Gwangju and South Jeolla International Magazine I March 2018 #193 I Im-dong’s Ilshin Spinning Factory and Yang-dong’s Past and Future
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From the Editor
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March 2018, Issue No. 193 Published: March 1, 2018
Cover Photo: Yangdong Market Related story on page 10 Photographed by Lorryn Smit
THE EDITORIAL TEAM Publisher Editor-in-Chief Managing Editors Incoming Managing Editor Chief Proofreader Layout Editor Photo Editor Online Editorial Team Creative Advisor Copy Editors Researchers
Dr. Shin Gyonggu Dr. David E. Shaffer Eden Jones, Anastasia Traynin Wilson Melbostad Isaiah Winters Karina Prananto Lorryn Smit Nguyen Huong, Karina Prananto Joe Wabe Alvina Joanna, Joseph Nunez Gabrielle Nygaard, Kristyna Zaharek Zico Mulia, Jo Minju, Lee Sijin
Gwangju News is the first public English monthly magazine in Korea, first published in 2001. Each monthly issue covers local and regional issues, with a focus on the roles and activities of the international residents and local English-speaking communities. Copyright by Gwangju International Center. All rights reserved. No part of this publication covered by this copyright may be reproduced in any form or by any means – graphic, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise – without the written consent of the publisher.
Registration No. 광주광역시 라. 00145 (ISSN 2093-5315) Registration Date: February 22, 2010 Printed by Join Adcom 조인애드컴 (+82)-62-367-7702 GwangjuNews
gwangjunews
GwangjuNewsGIC
Special thanks to the City of Gwangju and all of our sponsors.
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We bring much more to inform and please you: the Waldorf School, cross-cultural festivals, Gangjin and its celadon, stories from the classroom and on volunteerism. To please the palate and warm the stomach, we have pieces on food and a restaurant review. We have a book review and a movie review. Fantastic photography, a page of poetry, and news and events in our area. Something for everyone. Just as March signals a changing of the seasons, this issue signals a considerable change at the Gwangju News. We have been blessed with a pair of co-managing editors who have worked wonders on the editorial team planning, researching, interviewing, writing, editing, and proofreading our monthly magazine. Together, they have contributed hundreds of hours of their time to the Gwangju News and have given us years of volunteer service. We are very appreciative of the contributions that Anastasia Traynin and Eden Jones have so selflessly provided, but it so happens that each of them has journeys that take them in directions away from Gwangju and the Gwangju News. We wish to thank them for their magnanimity and wish them well on their journeys ahead. Before their departure, though, they have made sure that they would not be leaving a void in the editorial staff, spearheading the search for replacements that have netted individuals who, I am sure, will continue to provide monthly issues of the Gwangju News that you have come to expect. We hope you enjoy this March issue.
David E. Shaffer Editor-in-Chief Gwangju News
March 2018
For volunteering and article submission inquiries, please contact the Editor at: gwangjunews@gic.or.kr For advertising and subscription inquiries, please contact karina@gic.or.kr
To stir you, we have a piece on the horrors along the 5.18 Road and a feature on the fate of Im-dong’s Ilshin Spinning Factory. The feature on orchestral music in Gwangju will warm you, and the feature on the Chosun University Hospital will warm, and possibly restore, you.
www.gwangjunewsgic.com
Gwangju News is published by Gwangju International Center Jungang-ro 196-beon-gil 5 (Geumnam-ro 3-ga), Dong-gu, Gwangju 61475, South Korea Tel: (+82)-62-226-2733~34 Fax: (+82)-62-226-2731 Website: www.gwangjunewsgic.com E-mail: gwangjunews@gic.or.kr
ith the cold and winds of winter seemingly behind us, March is gingerly opening its door, just a crack, unto spring. Gyeongchip (March 6) stirs life into those organisms taking winter refuge underground; the spring equinox follows a fortnight later, adding more warmth to all. We hope that our March issue of the Gwangju News will do much the same: stir you and warm you with the exclusive content within its pages. So let’s open the cover, just a crack, and take a peep.
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CONTENTS March 2018 #193
GWANGJU NEWS 03. Gwangju City News 06. Upcoming Events: March 08. Gwangju Theater Schedule 52. Community Board FEATURES 10. Im-dong’s Ilshin Spinning Factory and Yang-dong’s Past and Future 14. Chosun University Hospital Appoints New Director 18. Orchestral Music Warms the Soul on a Cold Winter’s Night TRAVEL 21. Lost in Gwangju: Sites of Horror and History Along 5.18 Road 25. Around Korea: Gangjin – The Hidden Gem of Jeollanam-do COMMUNITY 28. Cross-Cultural Festival on Seollal 2018
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March 2018
SPORTS & ACTIVITIES 30. My Experience at the 2018 Winter Olympics
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EDUCATION 32. Waldorf: It’s Not Just a Salad 35. Everyday Korean: Episode 3 – Seollal: The Korean New Year 36. KOTESOL: Stories from the Classroom 38. Volunteer Motivation: Why People Volunteer FOOD & DRINKS 40. Where to Eat: Sure, I Would Love to Live a Natural Life – Gwangju’s Vegetarian Buffet 42. Kitchen Stories: Korean Fruit Teas 44. Korea Food: Introduction to Korean Pastes (Jang) ARTS & CULTURE 45. Gwangju Writes: The Technology Collection 46. Photo Essay: Celebrating Resilience 50. Photos of the Month 54. Book Review: “We Left with Empty Hands” – The Dispossessed, by Ursula K. Le Guin 55. Movie Review: A Blast from the Past – Revisiting E.T. The Extra Terrestrial
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Gwangju City News Compiled by Karina Prananto and Zico Mulia
Reprinted with permission from Gwangju City Hall
Gwangju Preparing Earthquake Shelters
Gwangju City has invested 150 million won since August of last year in the installation of fluorescent reflective materials around various public facilities for them to be easily identifiable at nighttime in the event of an earthquake. Such measures are a response to the recent rise in earthquake occurrences in the country. Since 1978, there have been five earthquakes in Gwangju, the biggest of which was on June 8, 2013, when a 3.2 magnitude earthquake occurred in Dong-gu.
Earthquake Shelter Addresses Outdoor Earthquake Shelter: Jangdeok Park 179 Pungyeong-ro, Gwangsan-gu, Gwangju 지진옥외대피소 – 장덕공원 광주 광산구 풍영로 179
Indoor Earthquake Shelter: Seo-gu Bitgeoul Gymnasium 251 Geumhwa-ro, Seo-gu, Gwangju 지진실내구호소 서구 빛고을체육관 광주 서구 금화로 251
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Underground facilities that have shelter signs include subway stations, underground parking lots, and building basements. During normal times, look for the nearest shelter and exit routes from your home or place of employment with family or co-workers. Provide your children with a map showing shelter locations and exit routes in advance and remind them of the information on a regular basis. Information provided by the Ministry of Security and Public Administration Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Republic of Korea
Useful Numbers Gwangju City 120 Dong-gu District Office 062-608-2114 Seo-gu District Office 062-365-4114 Nam-gu District Office 062-651-9020 Buk-gu District Office 062-510-1500 Gwangsan-gu District Office 062-960-8114 Weather Forecast 131 Criminal Report (Police) 112 Fire Rescue 119 Waterworks Failure Report 121 Power Failure Report 123 Gas Leak Accident Report 062-383-0019 Environmental Report 128
March 2018
t Example of an earthquake evacuation sign.
The South Korean Government has designated and operates over 24,000 shelters for emergencies throughout the country.
www.gwangjunewsgic.com
For more information on earthquake shelters around the country, visit the National Disaster Safety Portal online at www.safekorea.go.kr and download the Anjeon Didimdol (Safe Stepping Stone) application, Daum Map, Naver Map, Kakao Navi, or T-map.
Emergency Shelters
GWANGJU NEWS
Gwangju City has installed notices in 172 locations informing the public about nearby earthquake shelters. Currently there are a few accommodations located in Gwangsan-gu, with outdoor shelters for 142 people in Jangdeok Park and 30 indoor locations at the Seo-gu Bitgeoul Gymnasium.
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www.gwangjunewsgic.com
March 2018
▲ Damyang Metasequioa Road. (Photo by Ryan and Stephanie Hedger)
Jeonnam to Attract 50 Million Tourists
Sunchang and Damyang to Plant Rows of Metasequoia Trees
A Jeollanam-do Provincial Government spokesperson said on February 1 that the number of tourists to the province reached 42.7 million in 2016, surpassing the 40 million mark for the first time. Facing both the 1000th anniversary of Jeolla’s foundation, as well as the 2018 Visit Jeolla Year event, the province aims to attract 50 million tourists this year. To reach this goal, the province plans to promote programs such as Jeolla Tour 100, Namdo Tour Bus, and the International Ink-and-Wash Painting Biennale.
Sunchang of Jeollabuk-do and Damyang of Jeollanam-do will be jointly conducting a project to create a 12-kilometer Metasequoia Road. Officials from the two counties, as well as from Iksan’s Office of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport held a meeting on February 19 and decided to proceed with the project together.
Also, as part of the 2018 Visit Jeolla Year event, the province will carry out a stamp tour program with Gwangju and Jeollabuk-do, using 100 tourist attractions in the region starting in March. A provincial official said that the province plans to utilize its abundant ecology, cultural resources, and well-connected transportation system to invite more visitors and reach the stated goal.
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Sunchang will begin planting the trees next month when administrative procedures are completed. The county plans to invest 500 million won to plant 950 metasequoia trees from its Baeksan-ri area to Damyang County. The project is set for completion in 2020 and will connect the 8.5 kilometer section in Damyang to the 3.2 kilometer section in Sunchang.
