Andong

Last weekend I had the chance to visit Andong, "The Capital of The Korean Spirit," according to the brochure.  In order to get there, two helpful Korean friends took on the taxing duty of getting the whole group safely to Andong, which took about five hours total by car (including breaks in between at rest stops).  One thing I've come to notice about Korean hospitality is that Koreans treat their guests very well.  Not only do they make an effort to present their country in a positive light, but more importantly, I've felt that all of my Korean hosts really care about the well being of their guests and go the extra mile to see that they are well taken care of.  As a foreigner in this country, I'm still wondering what the expectation of the guest is, or if there is any at all.  I definitely feel a sense of gratitude for all that my hosts have done for and given to me, and will hopefully find a way to repay them for their kindness.  

It's sort of weird to think that I will probably never see these two Korean men again who served as our tour guides for the trip.  They simply came into my life for a span of two days and provided our whole group with a wonderful experience.  One of the things that I will remember the most about them is how they navigated through some of the most rural areas of Andong unsystematically but grittily.  Our two cars winded along curvy dirt roads through endless rice fields, under the helm of these two Korean men.  At one point during the drive we had no idea where we were and could not continue along the dirt road anymore anyway because there was a huge cow blocking the way.  At this point, one of the men got out of the car and asked a halmonim, an older lady who was farming on the side of the road, for directions.  This instance was only one example of the way our hosts took care of us. It's interesting how people come in and out of your life at different times.  While I may have only known these two men for two days, their acts of kindness and assistance have become memories that will last a lifetime.

When we first arrived at Andong, we visited Hahoe Folk Village, which is known for it's mask festivals and performances, and contains various typical Korean houses preserved since the early Joseon Dynasty.  We had jjimdak for lunch, which is seasoned and simmered chicken.  It is an Andong specialty and a must-eat meal if you are in Andong.  We then made our way to see a traditional mask performance. In the performance, the actors wore different masks and with them assumed different personalities as well as a role within Korean society.  Some of the different masks included a crafty Farmer, a grieving halmonim, some sort of drunken man, and the yangban, or traditional ruling class during the Joseon Dynasty.  The actors were also accompanied by the traditional Korean music of drums and wind instrument.  It was a form of storytelling and a way to connect with and preserve Korean traditions.  The audience also seemed to really be getting into the performance as well, as some audience members even went down on the stage and started dancing with the performers.

After touring the village, we made our way to the traditional Korean house where we would spend the night.  After winding through more rice fields and valleys, we made it to the location of our camp site which was tucked snugly in the back of the mountains.  It was nice to be in nature's embrace and away from Seoul's busy streets and bright lights.  It was clear that night too, and I had forgotten what it was like to see the stars.  We started the barbecue up and barbecued up a storm of meat.  I went all out on the barbecue, and must of went a little too crazy because the next day I woke up with some small burns.  This was great timing to get a burn because I had just learned how to say "I got burnt by the fire" in class the other day.  The burns were nothing serious though, and they are pretty much fully healed now.  After dinner, we took quick showers in the makeshift bathrooms due to the cold water.  And then we played 윷놀이 (yunnori), a traditional Korean game played with sticks.  We had learned about this game in class, and it was a great experience to actually play it.  Our team ended up coming in last the first game.  But by the second game, we had come to understand the rules better and made an amazing turnaround by beating the competition by a wide margin (the losing team had to due some sort of embarrassing task. When we lost we had to sing and dance).  Then it was time for bed.  We slept on the floors in the traditional style, and I actually was able to get a pretty good night's sleep.  Although we had to get up pretty early the next morning, waking up to the beautiful view from our lodging and feeling the mountain's embrace around us was very rejuvenating.

On our second day in Andong, we visited several different religious sites including Bongjeongsa Temple and the Icheon-dong Buddha.  Buddhism still plays an important role in Korean life, which was evident in the reverence emanating from these sacred places.  We also visited the site of a Korean drama (Andong is a very popular place to make Korean films because of its well-preserved traditional folk settings).  We headed back home on this second day.  Most of us were pretty beat, and slept during most of the ride back.  There were about thirteen of us total, and it was a very nice group of people to spend time with on this excursion, all of whom were Sogang students.

Once back at Sinchon station, an unfortunate event occurred.  As I was about to exit the station, I became aware of a growing circle of people forming right in the middle of the subway station.  I could not see what was the focus of attention, as everyone was trying to get a glimpse at what was going on in the middle of the circle.  When I pushed a little further in, I saw a girl a little older than I sprawled out on the floor of the station as if someone had just hit her.  I could not see her face which was hidden by her disheveled hair facing the ground.  Her arms and hands were shaking as if she was in a state of fear and trauma.  Above her stood a boy a little older than I, who seemed to be the cause of this girl's traumatic state.  He was yelling at her intimidatingly to get up and even tried picking her up, but the girl was in such a state of shock that she just fell feebly back down to the ground.  As the this was happening, the circle was getting larger as subway goers tried to get a look at what was going on.  What was disturbing about the whole situation was that everyone was just watching this helpless and paralyzed girl on the ground.  Eventually a security guard came and took the boy away, and I'm not exactly sure what happened to the girl.  It was sort of scary to see the type of domestic violence that can occur and the kind of response it gets.