.

o become a Korean National Archery

eam member, one must also train the

mind or concentration. Im and ellow

teammate Yoon Ok-hee participated in

special training sessions beore the 2008

Summer Olympics. Others trained at

the Army Intelligence School in order

to learn to keep calm in any number

o extreme circumstances, rom mazes

dotted with hidden surprises and live

snakes being placed in athletes’ pockets.

O course, the outside environment

includes all manner o actors. Te team

trained at noisy baseball stadiums and

motorboat racing arenas ahead o the

2008 Olympics, to prepare or the noise

levels at Beijing Olympic Green Archery Field. And i Beijing had a lot o noise,

the London Olympic Archery Range will

have a lot o wind. During the practice

games, many athletes missed the target © Y


Ahead o the 2012 London Olympics, Korean archers are preparing to take tothe stage once again with their world-class shooting skills. by Lee Sang-jun

Shooting for Gold

From opposite,clockwise: Archers

compete for the 2011National Team; Joo Hyun- jung (second from left)

hugs her teammates at the16th Asian Games; Park

Kyung-mo shoots at the2008 Olympics; Thewomen’s team wins

a gold medal.

special issue




© Y


Aer years o negotiations, the Free rade Agreement (FA)

between Korea and the United States was passed late last

year. Te agreement — Korea’s most important trade accord

ollowing its FA with the EU — will mark an economic

milestone between the two countries.

“Te Korea-US ree trade pact will open the door o the

world’s largest market: the US,” said President Lee Myung-bak ollowing its ratication in Korea. Te country already

has trade agreements in place with India, 10 countries in

Southeast Asia and several other nations. “Although we ace

dicult economic and export conditions next year, let's

overcome them through the Korea-US FA.”

Tough negotiations or the KORUS FA initially began

in April 2006, progress was stalled or three years until

2010. Lee and US President Barack Obama both acted as

proponents to kickstart the trade deal and several meetings

or renegotations were held throughout the past year.

Obama commented on the agreement, which is America’smost signicant trade deal or more than 16 years. “I

am very pleased that the United States and South Korea

have reached agreement on a landmark trade deal that is

expected to increase annual exports o American goods by

he Korea-US Free rade Agreement (FA) was passed late last year and isexpected to go into eect in February. he agreement is expected to bring new trade

advantages to both countries, while spurring a global atmosphere o increasingtrade ties with Korea. by Ines Min

Era of Trade

up to US$11 billion and support at least 70,000 American

jobs,” Obama said.

rade between the two countries reached an estimate

o US$90 billion in 2010. Te FA is expected to increase

Korea’s trade surplus with the US by US$140 million each

year until 2027 and expand Korea’s economy more than 5%.

In Korea, the agreement is predicted to create 350,000 jobs,

according to local think tank reports.

Industries that will most be afected include automotive,

electronics and agriculture, and the FA’s biggest change

will be to eliminate tarifs on more than 95% o industrial

and consumer goods within ve years o its implementation.

Tis will dramatically increase the number o exports to

each country.

In terms o the automobile industry, the FA will enable

an atmosphere that will allow more US auto companies to

increase sales in Korea and support more automaking jobs

in the States. As Korea’s car industry makes strides in the

American market, US cars in Korea will start increasing.

According to a statement released by the Oce o the US

rade Representative, “the agreement improves market

access or US auto companies by addressing ways Korea’s

system o automotive saety standards have served as a

barrier to US exports.”

In the Korean car industry, analysts believe auto-part

manuacturers will see great benets. “Te trade deal will

help expedite Korean car-parts makers’ eforts to increase

overseas orders as the tarif removal will give them a

competitive edge,” Yim Eun-young, an analyst with Dongbu

Securities Co, told Bloomberg.

Te US is currently Korea’s top supplier o agricultural

products — rom almonds to corn — and the FA’s act

o removing tarifs is expected to dramatically increase

products exported to Korea. Tough this issue has been

the source o controversy among armers in Korea, Lee has

called or new law revisions that would help protect small

businesses and armers rom the rise in agricultural imports

rom the United States.

Koran Prsdnt L Myung-ak sgns th KORUS Fr Trad Agrmnton Nov 22, 2011 (oppost). Untd Stats Scrtary of Commrc GaryLock and South Kora Mnstr for Trad Km Jong-hoon shak hands ata mtng for dscussons on th FTA last Aprl (top). Oa ma sgns hsapproval of th KORUS FTA n th Untd Stats on Oct 12, 2011 (aov).