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Gwangju City Opens Shelter for Migrant Laborers
Mudeungsan National Park to Close Six Hiking Trails
On February 19, Gwangju City officially opened a shelter for migrant laborers. The shelter, named Migrant Laborer Dalbit Shelter (이동노동자 달빛 쉼터), is located in the Chase Tower in Sangmu, Seo-gu. The shelter will provide resting spaces and work-related information to those whose jobs require them to constantly be on the move, such as proxy drivers, delivery men, and quick-service providers.
Mudeungsan National Park Management Office reported on Wednesday, February 14 that it will close some of its hiking trails between February 15 and April 30 in order to minimize the possibility of the outbreak of fire. Three sections in Gwangju stretching from Sotaejae to Majibbong, as well as three sections in Hwasun and Damyang, including the area from Dowon Camping Site to Madang Rock, will be closed to the public. The remaining trails will be open as usual.
Gwangju is the second city in South Korea to open such a shelter for migratory laborers, following Seoul. The shelter will be in operation on weekdays and Saturdays from 6:00 p.m. to 5:30 a.m. the next morning. Migrant Laborer Shelter Address: #802, 101 Sangmu Jungang-ro, Seo-gu, Gwangju
The office said it will carry out stronger crackdowns on entering restricted areas, smoking, cooking, and other violations during the mountain fire watch period. Violators of such rules can be fined up to a maximum of 500,000 won.
광주 서구 상무중앙로 101, 802호 이동노동자 달빛 쉼터
Travel from Gwangju to Incheon Airport in Under Three Hours
The KTX, which departs from Gwangju Songjeong Station, takes about one hour and 37 minutes to get to Gwangmyeong Station. The check-in process takes about 10 minutes per person and, upon completion, travelers may board the limousine bus. The limousine bus departs
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KTX 1 hr. 37 min.
The Gwangmyeong Station advanced check-in applies to local airlines, which are Korean Air, Asiana Airlines, Jeju Air, T’way, Air Seoul, East Star, and Jin Air. There are also four immigration counters available at the station. Upon arrival at Incheon Terminal, passengers can use the “fast track” lane and go to the departure gate without hassle. Operating hours for the station are 6:30 a.m. – 7 p.m., and the immigration counters are open from 7 a.m.
Gwangmyeong Station
KTX Airport Limousine Bus 50 min.
Incheon Airport
March 2018
Gwangju
every 20–30 minutes to Terminal 1 at Incheon Airport and then to Terminal 2. It takes about 50 minutes to reach Terminal 1, and another 15 minutes to reach Terminal 2. The fare is 15,000 won per person, and KTX travelers may get a 20 percent discount. Passengers may purchase tickets onsite or through reservation using the KORAIL smartphone application KORAIL TOK. www.gwangjunewsgic.com
Travelers from Gwangju now have more options to travel to Incheon Airport. The usual travel time by bus, which takes around four hours and 20 minutes, can be shortened to just two hours and 47 minutes by way of KTX. The KTX train travels from Gwangju Songjeong Station to Gwangmyeong Station in Gyeonggi Province where the “Downtown Airport Terminal” is located. Individuals may go through the check-in process there beforehand, and afterwards travel to the departure area at the airport by limousine bus in 50 minutes, luggage-free. This service has been in operation since January 17.
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MARCH 2018
GWANGJU NEWS
Upcoming Events
www.gwangjunewsgic.com
March 2018
Gwangyang Maehwa Festival. (Photo by Rachel Hill)
▲ Sansuyu Flower. (Photo by Joe Wabe)
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▲ Sia’s Journey: Let’s Go for a Ride.
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7 The 19th Gurye Sansuyu Flower Festival
Website:
culture/index.gwangyang
제19회 구례 산수유꽃 축제 The Gurye Sansuyu Flower Festival is an annual spring flower festival that takes place in the Jiri Mountain Hot Springs area. Major programs include an exhibition of local products made from sansuyu (cornus fruit), traditional music and dance performances, experience programs, and fireworks. Date: Location:
Admission: Telephone: Website:
March 17–25, 2018 Jirisan Hot Springs Tourist Complex (45 Sanggwan 1-gil, Sandong-myeon, Gurye-gun, Jeollanam-do) 전라남도 구례군 산동면 상관1길 45 Free 061-780-2227 http://www.gurye.go.kr/sanflower/
The 20th Gwangyang Maehwa Festival 제20회 광양매화축제 Alongside the Seomjin River, which flows from the slopes of Jiri Mountain, is Seomjin Village. The village, also known as Maehwa (plum) Village, is well known for its abundant plum trees. Instead of crops and grains, plum trees are cultivated on local farmlands bearing white snow-like blossoms in March and plentiful ripe plums in June. The annual Plum Blossom Festival takes place in the village every March when the plum blossoms are in full bloom. March 17–25, 2018 Date: 55, Jimak 1-gil, Daap-myeon, Gwangyang, Location: Jeollanam-do 전라남도 광양시 다압면 지막1길 55
Admission: Telephone:
Free 061-797-2721 http://www.gwangyang.go.kr/tour_
Yeongchwi Mountain Azalea Festival
Date: Location:
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Sia’s Journey : Let’s Go for a Ride! 시아의 여행 : 타고노는세상 The ACC proudly presents Sia’s Journey: Let’s Go for a Ride, a special exhibition for children dedicated to vehicles from around the world. Children can learn about different cultures as they freely go around the exhibition space filled with exciting displays and activities. Date: Time: Location: Admission:
Telephone: Website:
Open now through April 15, 2018. Daily 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. (Wednesdays & Saturdays: 10 a.m. – 7 p.m.) Children’s Event Hall, Asia Culture Center, 38 Munhwajeondang-ro, Dong-gu, Gwangju. The exhibition is included in the ACC Culture Adventure’s admission fee. Ages 3–13 years: 5,000 won Ages 14 years and older: 3,000 won 1899-5566 https://www.acc.go.kr/en/board/ schedule/child/1841
March 2018
Admission: Telephone: Website:
March 30 – April 1, 2018 Along Yeongchwi Mountain in Yeosu 전라남도 여수시 월내동 547 Free 061-659-4743 http://tour.yeosu.go.kr/tour/culture_ festa/jindalae
ACC 브런치콘서트 ACC brunch concerts are a representative series of performances designed to provide guests with daily relaxation through art as well as frank communication with artists. The 2018 ACC Brunch Concert, to be filled with the nation’s best artists, brings to the stage beautiful music and life stories at 11 a.m. on the last Wednesday of this month. Date: March 28, 2018 Time: 11 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Location: Theater 2, Asia Culture Center, 38 Munhwajeondang-ro, Dong-gu, Gwangju Admission: General 25,000 won Side seats 10,000 won Telephone: 1899-5566 Website: https://www.acc.go.kr/board/ schedule/performance/1905schedule/ exhibition/1807
www.gwangjunewsgic.com
영취산 진달래 축제 Yeongchwi Mountain, home to one of the three largest colonies of azalea flowers in the nation, is celebrating a festival with flowers in early April. While the visitor walks up the trail beside Heungguk Temple, a breathtaking view of the azalea flowers covering the mountain like pink paint awaits. Various events will take place in the azalea fields, such as the Miss Azalea Contest and the Feast of Children’s Dream.
ACC Brunch Concert
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Gwangju Theater 62 Chungjang-no 5-ga, Dong-gu, Gwangju (two blocks behind NC WAVE) TICKETS: 8,000 won CONTACT: 062-224-5858 For more information, please visit: http://cafe.naver.com/cinemagwangju * Synopses excerpted from Wikipedia, IMDb, and Hancinema
Compiled by Zico Mulia
THE SHAPE OF WATER 셰이프 오브 워터: 사랑의 모양 Genres: Adventure, Drama Director: Guillermo Del Toro Film Length: 123 minutes Starring: Sally Hawkins, Octavia Spencer, Michael Shannon Summary: At a top-secret research facility in the 1960s, a lonely janitor forms a unique relationship with an amphibious creature that is being held in captivity.
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March 2018
IN BETWEEN SEASONS 환절기 Genre: Drama Director: Lee Dong-eun Film Length: 101 minutes Starring: Bae Jong-ok, Lee Won-geun, Ji Yoon-ho, Park Wong-san, Seo Jeung-yeon, Woo Ji-hyeon. Summary: Mi-kyeong lives apart from her husband with her teenage son named Soo-hyeon. One day, Soo-hyeon brings a friend named Yong-joon to his house as he’s going through some difficulties. A few years later, Soohyeon and Yong-joon reunite in the military and go on a trip together. However, Soo-hyeon is left in a critical condition after the two get into a car accident. Mi-kyeong has to take care of her paralyzed son and consequently resents Yong-joon, who came back alive and well. Mikyeong later finds out a secret between her son and his friend.
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I, TONYA 아이, 토냐 Genres: Comedy, Drama Director: Craig Gillespie Film Length: 120 minutes Starring: Margot Robbie, Sebastian Stan, Allison Janney Summary: Competitive ice skater Tonya Harding rises amongst the ranks at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, but her future in the sport is thrown into doubt when her ex-husband intervenes. THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING, MISSOURI 쓰리 빌보드 Genres: Crime, Drama Director: Martin McDonagh Film Length: 115 minutes Starring: Frances McDormand, Woody Harrelson, Sam Rockwell Summary: A mother personally challenges the local authorities to solve her daughter’s murder when they fail to catch the culprit. CALL ME BY YOUR NAME 콜 미 바이 유어 네임 Genres: Drama, Romance Director: Luca Guadagnino Film Length: 132 minutes Starring: Armie Hammer, Timothée Chalamet, Michael Stuhlbarg Summary: In Northern Italy in 1983, 17-year-old Elio begins a relationship with Oliver, his father’s research assistant. They bond over his emerging sexuality, their Jewish heritage, and the beguiling Italian landscape.
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�� M�r�� 2018 Sa��rd�y� @ 4 �.�. The 9th Gwangju Freecycle NO GIC TALK
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To Better Half: Promoting Men's Participation in the Women's Human Rights Movement by Naw Demona Khoo (Myanmar) 5.18 Memorial Foundation Intern Human Rights Activist
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Wilderness Story: The Importance of Wilderness Survival and Nature Awareness Education for Korea's Youth by Jonathan Blaney Children of the Earth Foundation
An Introduction to Refugee Policy in South Korea by Wilson Melbostad Human Rights Lawyer Organization for Migrant Legal Aid (OMLA)
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Animator's Journey by Raqib Hasan Apu & Chris Rodgers Chungang Animation Studio
March 2018
5, Jungang-ro, 196beon-gil, Dong-gu, Gwangju｜062-226-2733｜gic.or.kr 2018�3��.indd 9
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FEATURE
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Im-dong’s Ilshin Spinning Factory and Yang-dong’s Past and Future
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March 2018
Written by Anastasia Traynin Photographed by Lorryn Smit and Anastasia Traynin
A Yang-dong Market alley.
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cross from the “Baseball Village” and the Im-dong Community Service Center, colorful artwork on a long row of uniquely triangle-shaped, cementblock buildings mixes with baseball player memorabilia. Standing on the narrow road that leads from the Mudeung Baseball Stadium towards the old downtown, these murals have nothing to do with the sport: This is the entrance of the still-operating historical hub of Gwangju’s textile industry, Ilshin Spinning Inc. Factory 1, which was originally founded in 1935 during the Japanese colonial period as Jongyeon Spinning Mill, the largest in Korea. During the heyday of industrialization in the 1960– 1970s, teenage girls and young women from low-income families, mostly from Jeonnam Province but some from elsewhere in Korea, packed in to work at the Ilshin and now-defunct Jeonnam textile factories. This writer had passed by the factory gates many times on the way downtown. Having met a former female sewer from the infamous wholesale Pyeonghwa Market of labor martyr Jeon Tae-il in Seoul’s Dongdaemun district, there was an interest in the important role female textile workers played in Korea’s economic growth. The Ilshin story came through the discovery of a May 2017 Gwangju Meil Shinmun article that reported on the operation in Imdong and the Ilshin Spinning Factory 2 that had opened in 2007 in the expanding industrial complex in Pyeongdong in the far west of the city.
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On the side nearest the baseball stadium stand the old water tower, electricity generator, and underground water pipe pumping into the Geungnak River. Choi explained that in 2016, the old towers were scheduled to come down, but Ilshin opposed the decision and decided to keep them as emblems of the bygone era. In addition to the towers, the old railroad that transported fabric is still visible through a crack in one of the buildings. We move over to the production area, where rows of massive bales of white, fluffy raw material sit ready for processing. Choi explains that there are seven steps from initial processing until the final production of fabric that is sent for dyeing at Gyeonggi-do’s Banwol Dyeing Mill, established in 1984 as Ilshin’s own cloth dyeing center. Though automation rapidly decreased the number of workers from its peak of 2,000–3,000, Ilshin is still a 24hour operation, employing about 500 women and 100 men to work 185,600 spindles of mélange cotton and raw cotton in three daily shifts. Koreans and some foreign workers operate the processing machines and spinning looms that continue to push through 67,000 kilograms daily, producing various raw fabrics such as cotton and polyester out of textiles brought from such faraway locales as Indonesia, China, the USA, Brazil, Turkey, and Australia. The final products are ordered and distributed from headquarters in Seoul’s Yeouido, founded in 1991, and sent off to big-brand clothing companies such as Reebok, Fila, DKNY, and Tommy Hilfiger. Walking through the mixing and blowing room, the dust rises through the air and the machines whir. In the office, the finished yarn samples come in a multitude of bright colors, and the various maps on the wall show the different countries of origin. In the room next to the office, a female staff member beams and proudly shows the visitors 5,000 multi-colored hanging pieces of finished dyed fabrics. Though we do not see every step of the process, the final part of the inside tour is, of course, the centerpiece: massive rows of thousands of spindles on ring spinning looms. The spun-out, bright white yarn is fine and soft to the touch. Not even five minutes into the tour, the sound of so many looms spinning at once is already deafening and overpowering. Compared to old photos of a young girl bent over every spindle, these days the machines seem to vastly outnumber the workers. Yet, without them, nothing could operate. Before heading outside, the writer and Journalist Park are instructed to blow off the dust covering our shoes
March 2018
Part 1: Inside Ilshin Spinning Factory 1 From outside the factory gates, no sound or sight of its continuous operation can be detected. Not even the inviting wall artwork, commissioned for local artists by Ilshin in 2012, gives any clue as to the work going on inside. On a sunny Monday morning in January, with snow still on the ground, journalist Park accompanied the writer to meet with Factory Manager Choi Yeon-jak and
take a tour of the enterprise’s inner workings.
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After meeting with its writer, Park Jun-su, the story expanded into a general reflection on Gwangju’s industrial history. Not only has Park written newspaper articles on the subject but he is the author of an entire book on a prominent figure of the times: Kim Hyeong-nam, a former U.S. military interpreter appointed by the U.S. military government as chief director of the spinning mill in post-liberation 1945. Kim oversaw the National Jeonnam Spinning Corporation, from which Ilshin was spun off in 1961, and played a strong role in the community until his death at age 74 in 1978. His legacy as a manager also extends to the nearby Suhrim Presbyterian Church, which he founded in 1946 as a community center of worship and as a night school for the factory workers. While the Ilshin and Jeonnam factories take up a large visible chunk of Imdong on the north side of the Gwangju River, the story continues southward across the river into Yang-dong.
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A view of Gwangju from Balsan Village.
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March 2018
with an air compressor. Though there is plenty more to be seen, the tour would not go on for more than an hour. Back outside in the fresh air and on the icy ground, the final stop is the green statue of Kim Hyeong-nam, erected in 1980 after his passing. His signature glasses and outstretched hands show the larger-than-life personality of the pastor and factory director, who was as well the chairman and president of Seoul’s Soongshil University, which sponsored his funeral. On a tree near the parking lot hangs a white placard written in English, perhaps as a nod to the U.S. military takeover after liberation from Japan, that was dedicated by workers on the first anniversary of freedom in 1946. Leaving Ilshin on that day left the writer with even more questions: Where do the current workers live? How many foreign employees are there? What is a day in the life of a contemporary textile mill worker like? The answers would have to come at a later date, one outside the scope of this story. Part 2: The Emptiness and Revival of Yang-dong Between liberation from Japanese colonization after World War II and full democratization by the early 1990s, Yang 2-dong with its market, Yang 1-dong with its community service center, and Yang 3-dong – the area known as Balsan Village – were bustling with the bulk of the city’s working class. Market merchants, craftspeople, and laborers all mixed together, especially the young Ilshin and Jeonnam Spinning workers who walked across the stream along the former Ppongppong Bridge and took up residence in the hills and narrow alleyways of Balsan Village. In Korean, the name dal-dongne (달동네), meaning “moon village,” refers to this kind of urban slum
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neighborhood in a city’s hilly areas; however, when viewed from the top, Balsan Village ironically boasts some of the best views of the city. Journalist Park Jun-su grew up in Yang 1-dong right in the middle of the busy industrial years, and spent his childhood among the mazelike streets that lead to Yangdong Market, where his mother worked as a merchant. He finished his studies at Yangdong Elementary School, but while his peers put on school uniforms in middle and high school, he spent those years working in a furniture factory. Park remembers not only the hardships but also the vibrant, close-knit community that has changed dramatically over the last several decades. “When I graduated from Yangdong Elementary School, there were 5,000 students,” Park said. “The last time I visited, the teachers told me there were under one hundred.” This hollowing out of Park’s old neighborhood is palpable while walking around on any given day, with mostly elderly residents and some laborers being visible. Notably, the presence of a multicultural family center suggests a transforming demographic. And yet, before the incorporation of rural Gwangsan-gu – the city district that nearly doubled the size of Gwangju and shifted the center further west – this area could have been seen as a central part of Gwangju. Standing at the highest top of Balsan Village near a modern art sculpture, anyone can see the span of Gwangju down below, with the Jeonnam and Ilshin spinning mills stretching out in the center and Kim Hyeong-nam’s
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13 brown-colored church with a European-style steeple. After the elimination of the old iron Ppongppong Bridge, there was no longer a direct route into Balsan Village, though a newer road through the formerly unauthorized dirt paths has been built to allow greater access and plans to rebuild the bridge in the future are in the works. Within the past two years, the neighborhood has been redubbed “Youth Balsan Village” in a collaboration between the city and Hyundai Motor Group to add color to the neighborhood and hopefully bring local youth to the area to meet with the senior residents. Certainly, the colorfully painted stairwell leading from the entrance near the stream to the top with the older houses has generated many youthful photographs. The addition of new cafes, painted houses, and the Ppongppong Bridge international art residence and gallery seem to have injected new life into this sleepy “moon village.” “I love this area,” Park said. “I am thinking about making a novel about it.” Our last stop in Yang-dong was the relatively new communal home for elderly women whose husbands have passed away, where we sat and chatted with these longtime Balsan Village residents. Old photos of the spinning mill girls at work in the 1960–1970s hang on the outside walls. Though none of them were textile workers, the ladies raised their families here and endured decades of hardships, with the home’s manager working as a hanbok
tailor in her younger years. Somewhere in the area, a few former Ilshin and Jeonnam spinners still reside, but their stories will have to wait until another day. What started as curiosity about murals on cement walls near a stream and a baseball stadium unfolded into a story of Gwangju’s industrial past and a peek at the possible future of urban regeneration. Though the city’s factories have largely become concentrated in Gwangsangu’s growing industrial complexes, it is interesting to visualize the former bustling Im-dong and Yang-dong neighborhoods and to reimagine what they can still become. Note: The writer would like to thank journalist and poet Park Jun-su at the Gwangju Meil Shinmun for his invaluable insight into the history and current operation of Ilshin Spinning Factory, his personal stories of Gwangju’s industrialization, and walks around his home neighborhood of Yang-dong.