• FTA passed in US Senate on Oct 12, 2011

• Korea’s National Assembly passed the FTA on Nov 22, 2011

• 350,000 jobs expected to be created in Korea

• 70,000 jobs to be made in the US

• Trade between the US and Korea reached US$90 billion i n 2010

• 95% of tariffs to be eliminated by 2017

• Korean economy to expand by 5%

• Negotiations for the KORUS FTA began in 2006

FTA iN NUMbeRS

Te efects o the FA are expected to be generally

positive or local electronics companies. Tough tarifs

will be eliminated on more than 6,000 electronic products,

many o Korea’s largest electronic exports to the US —

semiconductors and mobile phones — are already exempt

rom tarifs based on a previous agreement through

the World rade Organization. Te Korea Electronics

Association, an organization comprised o more than 1,000

companies, says that “Korea’s electronics and I industry is

more likely to gain in the amount o exports to the US than

experience disadvantages rom the trade pact.”

Overall, the FA will ease trade on both sides. Te United

States was once Korea’s largest trading partner, but ell toourth place behind China, Japan and the European Union

in 2003. rade analysts say the biggest advantage to the

agreement will be improved investment conditions, which

will help attract oreign investors in the uture.

summit diplomacy



www.korea.net 38 | korea | january 2012

attended the international aid orum.

Lee and Clinton met on the morning

o Nov 30 at the orum’s venue,

BEXCO in Busan. Senior oreign aairs

and security aides o the president

accompanied him to the meeting,

while Clinton was accompanied by

her aides and the newly appointed US

Ambassador to Korea, Sung Kim.

In addition to her meeting with

the president, Clinton attended a

separate meeting with her Korean

counterpart, Foreign Minister Kim

Sung-hwan, to discuss bilateral and

regional issues. Following her meeti

with the top Korean ofcials, she hea press conerence to address the tw

countries’ relations.

“Today, here in Busan, I had the

opportunity to address two high

priorities or US oreign policy,” she

said. “In meetings with President

Lee and with Foreign Minister Kim,

reafrmed America’s deep bond wit

one o our closest allies. And at the

High-Level Forum on Aid Eectiven

I engaged on a great global challen

and a personal passion o mine —

creating sustainable growth and

improving lives around the world.”

“The alliance between the United

States and the Republic o Korea is

a lynchpin o security, stability andprosperity in the Asia Pacifc,” she sa

“This alliance has never been strong

President Lee, Foreign Minister Kim

and I discussed issues o global and

regional importance, as we always

do when we have the opportunity t

exchange views.”

According to Clinton, she and the

Korean leader particularly ocused

on the importance o ending North

Korea’s nuclear arms programs. The

North’s shelling o Yeonpyeongdo

Island one year ago was also addres

by the secretary o state. “Let me

reafrm that the United States stan

with our ally, and we look to North

Korea to take concrete steps that

promote peace and stability and

denuclearization,” she said.

Clinton stressed the importance

Korea Goes GlobalPresident Lee Myung-bak’s eorts

to realize his “global Korea vision”

continued in recent months as he

attended a series o meetings to

discuss pending international issues

with world leaders visiting Korea in

late November. As Korea hosted the 4th

High-Level Forum on Aid Eectiveness

in Busan, Lee met with leaders rom

around the world. He also held a

meeting with his group o advisors in

preparation or the Nuclear Security

Summit in March.

STRONGER KOREA-US ALLIANCE On

Nov 30, Lee visited Busan to attend

the opening ceremony o the 4th High-

Level Forum on Aid Eectiveness (HLF-

4). He gave a welcoming speech at the

event beore 3,000 guests, including

state leaders and government

delegations rom 160 countries and 40

international organizations.

“Lee’s participation in the event willreconfrm Korea’s strong intentions

to contribute to international

development and cooperation eorts,”

Cheong Wa Dae (the Blue House) said

in a statement. “We also believe that

Lee’s participation will contribute to

the successul hosting o the orum

and improve Korea’s image as a

mature, responsible member o the

international community.”

On the sidelines o the orum,

Lee hosted a luncheon to meet with

leaders who visited the southern port

city or the event. He held a summit

with Rwandan President Paul Kagame,

and meetings with Australian Foreign

Minister Kevin Rudd, OECD Secretary-

General Angel Gurría and US Secretary

o State Hillary Clinton. This was the

frst time that a US secretary o state © Y o n h a p N e w s A g

e n c y ( o p p o s i t e ) ; N e w s b a n k I m a g e s ( t o p ) ; F o u r t h H i g h L e v e l F o r u m o n A i d E f f e c t i v e n e s s ( b

o t t o m )

President Lee Myung-bak meets with theEminent Persons Group on Nov 29 (opposite). Ameeting at the National Assembly (above). Leewith US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at the

aid forum in Busan (below).

Since its successul hosting o the Group o 20 Summit in Seoul in 2010, Korea’s eorts to play

a greater role in the international arena have grown. President Lee Myung-bak’s diplomacy

endeavors in November were in line with his campaign to promote a more global Korea as headdressed world leaders at an international aid conerence in Busan and met with eminent nuclear

and international aairs experts in Seoul to prepare or March’s Nuclear Security Summit. by Ser Myo-ja




ADVICE FOR THE NUCLEAR SUMMIT

On Nov 29, Lee hosted a luncheon

at Cheong Wa Dae or his advisors

rom around the world to prepare or

the successul hosting o the Nuclear

Security Summit in Seoul in March. The

event will discuss cooperative measures

to combat the threat o nuclear

terrorism, protect nuclear materials

and related acilities, and prevent illicit

trafcking o nuclear materials.

At the initial Nuclear Security

Summit in 2010 in Washington, US

President Barack Obama announced

that Korea would be the next host o

the event in 2012. Since then, the Lee

administration has made a series o

eorts to prepare

or the international

conerence, which

will be attended

by the heads o 46

states, international

organizations andInterpol.

To better prepare

or the largest

international summit

in the history o

Korea, the Eminent

Persons Group

was launched in

November 2011. The

group is composed

o 12 oreign dignitaries and three

Korean experts.

“The members have been actively

involved in the areas o international

politics and security based on their

extensive experience and insights,” said

a spokesman o the Ministry o ForeignAairs and Trade. ”In light o Korea’s

growing role in the international arena

with its hosting o the G20 and the

upcoming Nuclear Security Summit,

we expect meaningul discussions on

peace, stability and prosperity on the

Korean Peninsula and in the world to

take place.”

Kang Chang-sun, chairman and chie

regulatory ofcer o Korea’s Nuclear

Saety and Security Commission, Han

Sung-joo, ormer oreign minister, and

Oh Myung, ormer minister o science

and technology, are the three Korean

members o the advisory committee.

The 12 oreign members o the

Eminent Persons Group are dignitaries

with a deep understanding o nuclear

security issues. The members are

Graham Allison, director o Harvard’s

o the National

Assembly’s approval

o the long-pending

trade agreement,

which will remove

most trade and

investment barriersbetween the two

countries. “I also

congratulated

President Lee on

the passage o the

Korea-US Free Trade

Agreement,” she

said. “It has been a

long time coming, it

took a great deal o

work on both sides, but now we can

get down to the important business

o creating more jobs and economic

opportunities or both our people.”

During her talks with Foreign

Minister Kim beore the press

conerence, she praised the trade dealand the Lee administration’s eorts

to persuade the National Assembly

to approve the FTA. Stressing that it

would be a win-win arrangement or

both economies, she expressed high

anticipation or the trade deal’s eects.

At the press conerence,

Clinton thanked Lee or hosting

the international orum on aid

eectiveness and providing opening

remarks at the major event. “As

he eloquently told the audience

this morning, 50 years ago Korea

was recovering rom a devastating

war,” she said. “Today, it is a vibrant

industrial power and a major

contributor to growth in other

countries. And no one understands the

importance o eective development

better than the Korean people.”

Beler Center or Science and

International Aairs; Hans Blix, ormer

director-general o the International

Atomic Energy Agency; Gareth Evans,

ormer oreign minister o Australia;

Goh Chok Tong, emeritus senior

minister o Singapore; Igor Ivanov,ormer oreign minister o Russia; APJ

Abdul Kalam, ormer president o

India; Henry Kissinger, ormer US state

secretary; Shinichi Kitaoka, proessor

o the University o Tokyo and ormer

ambassador o Japan to the United

Nations; Li Zhaoxing, chairman o the

Foreign Aairs Committee o China’s

National People’s Congress; Sam Nunn,

ormer US senator and head o the

Nuclear Threat Initiative; William James

Perry, ormer US deense secretary and

proessor at Stanord University; and

Hubert Vedrine, ormer French oreign

minister and head o the François

Mitterrand Institute.