THE AUTHOR
Anastasia (Ana) Traynin was a co-managing editor of the Gwangju News. She has been a contributor to the magazine since fall 2013 and has been living in Gwangju since spring of that year. After teaching for three years at Hanbitt High School, she became a GIC coordinator in May 2016. She has passions for Korean social movements, alternative education, live music, languages, and writing.
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March 2018
The Ilshin Spinning Factory.
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14
Chosun University Hospital Appoints New Director
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March 2018
FEATURE
Interview introduction and compilation by Eden Jones with translation by the GIC Staff Photographs courtesy of Chosun University Hospital
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O
n January 24, 2018, Dr. Bae Hak-yeon, an endocrinology professor at Chosun University, was appointed as the new director of Chosun University Hospital. The hospital has not only been a long-time supporter of the Gwangju News but has also been a great asset to the community in many ways. Therefore, we thought it would be pertinent for us to use this opportunity to introduce the hospital’s new director and share with the community a little more about Chosun University Hospital and how it is serving Gwangju’s community.
Gwangju News (GN): Thank you, Dr. Bae Hak-yeon, for agreeing to our interview for the March edition of the Gwangju News. How do you feel after your recent inauguration? Although I deem it an honor to be inaugurated as the 22nd director of the hospital, it makes me realize that I also have a heavy responsibility to develop it into a more trusted national hospital, and this will be possible only through genuine change and innovation. Chosun University Hospital will make certain it provides patientcentered medical services that give our patients the care they need for healthy lives and careers. GN: Could you tell us about any future operational plans for the hospital? For the last two years, we have obtained good results in many different spheres, such as opening three outpatient clinics, being selected as the leading hospital in the country for regional infectious disease, being the first in the Honam area to introduce IBM Watson for Oncology, opening the Artificial Intelligence Cancer Center, and being selected three years in a row as a superior general hospital.
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GN: What do you think are the strengths of Chosun University Hospital, and what is necessary for it to compete with other university hospitals throughout the country? Owing to the development of transportation, including KTX trains, the time and distance between regional areas and the capital is shrinking, which eventually results in less need for a local university hospital. To compete with hospitals in larger cities, Chosun University Hospital has been researching what makes these other hospitals more attractive to patients and implementing our findings at Chosun. For example, we are now offering specialized treatments at our various centers including the 24-hour Cardiovascular Center, Stroke Center, Diabetes Center, Spine Center, and as of last September, our Artificial Intelligence Cancer Center based on IBM Watson for Oncology – the first of its kind in the Honam region – which enables cancer patients to receive state-of-the-art medical services locally without having to visit the capital area. With the addition of these special centers, we can serve our patients better and minimize the inconvenience of having to travel far for medical care. Another way we compete with hospitals in the larger cities is by incorporating “evidence-based medicine.” Using medical evidence materials to advise doctors on correct treatments will not only increase patient satisfaction but will also ease the concentration of patients in the capital by providing them locally with world-class medical treatment. The Organ Transplant Center at Chosun University Hospital is also one of our great strengths. This center has
March 2018
We hope the key to doing this is by ensuring internal stability. Our staff ’s job satisfaction will be increased based on trust, which can be developed through consideration of our staff ’s opinions and by implementing their suggestions as much as we can.
Outwardly, we will also strengthen the combined medical system with other hospitals. Having cooperated closely with 200 partner hospitals throughout the country, we are aware that there are still more areas in which to improve. Medical institutions must be connected organically with each other in the current medical system. We should improve any current inefficient patient transportation so that institutions feel safe transporting patients from hospital to hospital at any time.
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Recently, the healthcare world has been facing a lot of challenges. These important issues include the need to enhance health insurance protection, the Special Act on Medical Residents, improvement of ethical problems within hospitals, and infection control following the death of four newborn babies at Ewha Woman’s University Medical Center. We at Chosun University Hospital are trying to turn ourselves into the best local, private hospital and are striving to come up with a development strategy to safeguard against the new dangers of the times, such as those mentioned above.
Based on this internal trust, we will implement change and innovation, which will then, hopefully, lead to efficient patient care. In particular, we will try to improve management of patients in the emergency room and their length of stay, improve inefficient clinics and customs, and also utilize a combined medical system among departments in order to minimize inconveniences patients experience.
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▲ Chosun University Hospital’s Emergency Medical Center.
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March 2018
been the first in the Chungcheong and Honam regions to succeed in developing invasive kidney transplantation, kidney transplant, simultaneous kidney and liver transplants with different blood types, and pediatric brain-death patient kidney transplants. In addition, our Outpatient Treatment Center, which was completed last February, provides our patients with more pleasant and quality medical services. Furthermore, our Nursing Care Integrated Service and National Negative Pressure Ward that protect the hospital from the dangers of infection (particularly since the MERS crisis) are turning the hospital into a reliable place that patients can trust once again. GN: It is particularly intriguing that Chosun University has been working on community give-back activities for many patients left in medical blind spots. Are there any special future plans for these programs? Chosun University Hospital organized a medical service corps in 2014 that has progressed in voluntary work since then. Regularly, we visit places in need of medical service and assist in both domestic locations and abroad. Furthermore, we discover and assist patients in need of emergency surgery, showing our spirit of sharing. We also strive to assist the large number of foreigners residing in Korea. One way we have done this is by
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signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Foreign Human Resources Development Service in order to provide foreign workers with free medical service once a year. Since 2009, we have been enrolled as an attractive foreign patient registry institution, thereby, with Gwangju Medical Tour Support Center, actively working to attract foreign patients. We are also striving to spread advanced medical technologies through our information exchanges and education of medical teams. This is made possible thanks to not only annual overseas medical service programs but also the MOUs with hospitals in other countries and cooperating institutions. In particular, through the Korea–Mongolia training project and the Korea–Russia training project, last year we played a role as the vanguard of Korean culture. When medical teams that have already completed the training course return to their countries, they tend to ask us to perform surgeries and act as a bridge in notification of medical skills needed. In addition to serving the foreign community, we try to fulfill our responsibility as a community-based hospital through our sponsorship of activities such as the Beautiful Store Bazaar, covering medical expenses for patients having rare incurable diseases, and delivering rice to the underprivileged.
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17 GN: As a medical practitioner, do you have a philosophy of life or principle you follow? I do not have any specific philosophy of life, however, since becoming the director of the hospital, I often find myself saying, “Humble yourself.” Listening carefully to others with a reverent attitude is the first and greatest virtue that we need to maintain until completing our treatments with patients. Lastly, although we have come to be known as the best private university hospital in the community, we never settle for our current successes. There are still more roles to play as a university hospital within the realms of treatment, research, and education. We should always be faithful to the basics so that we can cultivate better abilities. So there you have it. From our interview with the hospital’s new director, Dr. Bae Hak-yeon, it certainly seems that the hospital is doing a lot in the community and making strong strides of improvement looking toward the future. Over the years, the hospital staff has worked hard to become one of the best and most trusted state-of-the-art hospitals in the province. Perhaps the next time you are in need of medical attention, you will want pay them a visit. Note: The interview questions and answers in this article were translated into English from their original form, which was in Korean. THE AUTHOR
Eden has been living in Korea since 2014 and enjoys reading, writing, snowboarding, and enchanting the locals with her violin when she can manage to find a spare minute away from her editing responsibilities at the Gwangju News. Eden became managing editor in September 2017.
조선대병원입구
Chosun University Hospital International Health Care Center: 062-220-3770 (English interpretation)
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Address: 365 Pilmun-daero, Dong-gu, Gwangju 광주 동구 필문대로 365 Telephone: 062-220-3114 Website: hosp.chosun.ac.kr Directions: - By subway: Namgwangju Station Exit 5 and 6 - By bus: Hakdong Market 학동시장, Namgwangju 4-way Junction 남광주사거리 Chosun University Hospital Entrance
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Chosun University Hospital 조선대학교병원
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Orchestral Music Warms the Soul on a Cold Winter’s Night
www.gwangjunewsgic.com
March 2018
FEATURE
Written by Douglas Baumwoll Photographs courtesy of Gwangju Symphony Orchestra
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B
lustering winds. And I mean serious gusts. Freezing temperatures. Literally. Way below zero. A friend and I forge a path through the squalls, up the stairs and across the courtyard, and finally enter the Gwangju Culture and Arts Center in Buk-gu, Gwangju. This is the home field for the Gwangju Symphony Orchestra, and we have the pleasure of attending the New Year’s Concert here in late January. On the program tonight is the symphony orchestra and a special guest pianist (but more about him later). We take our seats and anticipate the beginning of the performance in the hushed warm ambience of the concert hall, a respite from the howling winds outside. I turn and look around the space – it looks as if 90 percent of the 1,500seat hall is filled. This makes me happy, that folks in this city take advantage of such accomplished talent here. Did I mention that my 20th-row seat cost just 20,000 won?