O the 15 advisors to Lee, ninegathered in Seoul on Nov 29 to have

their frst discussion. The attending

group — the three Korean members

and Kalam, Blix,

Evans, Goh,

Kitaoka and Li

— adopted a

joint statement

and shared their

insights with the

Korean president

at a luncheon.

While

acknowledging

that the 2010

Nuclear Security

Summit in

Washington

made the issue o

nuclear security

a major ocus o world leaders, the

advisors said they are confdent that

the Seoul summit will serve as a

“catalyst or realizing a world ree

o nuclear and radiological terrorism

by both reafrming the principles

and the spirit o the WashingtonSummit and reaching agreement on

new commitments and measures to

enhance nuclear security.”

In the joint statement, the advisors

also said the participating leaders

o the summit will enhance public

confdence in the peaceul uses o

nuclear energy. “We also urge them to

reduce the threats to nuclear acilities

and their operating systems, such as

sabotage or cyber-attacks, by discussing

in a responsible manner the ways in

which nuclear security and nuclear

saety can be mutually reinorced,

bearing in mind the implications and

lessons learned rom the Fukushima

nuclear accident,” the advisors said.

“We have every confdence that the

Republic o Korea can play a leading

role to this end as the chair country

the Seoul Summit.”

The advisors oered specifc advicto make the Seoul summit more

successul in bolstering the global

nuclear security regime. The need to

reafrm the role o the Internationa

Atomic Energy Agency to saeguard

and oversee nuclear security and a

saety ramework was highlighted,

along with the eorts to take into

account new circumstances in the

international community that have

taken shape in recent months. The

ongoing nuclear disasters at the

Fukushima plants in Japan were not

“In particular, in considering the

lessons o the Fukushima accident,

releases o radioactivity into the

environment have grave consequenand the Seoul Summit should

recognize that just as insufcient

nuclear saety may put nuclear secu

at risk,” they sa

“In conjunction

it should develo

measures or

cooperation to

reduce the thre

o radiological

terrorism. The

Seoul Summit

should promote

the strengtheni

o internationa

and regional

cooperation

mechanisms in

nuclear saety a

security.”

Lee speaks with former Indian President APJAbdul Kalam (opposite above). Lee at theluncheon with the Eminent Persons Group onNov 29 (opposite below). Lee meets with theNational Economic Advisory Council (below).

© C h e o n g W a D a e ;

Y o n h a p N e w s A g e n c y ( o p p o s i t e )

global korea




Ater hosting major international

events such as the 2005 Asia-Pacic

Economic Cooperation Leaders’

Meeting and the G20 Summit in Seoul,

Korea has established itsel as a nation

capable o bringing together some

o the world’s largest global events.

Last month, the southern port city o

Busan urthered this reputation by

hosting the 4th High Level Forum on

Aid Eectiveness (HLF-4).

Korea’s current incarnation as a

prosperous country owes as much

to aid as it does to hard work, and it

was because o this that the country

was a natural choice to host the HLF-4. In act, since joining the OECD’s

Development Assistance Committee

in 2009, Korea has donated around

US$2.3 billion worth o aid and plans

to increase the amount to 0.25% o its

gross national income by 2015.

Setting goalS HLF-4 in Busan

convened to address issues that were

brought up at previous orums in

Rome, Paris and Accra, but also to see

what progress has been made over

the last eight years. The topic o aid

eectiveness was a major ocal point

and solutions were recommended

to help overcome these problems,

culminating in the Busan Declaration.The orum opened with a session

called “Progress Since Paris: How Far

Have We Come?” which described

Joining hands for aid

Korea’s second largest city o Busan hosted the 4 th High Level Forum on Aid Eectivenessrom Nov 29 to Dec 1. More than 3,000 delegates rom 160 countries and 70 international

organizations met to review the current state o aid around the world. by Rob McGovern

© F

o u r t h H i g h L e v e

l F o r u m o

n A i d E f f e c t i v e n e s s

th 4h Hh lv Frm a effcvssp Bs nv 29 (pps). QR a abh f Jr, frm vss c sch Kr (bv).

what actions were needed to move

orward. Other sessions looked

at problems in society that i also

addressed could help with aid

eectiveness, such as one on gendeequality and women’s empowermen

that was opened by US Secretary

o State Hillary Clinton. “The vast

majority, as much as 60% to 70%,

o the people in the elds at small

agricultural holdings who are doing

the work o planting, o tending

livestock, o harvesting, o marketin

are women,” Clinton said.

Alongside Clinton, attendees at th

orum included UN Secretary-Gener

Ban Ki-moon; Angel Gurría, director

general o the OECD; President Paul

Kamage o Rwanda; Queen Rania A

Abdullah o Jordan; and ormer Brit

Prime Minister Tony Blair.

Blair, who established the AricaGovernance Initiative in 2009, had t

to say in a statement about the oru

with regard to aid and Arica. “Toda




Arica oers opportunities one could

scarcely imagine a generation ago.

The continent is on the move. Foreign

direct investment increased veold

rom 2000 to 2010, domestic revenues

have grown, and aid dependenceallen. Demand or Arican resources, i

managed transparently and eectively,

holds the potential to transorm the

economies o Arica.”

“Ultimately, this progress will

only be sustainable i we get both

governance and growth right. All

societies, no matter how wealthy,

need governments that can deliver

real improvements in the lives o their

citizens and also be held to account or

the results.”

Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles

Zenawi spoke o Korea’s increasing

exchanges with Arican countries.

“Korea provides an extraordinary

opportunity because o itsdevelopment experience, because o

its very dynamic private sector, and

because o its large market,” he said.

aid-recipient countries, I say: Set clear

development priorities and strategies.

Build up your planning capacity. Deliver

on your policy commitments. Enhance

transparency. Stamp out corruption,

which undermines trust in governance

and institutions.”

FutuRe oF aid According to www.

aideectiveness.org, a report on the

progress o the Paris Declaration ound

that o the 13 goals set, just one had

been met — and that was only by a

marginal amount. A rank evaluation

report on the Paris Declaration was

published in May 2011 and the reading

was grim. “Overall, the picture on

eciency gains is mixed, but so ar

disappointing in relation to the original

hopes o rapidly reduced burdens in

managing aid.”

It wasn’t all bad news, however,

as progress was made. “The

Frm bv, cckws: un Scrry-gr BK-m (sc frm f) vss h unMmr Cmry; Prs l My-bk;frm s; as s sm;Frmr Brsh Prm Msr ty Br spks.

a PReSident’S WelCoMe

“tHe RePuBliC oF KoRea WillFulFill itS CoMMitMentS“

The forum was opened by President Lee Myung-bak who

started by recognizing the attendees. “I would like to take t his

opportunity to pay tribute to all of you for your noble endeavor,

which is epitomized in the slogan for the 4 th High Level Forum on

Aid Effectiveness (HLF-4), ‘Toward a Better World for All.’”

Lee also mentioned the importance of Busan as the host city

and how it has played a large part in Korea’s development. “The

city of Busan, where we are having this historic meeting, has a very

special place in our history. This city was the last frontier where

Koreans defended our freedom during the Korean War about six

decades ago. This city was also where relief goods from all around

the world arrived once the war was over in a time of desperate need.”

“Busan has now transformed into the fifth largest port city in the world. With the history of war

successful transformation into a bustling port city, I believe Busan offers an inspiring setting to discu

the new framework for effective development cooperation,” he said.

Lee then went on to explain how vital it is to maintain aid even in times of financial hardship. “I

would like to emphasize the importance of resolutely fulfilling the pledges we have made for Offici

Development Assistance (ODA) in spite of economic difficulties. I would like to take t his opportunit

reaffirm that the Government of the Republic of Korea will fulfill its commitments.”

“The Republic of Korea has successfully overcome the financial crisis of 1997. Many of our

enterprises went bankrupt and more than 2 million workers lost their jobs during the financial crisis

the period of restructuring with a tight fiscal policy. Yet, we continued to expand the volume of OD

We still face difficulties at home including job insecurity and youth unemployment. The Koreangovernment will, nevertheless, faithfully fulfill our plan to double the current level of ODA by 2015

we have announced previously,” he said.