The lights go down, and the ensemble of about 70 musicians take their seats. The conductor comes out, stage left, and takes the podium. The crowd applauds for him, Kim Hong-jae. He is the orchestra’s 12th permanent conductor and began his tenure in August 2016. Kim, the epitome of the placid artist, raises his baton, and then signals the orchestra to come to auditory life. The group calmly slips into Johan Strauss II’s On the Beautiful Blue Danube (1866), which quickly reaches its recognizable melody (check it out on YouTube – I am certain you will know it). I admit I am no music critic, but adjectives such as festive, marching, grandiose, carnivalesque, triumphant, and joyful come to my mind. I picture scenes of romance and good times spent frolicking in the cobbled streets amid the stone architecture of perhaps Italy or Germany. The piece finishes, and the crowd shows its appreciation through lively and sustained applause. As custom has it, Kim leaves the stage. A few moments later, the conductor reassumes the stage, again to applause; the orchestra certainly deserves it, but so does Kim. Born in Japan, he is Korean-Japanese, and never set foot in Korea until the age of 50. In Japan, he studied under world-renowned conductor Ozawa Seiji, then becoming the resident conductor of the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra in 1978 at the age of 24. Okay, back to the show.
We are now treated to a 35-minute concerto of three movements, Tarasov’s head and hair bouncing up and down as he alternates between hands flitting up and down the keyboard and pounding out notes, having memorized of course the entire piece. The orchestra and pianist complement each other perfectly, and I find myself wondering if they have even rehearsed together before.
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My friend and I sit back and get lost in the beauty of the moment, the music easily filling the air, which reaches upward to the ceiling perhaps 30 meters above. I notice the exposed strings of the piano glowing a soft gold, contrasting against the bright gold of the piano’s gilded feet. The piece ends. Raucous applause. And then we are
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Next, a tall bespectacled man with mad-scientist wavy hair down to his shoulders enters stage right. Applause now reaches thunderous proportions. Sergey Tarasov has arrived on the scene and takes a seat at the grand piano, its wooden body glowing a burgundy hue in the subdued lighting. The cavernous hall becomes filled with the sounds of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-flat Minor, Op. 23 (composed 1874–88). Tarasov, born in Moscow in 1971, is a world-class pianist who has been playing since the age of 6. Born into a family of musicians, he won the Sydney International Piano Competition in 1996.
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20 and I were entertained for two hours by world-class musicians for a mere 20,000 won. Reserved seating (the first 15 rows, roughly) costs just 30,000 won. Kim, who has experience all over the world, including Carnegie Hall in New York City, Russia, Canada, and at the United Nations Peace Concert, will be leading his players another seven times this year before July. Go to the Gwangju Symphony website at gjart. gwangju.go.kr/gsoen/cmd.do for information in English on this year’s performances. You can also check the venue’s website at gjart.gwangju. go.kr/cmd for performances by other groups and troupes, including the Gwangju Ballet, who will be performing with the Berlin Symphony Orchestra (ranked No. 1 in the world) on May 25–26.
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March 2018
▲ Gwangju Symphony Orchestra’s conductor, Kim Hong-jae.
treated to not one, not two, but three encores. The woman sitting next to us is literally delirious with joy at this gift from Tarasov, and I am pretty much the same. I mean, again, the fact that such greatness is available here to us in Gwangju really speaks to the quality of life here. Seventy-five wonderful minutes of music have passed, and after the brief intermission, the orchestra begins its final work, a four-movement symphony (No. 9) composed by Antonin Dvorak in 1893. I watch all
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the players – maybe 35 violins and violas, a dozen basses and cellos, eight woodwinds, and 10 horns – as they transport me into that unique realm of orchestral music for the next 45 minutes. I am amazed that this genre of music has survived so long, its instruments not having changed in design in 500 years. After this final piece concludes, we are treated to an encore of a Johan Strauss III polka, an upbeat, fun piece, as polkas are. And that is it. New Year’s Concert 2018 is finished. Bravo. My friend
Pardon me for stating the obvious, but I think readers should give the symphony and the Culture and Arts Center a try, especially if you have never attended a high-quality orchestra, ballet, or drama event. The prices here are just silly compared to American cities, and tickets can be purchased very close to concert dates. The venue is easily accessible by public transport or taxi (about 5,000 won from U-Square or NC Wave downtown). So jump on over to YouTube and give the pieces I named above a listen. Also, be sure to check these websites and schedules, and get yourself into some aural culture and stress release. Now go and enjoy a night out at the symphony already.
THE AUTHOR Doug Baumwoll, a professional writer and editor for 25 years, trains in-service teachers in writing skills and methodology. His personal writing interests include visionary and speculative fiction, climate change, energy, and social justice. He is the founder of SavetheHumanz.com.
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Sites of Horror and History Along 5.18 Road Written and photographed by Isaiah Winters
T
he elderly in South Korea can be a law unto themselves.
According to the clunkily worded placard out front, this was “the actual command center of the Gwangju Democratization Movement suppression operation.” And yet, despite the site’s important role in South Korean history, there was its battered wooden door – the one chink in the armor – clinging helplessly to a single hinge after what must have been an impressive break-in scene.
Of course, little from the site’s past merits even a modicum of loyalty. It was the place where the former regional military intelligence unit, known as the 505 Security Forces, was stationed during the Gwangju Uprising. According to the aforementioned placard, the nascent junta “installed a joint investigation unit here and arrested regional democratic figures, leaders of student bodies, [and members of] the Citizens’ Army.” Hauntingly, the placard also attests that arrestees were confined in “dungeons” and subjected to “torturous investigations.”
TRAVEL
That thought dawned on me when I happened upon a small band of retirees illegally farming a plot of land along 5.18 Road in Ssangchon-dong (쌍촌동). I’m not one to pass judgement, but there really were no two ways about it. The land was part of a derelict building complex protected by high walls, a defunct ADT security system, and multiple signs prohibiting trespassing. What these deterrents were meant to shield were in fact the moldering remains of a former command center with a grim past.
Once inside, still more signs – these expressly forbidding farming – stood unheeded. One such sign had a pair of gardening gloves draped cheekily over it, while the others were minded about as much as the chapped crops they overshadowed. Somewhat satirically, these displays of elderly insouciance all took place beneath the main building’s façade, which still bears the faded hanja characters 忠誠 (충성, chungseong), meaning “loyalty” or “fidelity.”
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March 2018
The main façade of the 505 Security Forces’ former command center.
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TRAVEL
22
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March 2018
Elderly folks defiantly farming the grounds of the 505 Security Forces’ former command center.
A cobweb of razor wire between a sentry post and a signboard prohibiting farming at the 505 Security Forces’ former command center.
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The security booth at the former Armed Forces Gwangju Hospital.
Just a few minutes’ walk from the former command center is another morose stop along 5.18 Road that’s both better maintained and less of a mystery.
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Sadly, it’s quite probable that many who were tortured at the former command center were brought directly here for forced treatment and further interrogation, given the close proximity of the two sites along 5.18 Road. Today the former hospital’s grounds are a solemn park where visitors can walk paved roads among the site’s many deteriorating remains. These include a brick church, a barracks, rows of hospital buildings, and numerous other structures, all of which have been left standing in their original state. The buildings are clearly labeled (in Korean) on the maps at both entrances as well as on the newly erected fences surrounding them. It’s definitely worth visiting if you have any interest in the history of Gwangju or the Gwangju Uprising. The former hospital is easily accessible, as it’s conveniently situated between the subway stops at
March 2018
Designated as a 5.18 historical site twenty years ago, the former Armed Forces Gwangju Hospital is a rather tragic and moving place to visit. According to the placard near the entrance, it was the site “where the citizens who were
arrested by the martial forces and tortured during the investigation were brought for treatment.” But that wasn’t the end of their abuse. As a depressing coda, the placard adds that the “dispatched martial law investigators interrogated citizens even here.”
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When walking the grounds, it’s hard not to imagine exactly where these horrific events might have occurred. For instance, one bulky metal door is particularly suggestive, as the rusted keys to its padlock dangle directly across from it at eye level. Another similar door leads to the basement of the main building, where dirty, disconsolate windows to underlit rooms are hemmed in by prisonlike iron latticework. Absent further detail, the mind inevitably fills in the gaps with morbid guesswork. Fortunately, the city has designated the former command center as a 5.18 (May 18th) historical site and plans to develop the area, so much of what’s currently unknown about the place will likely be revealed sometime in the future. For now, however, it’s better to hold off visiting until the city gives further notice.
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A tantalizing pair of keys across from a padlocked door at the 505 Security Forces’ former command center.
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March 2018
Hwajeong Station (화정역) and Ssangchon Station (쌍촌역). On a final note, given the awful history of the site, it’s definitely not the kind of place you should be taking selfies at. In fact, some of the elderly visitors may not like to see you snapping photos at all, which is somewhat understandable. On my first visit, one such visitor admonished me for shooting photos, which prompted me to double-check the signboard at the entrance for any bans on photography. Of course, there were none. But, once again, the elderly in South Korea can be a law unto themselves. THE AUTHOR Originally from Southern California, Isaiah Winters first came to Gwangju in 2010. He recently returned to Korea after completing his M.A. in Eastern Europe. He enjoys writing, political science, and urban exploring.