Korea’s reliance on aid after the Korean War was mentioned along with personal recollections fro

Lee’s childhood. “I would like to briefly introduce the development experience of the Republic of Ko

in which the government made full use of foreign aid for development. When I was a child, Korea w

one of the poorest countries in the world. Our per capita GDP stood at less than US$100, and the

country was full of people without jobs. However, within half a century, Korea rebuilt itself, emergi

from the ashes of a devastating war and extreme poverty to a vibrant economy and democracy.”

“Labor costs in Arica are very low.Arica is well endowed with natural

resources, cultural resources. So I think

it’s benecial or both sides.”

Perhaps the most pertinent speaker

at the orum was ormer Korean

Foreign Minister and current UN

Secretary-General Ban, who laid out

the importance o the orum and

talked about how its goals can be

achieved.

“First, to the traditional donors, I

say: Do not let this economic crisis, do

not let short-term austerity defect

you rom your long-term commitment

to the world’s poorest people,” he

said, beore going on to talk about

the obligations o the receivingcountries. “Ladies and gentlemen, my

second message to the countries that

receive aid is equally urgent: To those

Declaration has placed an explicit

ocus on aid relationships, and

opened up important dialogues about

partnerships themselves — between

countries and donors, among donors,

and with other stakeholders, rather

than just the technical or nancing

aspects o managing aid. A number

o clear practical benets are already

being elt,” according to the report.

This year’s orum culminated in

the 36-point “Busan Partnership or

Eective Development Cooperation,”

signed by ministers o developed

and emerging economies, marking a

critical turning point in development

cooperation. “Our success depends

on the results and impact o our joint

eorts and investments as we address

challenges such as health pandemics,

climate change, economic downturns,

ood and uel price crises, confict,

ragility and vulnerability to shocks and

natural disasters,” the statement reads.

HLF-4 also conronted the reality

that previous commitments had not

been met, but resolved to exceed

them with the new declaration. “We

can and must improve and accelerate

our eorts. We commit to modernize,

deepen and broaden our cooperation,involving state and nonstate actors

that wish to shape an agenda that

has until recently been dominated by

a narrower group o development

actors. In Busan, we orge a new

global development partnership tha

embraces diversity and recognizes

the distinct roles that all stakeholde

in cooperation can play to support

development.”

Ultimately, it will take time to see eect the Busan Declaration and th

orum will have on aid eectiveness

but the general outlook is positive. © F

o u r t h H i g h L e v e

l F o r u m o

n A i d E f f e c t i v e n e s s

my korea



PostnatalPerfection


Witnessing the birth o your child is the most humbling

experience a man can go through. All o the coaching, verbal

encouragement, etching o water and towels, and hand

squeezing is nothing compared to the physical and mental

exertion the mother endures. Still, I can now acknowledge that

I was a physical wreck the rst night ollowing the birth o my

daughter. Hours o conusion, struggle, tears, joy, phone calls

and hearty congratulations combined with lack o sleep, lack

o ood, and eelings o complete uselessness le me nothing

more than a rotund mass o esh on a hospital cot. When

the nurses came to check on

my wie, we were casually

inormed that our child’s birth

had been smooth and my wie

was healthy, and thereore, we

could check out o the hospital

the ollowing morning. As I

attempted to t in a ew hours

o sleep, my mind rittered

rom thought to thought,

ultimately resting on the one

question that had not been

answered the previous hours

beore: What was I supposed to

do now?

A ew weeks earlier, with the due date approaching, I had

given a riendly call to my mother to inquire about what I

should expect regarding the day o the birth and the weeksto ollow. Predictably, there were many soothing words o

encouragement, which momentarily alleviated my ears that

I may do the wrong thing once my child became an actual

physical presence in our house. But her answers were quickly

orgotten as intermittent eelings o insecurity now slipped

among the torrents o excitement that accompanied my

new status as ather. Paternity leave had not yet become a

viable option in Korea, so it had been decided earlier that my

mother-in-law would stay with us or a while to assist with

the baby and ease my wie’s recovery. But I would not be there

during the day. So as I lay there listening to my wie’s peaceul

sighs, I was apprehensive over what my role would be over the

next ew weeks. It was at this moment that my crash course in

Korean postnatal care began.

I soon discovered that Koreans believe the rst three weeksollowing childbirth (known as samchiril )are paramount to the

uture health and welare o the mother and newborn child.