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Since 2000
(former Body&Soul Clinic)
The International Clinic in Gwangju Family Medicine, Health Screening, Men’s Health, Women’s Health, Minor Surgery, Travel Medicine, Vaccination, Complementary Medicine, Pre-employment Health Screening, Laboratory Test (Blood, Urine, Pap, STD), X-ray & Ultrasound, Prescription Refill, Nutrition (Intravenous Vitamins & Minerals), Detox (Chelation & Fasting), Anti Aging, Immune Booster, Weight Management.
For More Info: Phone: 062-525-0606 www.geomedclinic.com ** The best landmark for our clinic is “Buk-gu District Office” ** On the 1st Floor of our building, there is a “Paris Baguette”. Our clinic is located on the 5th Floor.
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25
Gangjin
The Hidden Gem of Jeollanam-do Written and photographed by Lea Moreau
W
hat is the first thing you think of when you hear “South Korea”? Many people tend to agree on the fact that the country is high-tech, fashionable, and modern. When these same people are asked to describe Korea in a few words, very often you will hear them talk about K-beauty, K-pop, hallyu (Korean Wave), plastic surgery, or the latest smartphone.
Korea has always offered access to its incredible heritage
An almost secret city hidden in Jeollanam-do, Gangjin is recognized by Koreans as the birthplace of Goryeo celadon. Formed during the 15th century, Gangjin is perfectly located between Wolchul Mountain and Gangjin Bay, allowing inhabitants to engage both in agriculture and fishing. Thanks to these geographical advantages, Gangjin has also become famous for its gastronomy!
TRAVEL
But Korea has this intriguing ability to mix modernity with tradition, something we saw on display during the opening ceremony of the 2018 PyeongChang Olympic Games. It showed South Korea’s need to return to the true source of its founding principles.
in terms of culture, tradition, gastronomy, and history. So today, I would like to discover with you an intriguing and historical city that ticks off all these boxes, Gangjin.
Last year, I was invited to the Namdo Food Festival, held in the area. It was an incredible experience to try a variety of foods representing Jeollanam-do. I was able to try really
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March 2018
Gangjin’s Sulloc Green Tea Plantation.
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26 and even Arab nations. This trade route allowed Koreans to more easily sell the Goryeo celadon created in the region. Not only was the area the best for producing ceramics and pottery but transport and trade were made easier by the area’s ready access to the sea. Since I was really interested in learning more, I decided to visit Gangjin Celadon Museum, where I was able to see a huge exposition of masterpieces, including celadon works that date back to the 9th and 14th centuries. I was also able to view the original kilns that served in the production of celadon all those years ago. Being able to visualize the entire process of celadon production was really quite impressive. I learned that merchants sold not only celadon but also exchanged other things like books, art, philosophy, and ideas. I truly believe the influences from these historical exchanges have trickled down to Gangjin’s current residents. As a case in point, artists, activists, and philosophers have been living in the area throughout the centuries.
▲ Gangjin Celadon Museum.
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March 2018
healthy foods, including local specialties such as clams, eels, kimchi, and locally grown rice. Located in the area of Gangjin Bay Ecology Park, I could ride a bicycle for free and admire the beautiful landscape. On top of that, many different events were organized, like parades, food contests, concerts, and cultural performances. This festival definitely opened my eyes to the massive varieties of food that Korea has to offer.
Speaking of celadon, did you know there is an annual Gangjin Celadon Festival? In fact, Gangjin’s Celadon Festival was selected by the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism as South Korea’s best festival in 2017. Clearly, the Ministry recognizes the importance of globalizing Korean culture through showcasing the excellence of Goryeo celadon and other works of art with over 1,000 years of history! Usually hosted for nine days, the festival allows tourists to learn the art of making pottery and admire the special exhibitions of celadon works. Visitors can also try wearing traditional Goryeo costumes. Speaking of art, next to the Gangjin Celadon Museum, one can also find the Korean Minhwa Museum. Minhwa (민화), or Korean folk painting, is featured at this museum
For those who are unfamiliar with Korean food, it is important to know that the Jeolla provinces are recognized as being the best in terms of food and delicacies in Korea. In fact, throughout the centuries, it has always been an agricultural area offering fresh and authentic cuisine. Many locals will tell you that the gastronomy of the Jeolla provinces is the best, and I can proudly say there is definitely a whole world of authentic tastes to discover! With my belly satisfied, I wanted to learn more about the Goryeo Dynasty and the reason why Gangjin became a famous place for making celadon. To understand this, however, one must first understand Gangjin’s geography. Thanks to the Gangjin-cheon (Gangjin Stream) and Gangjin-man (Gangjin Bay), these waterways offered opportunities to begin trade with merchants from many different nations like China, Japan, The writer at Gangjin Bay.
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27 with particular focus on works created during the Joseon Dynasty. On the second floor, there is an area restricted only to adult visitors. To be perfectly honest, some of the art pieces can be rather shocking, but they provide visitors with another perspective on sexuality in Korea. The erotic paintings in the exhibition depict the lifestyle and sexual relationships Koreans had during the Joseon Dynasty. As a foreigner, seeing these images was a really interesting discovery in terms of culture shock and other stark differences. Last, but not least, I went to Gau-do Island. Gau-do became famous because of its remote location in the middle of Gangjin Bay, making the entire area into a peaceful gem of tranquility. In the old days, few people frequented Gaudo because it was considered a mysterious place. However, these days, a lot of people enjoy taking a walk on the island’s premises. The local government built a walking trail around the island and even a suspension bridge that connects the island to the mainland. The great thing about this place is that motor vehicles are not allowed. Thus, one can only cross the bridge on foot and enjoy the beautiful scenery far from the crowded, busy, and noisy city. If you are feeling more adventurous, do not worry – I found the perfect attraction for you! Currently perched on the top of the island, a celadon pot-shaped observatory offers incredible views. What is more, it even has an 800-meterlong zip line that is by far the best you can find in Jeollanamdo. Thrill seekers can descend on the zip line from Gau-do across the bay to the Jeodu-ri shore. The view is amazing, and I was so glad I could do it with my friend. Although the zip line does not look really scary from the bottom, when you climb up to the top and hold your last breath before
taking the big jump, you will feel scared for sure! The ride is both quiet and long, so it allows you to admire the beautiful scenery. One can marvel at the bay, its surrounding islands, and uniquely shaped coastline. It is definitely a once-in-alifetime experience. Be sure to check the weather forecast before visiting the zip line, as the company does not allow rides on extremely windy days. From Wolchul Mountain to Gangjin Bay, everything here is made only of beauty and nature. The city is also famous for its delicate gastronomy and rich history. As a travel specialist, I sincerely recommend you visit this place and enjoy not only everything the region has to offer but also the satisfaction of traveling without crowds of tourists surrounding you. Gangjin is a must for those looking to explore Jeollanam-do. For more information, check out Lea’s two videos on YouTube promoting Gangjin tourism: www.youtube.com/watch?v=BHtq3_SmF0M www.youtube.com/watch?v=bgDK1ELs9fI You can also follow Lea both on Facebook and YouTube at Leadventure. For more information about Jeolla travel, check out Lea’s other channel, Jeolla Go. THE AUTHOR
Lea is a French travel specialist currently based in Geoje-do. She has traveled to 27 countries so far, and has also created her own YouTube channel in order to share her passion for travel and tourism, and to give useful tips and advice along the way. She won second place in the Jeollabuk-do Travel Video Contest and was recognized as an official tour trainer by the Seoul Tourism Organization. Her dream is to help promote tourism in Korea and abroad, and maybe even have her own travel show on TV.
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March 2018
Gangjin zip line view from the top of Gau-do Island.
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COMMUNITY
28 From Abroad
▲ Koreans and international communities celebrate Seollal together.
Cross-Cultural Festival on Seollal 2018 Written by Matkhiya Usmonova Photographs courtesy of Universal Culture Center
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March 2018
O
rganized by the Pakistani and Uzbek Communities in Gwangju and UCC Gwangju is the City of Light, where all people are incredibly polite, friendly, and open-minded with each other. When I first came here, I realized that foreign residents were welcomed and greeted with positive feelings. What is more, Gwangju offers access to various opportunities for minority communities that help counteract the stress of culture shock. To be more specific, there are several international centers that immigrants can visit to get assistance with some of their vital issues, or where they may organize some events focusing on their valuable cultures as well as traditions. On February 15–16, the people of Pakistan and Uzbekistan presented their performances for the Seollal event at both the GIC and Gilsang Temple. I enjoyed the performances put on by both countries’ communities, as they were quite attentiongrabbing and meaningful. Day One: The Pakistani Community at the GIC When I went to this event, I saw so many Pakistani people
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who were really kind and pleasant to talk to. To begin, they introduced and welcomed the honorable guests with an opening speech, followed by a presentation of their native land. Through this, I discovered that Pakistan’s culture is very diverse. This diversity stems from the fact that what is now Pakistan has been invaded and occupied by many different groups throughout history, including the White Huns, Persians, Arabs, Turks, Mongols, and various Eurasian peoples. All in the same country, there are differences in culture among the various ethnic groups in matters such as dress, food, and religion. Interestingly, the presentation illustrated many of these fascinating differences with beautiful pictures and videos that were later easy to recall. Subsequently, they prepared a mixed variety of meals and sweets that were only halal. The national dishes included pilaf, chicken biryani, and gulab jamun – all of which were mouthwatering for the participants. After finishing lunch, a group of Koreans gave a brief introduction about their culture, traditional songs, and national Korean tea,
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29
▲ The writer (right) introduced Uzbekistan culture during the event.
which we were fortunate to try after the event. For the final portion of the program, all attendees tried on traditional Pakistani dresses (sari) and put henna decorations on their hands to create lasting memories.
I found the most interesting aspect of this presentation to be the ornately dressed dancer. To be fair, that is in large
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Uzbek dances are distinguished for the softness, smoothness, and expressiveness of their movements, which incorporate easy sliding steps and original movements both in place and in a circle. While dancing in these ways, I felt the happiness I associate with my motherland. I also felt thankful to these international organizations that gave me and everyone else a chance to introduce our countries. By way of conclusion, there are plenty of opportunities for adopting local conventions and cherishing our own cultures simultaneously. As a result, the Cross-Cultural Festival organized by these two nations benefited local and foreign communities alike. These two events brought joy and meaning to our lives and also helped build a harmonious multicultural community. THE AUTHOR Matkhiya is from the Republic of Uzbekistan. Presently, she is a student at Chonnam National University in Gwangju, majoring in English language and literature. She is a soft-spoken person, usually helping and try to bring possible perfection to whatever she does. She habitually strives to improve herself, personally and educationally, and tries to learn from her mistakes.
March 2018
After lunch, the Uzbek community started its presentation in the cafe hall. The presentation was all about Uzbekistan. The culture of Uzbekistan, it turns out, is one of the brightest and most original cultures of the East. We were shown their inimitable national music, dances, and paintings, as well as their unique national cuisine and dress. One particularly informative video about the capital of Uzbekistan, Tashkent, was shared by a presenter.
part because I was that dancer! As you can probably guess, I am an Uzbek myself and very proud of my culture.
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Day Two: Uzbek Community at Gilsang Temple Before the Uzbekistan cross-cultural awareness program began, an introduction to Korean Buddhist Culture was given for participants at the temple. Actually, while watching how they were praying, I came to see just how faithful they were to their own religion. Inside the temple, there were many attractive decorative ornaments, pictures, lights, and books. Following this, we went into the temple’s kitchen, where both Uzbek and Korean meals were waiting for us. The Uzbek dish named basma as well as Uzbek salad were full of delicious ingredients that everyone found tasty. We had a wonderful lunch with different individuals and engaged in great conversations about national meals and their recipes.
▲ The delicious foods served at the event.
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30
SPORTSTRAVEL & ACTIVITIES
t a e c n ie r e p x E y M s ic p m y l O r e t in W the 2018
W ri tt e n a n d p h o to g ra p
hed by Lea h M il le r
▲ South Korean athlete Kim Ji-su passes by at the men’s skeleton competition.
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March 2018
I
recently was privileged with the opportunity to go to the PyeongChang Winter Olympics. The Olympics were quite fun and energetic. I was able to watch the men’s skeleton and two of the women’s quarterfinal ice hockey games. The men’s skeleton was particularly exciting because, while watching from the finish line, we saw Korea’s Yun Sung-bin (a.k.a. Ironman) set record times that would earn him a gold medal. Smiling faces could be seen from all around. Instant friendships were made once people saw their home flags and colors. I actually met someone from my home state back in the U.S. because I was holding a sign showcasing where I was from. What is more, to my astonishment, this individual was one of the staff from the American television network NBC and was on site to record and livestream the Olympics. Despite the language barriers resulting from all the various nationalities present, comradery was easily seen between participants, and bonds were made in spite of individuals’ support for different countries. One of the coolest things I saw during my time in Pyeongchang transpired when two
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men from Switzerland came to catch a bus and, in doing so, encountered some other individuals from Ireland. Both sides did their countries’ respective cheers and then they exchanged pleasantries with each other in English. They each established who they were and where they hailed from and then, suddenly, switched to speaking in fluent French. The group became instant friends and continued passing jokes the entire bus ride. The lighthearted feelings spread by the group were so infectious that the bus driver was even joining in on the laughter. Music set the mood for one of the venues, and people could be seen dancing, playing, and taking selfies in line. Overall, most of the spectators were just happy to be there and were enjoying themselves. Many even made instant connections with others in line. Everything from taking pictures with those in extremely patriotic and wacky costumes to seeing others singing and dancing with reckless abandon was visible in the waiting lines. We even connected with two women who had seen us dancing in line. After talking, we later saw those same women on the big screen during the ice hockey game and cheered excitedly for them as they danced for the camera.
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31 South Korean athlete Yun Sung-bin took gold in the men’s skeleton event.
THE AUTHOR Leah is a small town girl from south Georgia who currently lives in Gwangju. She works at Brighton/JLS, and in her free time, she learns Korean and travels with friends to different places on mini-adventures. She’s blessed, is loving life, and is super excited to see what God has in store for her.
▲ The writer (center) came with friends to watch the PyeongChang Winter Olympics to support their favorite teams.
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March 2018
From cheering next to a person who was cheering on another team, to the unspoken etiquette of taking pictures for others in front of statues without even being asked, to the smiling and friendly faces of the staff, my entire time spent at the Olympics was wonderful and truly memorable. When I say the experience of the Olympics was more fun that the actual games, I mean that experiencing the crowds and how most were on one accord was the highlight. No matter what has been going on in the world lately, we all were connected to cheer on our countries and appreciate the countries and cultures of those around us.
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While watching the women’s ice hockey games, it was clear that many of the spectators were not from the competing countries, yet they were cheering fanatically for the teams as if they were their own.
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32
Waldorf
It’s Not Just a Salad Written by Douglas Baumwoll Photographs courtesy of Waldorf Schule
“O EDUCATION
ur highest endeavor must be to develop individuals who are able out of their own initiative to impart purpose and direction to their lives.” So said Rudolf Steiner (1861–1925), and this idea permeates his vision of learning and education, as we shall see below. I had a tough time choosing a quote as a lede for this piece. I searched “quotes on education reform” online, and dozens of great ones showed up, dating back to Leonardo Da Vinci and coming from giants like Aldous Huxley, Robert Frost, Jiddu Krishnamurti, and many, many others. Suffice it to say that education reform is a long-running issue, and that it is alive and well today worldwide.
To quickly review, the most-recognized name in “alternative” education and philosophy of education is probably Montessori schools, which operate based on the ideas of Dr. Maria Montessori (1870–1952). She opened her first school in one of the poorest neighborhoods in Rome, Italy, to make a point that all children deserved access to schools, and that poor children were just as capable as wealthy ones when it came to intelligence and learning. At present, there are 20,000 certified Montessori schools worldwide. Another well-known education philosophy is embodied in the school systems following the Reggio Emilia approach to learning, which was founded by Loris Malaguzzi (1920–1994). Generally speaking, both of these types of schools use constructivist, self-directed, and experiential learning methods to foster children’s independence, leadership, and conflict resolution skills. In addition, they seek to
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March 2018
So, Waldorf. A luxury hotel chain. A salad. You probably knew those. But Waldorf-Astoria also owned a cigarette company in Stuttgart, Germany, and in 1919 its owner opened a school there employing the educational philosophy of Rudolf Steiner. Bingo: Waldorf schools were born. Currently, there are about 1,000 Waldorf schools operating in roughly 60 countries worldwide. Not bad, Rudolf.
As a follow-up to an article I wrote for the January edition of the Gwangju News, I want to give our readers a more in-depth look at one of the two Waldorf schools we have right here in Damyang-gun.
At Waldorf, students and their parents do a group activity outdoors.
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33 develop an appreciation for being good citizens. That is all I will say about these systems here, and as always, I invite you to look into them further on your own. Okay, back to the quote at the top of the piece, which brings us to Rudolf Steiner and Waldorf schools. I spoke with Dharma Kim, a teacher at the Mudeung Free Waldorf School (무등자유발도르프학교) located in Damyang (just north of Gwangju), to learn more about this school in general and the Waldorf education philosophy in particular. The school employs eight full-time teachers and four part-time ones, educating about 40 students from the first grade of elementary school to the third grade of middle school. And that brings us to the most unique aspect of the Waldorf methodology, in my opinion: each grade (year) of students stays with its same class teacher for eight years. Kim currently has “class four,” meaning kids roughly 10 years old whom he has taught for several years. “It’s important that you know a child’s history, that you know what likes and dislikes they had in year two to best teach them in year five. That doesn’t happen when you hand kids off to a new teacher each school year,” Kim said.
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out that there is no direct teaching of Anthroposophy, as there is no indoctrination or dogma taught at any Waldorf school. Another reason parents send kids here is due to the collaborative nature of every aspect of their kids’ education. For example, there is a meeting at the beginning of the year with all teachers and parents where the cost of tuition is determined. This school receives no public funding of any kind, and the number of enrolled students determines the annual budget. Parents and teachers consider costs such as rent for the school property and even negotiate teachers’ salaries. Another collaborative aspect is that at least one parent must come to the school one night each month. The parent spends time with the class teacher simply chatting and often doing actual educational activities that their kids do, such as painting, so they can experience directly what their own children do at school. This builds understanding between parent and child as well as between parent and teacher. So what are the learner outcomes at this school? Well, kids go on to take a certification exam when finishing the
March 2018
So why do parents send their kids here? Well, there are many separate reasons that fit together into a whole. Kim said parents want their kids to have a “healthy, holistic” education experience. The Waldorf philosophy specifies that “thinking, feeling, and willing” need to be infused into learning and life. Learning here is not intellectually lopsided, as kids learn about emotional intelligence and the importance of physical movement. “They learn to love learning,” Kim said. Steiner founded the belief system of Anthroposophy, which speaks to spiritual questions, artistic needs, a scientific mind, and interaction with the world based on individual freedom (go to www. waldorfanswers.org for more information). Kim points
▲ Rudolf Steiner
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“You may wonder, is it not kind of limiting to have only one teacher during that time?” I asked Kim, and this brings us to another unique feature of the Waldorf model. Each class has its own class teacher (homeroom teacher) to cover a set curriculum for two hours each morning. These subjects, perhaps eight each year, are taught in roughly four-week blocks. Depending on age, subjects include myths and stories, geography, history, logic, physics, biology, and chemistry. Then, after lunch, students take classes with other teachers covering other subjects, such as languages (English and Chinese), arts, crafts, and music. Kids spend a lot of time outdoors – both between classes and sometimes even during them, such as with crafts classes. One day a month, the entire school may take a nature walk and do a group activity outdoors such as playing games.