Great care is taken so that the mother remains as comortable

and stress-ree as possible, while the child is shielded rom

the outside world to the point that only close amily membe

are allowed to see the baby. Mothers are to avoid physical

labor, relax and avoid hard oods that are dicult to chew a

digest. Sometimes a helper is hired to take care o the house

but typically the maternal grandmother o the newborn mo

in or the rst ew weeks to handle household afairs. Now,

ather’s job in most cases is quite simple: Do as you are told

and don’t annoy anyone. Since it had been determined that

my mother-in-law would in act be staying with my wie o

the rst three weeks, I would have the two tasks o being th

when my wie wanted me to

there and disappearing whe

she had no desire to see my

ace. Tese were jobs I knew

could handle.

Te rst day began

innocently enough as our b

was brought to us wrapped

snugly in pink and white

blankets. Aer the obligato

smiles, coos and baby talk,

my sister-in-law and mothe

in-law arrived to help us

get ready or the trek to our

apartment. While my sister-in-law helped my wie get dres

my mother-in-law expertly held my child, and I was given t

simple duty o retrieving the car and moving it to the ront

exit so we could proceed home. With a resh “baby on boarsign splashed on the back window, we all got settled into ou

suddenly cramped sedan and started the simple, yet daunti

journey to our apartment. Te trip that had taken 10 minut

just two days beore became a 20 minute careul crawl as I

made sure to miss every pothole, stay at a comortable spee

and avoid lane changes. As we pulled into the parking lot, I

a euphoric sense o achievement having completed step one

the expert ather manual: getting the baby home.

When we entered our apartment, it was as i some

mysterious cleaning el had broken in and gone through the

place top to bottom with a mop, broom and cloth. In this ca

the el in question was actually two elves, as my sister-in-la

and mother-in law had spent the previous day ensuring our

place was immaculate. Additionally, the unmistakable scent

o Miyeokguk (seaweed soup) permeated the air. I headedor the kitchen to observe a massive pot o the chunky gree

broth sitting on our stove. I quickly learned that one o the

traditional oods that new mothers are required to consume

is Miyeokguk, as it is believed the nutrients contained in th

Arriving home with a new baby can be an overwhelmingexperience. But, as an expat ather soon learns, rom mothers-in-law to seaweed soup, Korean postnatal care is beyondcompare. From particular rules o recovery or the mother toentire centers established throughout the country or

postnatal care, locals ollow a speciic set o traditionalprocedures or proper recovery.by Scott Lumsdon | illustrations by Jo Seung-yeon



soup help the mother recover by improving blood circulation

and generating sucient breast milk or nursing. I had tried

Miyeokguk many times beore and somewhat enjoyed its

avorul taste o the sea. So, as my mother-in-law started

preparing a bowl or my wie and asked i I’d like a sample,

I had no hesitation in saying yes. Soon, the baby was tucked

away in her new

little crib,

One day, upon arriving home and seeing her asleep on

the soa, I made the decision that i and when we were to

be blessed with another addition to our amily, I would

recommend that my wie spend the rst ew weeks at one o

the postnatal recovery centers that are popular throughout

Korea. Tough expensive, these little gems are smaller versions

o maternity wards where mothers can rest in their own

rooms, while their babies are taken care o by trained nurses.

Sure enough, when our second child was born three years

later, I checked my wie into the postnatal center near our

home. Here, all o her medical, nutritional and emotional

needs could be met, and my mother-in-law couldocus on taming the indeatigable 3-year-old that was

running around our house while I was at school. My

job was to visit, etch whatever essential items were

not provided by the center, and take care o my

daughter when I came home rom work.

Soon, an enjoyable routine emerged, where

I would visit my wie and newborn son in the

morning, go to work, return home, pick up my daughter, and then visit my wie and son again in

the evening. Tree weeks later, as I picked up my

newborn son and wie rom the postnatal center, I

couldn’t help but notice how rereshed they looked

and how much smoother the process had been the

d ti d

korean heritage



Ssireum Te traditional national

sport of Korea, ssireum or Korean

wrestling, dates back to the Tree

Kingdoms (57BC–668AD) era.

Gaining widespread popularity

during the Joseon Dynasty (1392–

1910), ssireum developed into a

modern sport in the 20th century.

In its modern incarnation, two

contestants wear satba bands that

wrap around the waist and thigh,

lock on to each other’s band and try to bring any part of the opponent’s

body above the knee to the ground.

korean heritage

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KOREA magazine [JANUARY 2012 VOL. 9 NO. 1]