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34
Kids are taught to share, even foods, at Waldorf.
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March 2018
four-year high school program, which is acknowledged by the Ministry of Education. Many then take the Suneung (College Scholastic Ability Test) and go on to university. “Learning is based on reality. Critical thinking is the main goal,” Kim said. I asked him to give me an example. “Well,” Kim continued, “imagine the first day of chemistry class. The teacher doesn’t give a lecture or facts, but they might light a candle and ask the kids to really observe it.” This leads to discussion and a consideration of every aspect of a burning candle – light, heat, color, etc. – which then leads to information about chemistry. Teachers here are a guide only, not a depositor of information into the vessel that is the student mind. “‘Clear thinking’ is a term we use a lot around here,” Kim added. Finally, let us have a quick look at the teachers and their development. All teachers must attend a Waldorf training program, which exists all over the world, including here in South Korea. Steiner believed that teachers needed to be well-developed human beings in order to teach well. Anthroposophy promotes a form of meditation in order to be, in Steiner’s words, “aware of one’s humanity” and to pursue knowledge via a spiritual path. I urge you to read up on Theosophy, a related idea from which Anthroposophy sprang. Kim says that teachers strive to develop observational skills and mindfulness, and to instill an energy of calm during their lessons, so that
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students can practice concentration. I asked about peer review among the teachers. Kim told me they consider themselves a “college of teachers” and mentioned that they all meet once a week to discuss daily aspects of teaching. Twice a year, they review and give feedback on the whole semester. In this way, everyone can give and receive advice, and gain greater perspective on their teaching styles and methods. I asked if these meetings ever became hostile, and Kim told me that although discussions can heat up a bit, there is never any bitterness between colleagues. If you have kids or if you are interested in education reform, please read up further on any of the points or people I have mentioned above. You can learn more about this school at its Daum Café site (cafe.daum.net/ waldorfschule). The school attracts new students mainly through word of mouth and is currently accepting new students for future terms. THE AUTHOR
Doug Baumwoll, a professional writer and editor for 25 years, trains in-service teachers in writing skills and methodology. His personal writing interests include visionary and speculative fiction, climate change, energy, and social justice. He is the founder of SavetheHumanz.com.
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35
TOPIK Guide (topikguide.com) is the most comprehensive website devoted to the TOPIK exam. It’s been helping Korean language learners pass the TOPIK (Test of Proficiency in Korean) for more than seven years. On this website, you can get all the TOPIK updates, grammar and vocabulary material, and study tips.
Everyday Korean
Episode 3 Seollal: The Korean New Year Written by Harsh Kumar Mishra Korean Language Expert at TOPIKGUIDE.COM
정민: 아나 씨, 안녕하세요? 설 연휴에 뭘 하세요? [ana ssi, an-nyeong-haseyo? seol yeon-hyu-e mwol haseyo?] Ana, what are your plans for the Korean New Year holidays?
정민: (저는) 가족들을 만나러 고향에 갈 거예요. [(jeoneun) gajok-deu-reul manna-reo go-hyange gal-geo-yeyo.] I’ll go to my hometown to celebrate with my family.
EDUCATION
아나: (저는) 오랜만에 휴식시간을 갖고 여행하려고 해요. 정민 씨는요? [(jeoneun) oraen-mane hyusik-siganeul gak-ko yeo-haeng-haryeogo haeyo. Jeongmin-ssineunyo?] I’m finally getting a vacation, after a long time, so I’m thinking about traveling around. What about you, Jeongmin?
아나: 와~ 좋겠다. 한국에서는 설날에 주로 뭐해요? [Wa~ jo-khetta. Hangu-geseo-neun seollare juro mwo-haeyo?] Wow! Sounds great. So, what do Koreans normally do during Seollal? 정민: 떡국을 먹고, 세배를 해요. 그리고 세뱃돈도 받아요. [tteok-kugeul meok-ko, sebae-reul haeyo. Geu-rigo sebaet-don-do badayo.] We eat tteokguk and do the sebae to our elders. Also, we receive sebaet-don. 아나: 세배와 세뱃돈이 뭐예요? [sebae-wa sebaet-doni mwo-yeyo?] What are sebae and sebaet-don? 정민: 세배는 설날에 어르신에게 하는 인사를 말해요. 그리고 세뱃돈은 세배를 하고 나서 어른들께 받는 돈이에요. [sebae-neun seollare eo-reusin-ege ha-neun insa-reul mar-haeyo. Geu-rigo sebaet-doneun sebae-reul hago naseo eoreun-deul-kke ban-neun doni-eyo.] Sebae is the traditional Korean bow done on Seollal to one’s elders. And sebaet-don is the money you get from your elders after the sebae.
~려고 해요: Use this pattern to show the intention of any verb. Ex: 7월에 제주에 가려고 해요. I’m planning to go to Jeju in July.
~는요?: Use this for asking “What about ...?” or “How about ...?”
연휴: long holiday 고향: hometown 휴식시간: rest/break time 명절: festival 행사: event 오랜만이에요: long time no see 어른: elders 설/설날: Seollal, Korean New Year’s Day
1. Two of the most important must-have applications (apps) in Korea are now available in English. Check your app store for the English version of Naver Map and Kakao Taxi now. 2. If you’re looking for study opportunities in Korea, check out this great program called KGSP offered by the Korean government on the website www.studyinkorea.go.kr. 3. If you’re new to Gwangju, then visit gwangjuguide.or.kr for all the fresh and current information about Gwangju and its lifestyle. Now it’s available in Korean, English, and Chinese!
March 2018
Ex: 저는 카페라떼 먹을래요. 아나 씨는요? I’ll have a caffe latte. How about you, Ana?
#KoreaLifeHacks
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Grammar & Vocabulary
Visit the TOPIK Guide website or our YouTube channel to improve your Korean and reach your goal on the TOPIK test.
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36 KOTESOL
Stories from the Classroom
EDUCATION
Written by Dr. David Shaffer
I
’ve been preparing for a pecha kucha presentation, and it’s got me doing some reflecting. The presentation’s for the Gwangju-Jeonnam KOTESOL’s spring conference, and the pecha kucha’s topic is to be “Best Stories from the Classroom.” I’m contemplating on what makes a story “best”: Can an undesirable incident still be a best story?
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March 2018
For those of you who haven’t been to the Gwangju International Center in the past two years and are still dwelling on what the heck a “pecha kucha” might be, I will briefly explain. It’s a PowerPoint presentation of exactly 20 slides, each timed to automatically change after exactly 20 seconds. That’s 20 x 20 for a total presentation time of exactly 6 minutes and 40 seconds. Instead of the speaker controlling the time spent on each slide, the slides
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control what the speaker can say about each 20-second slide. Content can be anywhere from the dead serious to the LOL hilarious. I’m still in the process of deciding on what “stories” to include, but I’d like to share with you some of the recollections related to classroom teaching here in Gwangju that this thought process has conjured up. HEALTHY LANGUAGE LEARNING My English Department juniors have always been a good group of actively participating students, but like in any class, some are more active than others. One day one of these students walked into class early, almost as soon as my previous class in that room had ended. She was a tall, slender girl, and one of the more reserved students in her class. But this day, she came up to me while I was arranging things for the next class. She wanted to tell me about her medical condition – “vasovagal syncope” (which I didn’t understand until she explained it as “fainting sickness”). She wanted permission to leave class whenever she felt the symptoms coming on rather than faint in class. I, of course, had no objection. What makes this a “best story” for me is that this student had relayed this information to me in almost flawless English, much unlike her average classroom speech production. Why? Because for her, this was an
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37 important real-life situation, and she had an important message to convey. To me this was a vivid reminder that the most effective language learning takes place in reallife contexts in which being understood is of paramount importance. Upon reflection, I regret that I didn’t consider turning this into a learning situation for the whole class. THE INS AND OUTS OF LOVE I thought I had a “campus couple” in one of my classes – a male and female student were regularly sitting beside each other in class. Then one day, I walked into a louderthan-usual classroom for class: it was the campus couple arguing. He looked at her, said a few more choice words, and stomped out. And he didn’t come back. He didn’t come back for weeks. The semester was nearing its end and there was still no sign of him. I asked the girl, and she said she knew nothing about him. Then, I approached some of his male classmates and told them to tell him that he needed to begin functioning if he wanted to pass the course. He finally returned, sitting quietly with his male friends. He did extra work that I’d assigned and finally did pass the course – just barely. Reflecting back, I’m happy that I’d taken action that brought him back to pass the course. However, I scold myself for waiting so long to do anything, thinking, “He’s a big boy, knows what he should do, and needs to be responsible for his own actions.” For my part, I should have tried earlier to get word to him that I wanted him back in class, which would have given him the opportunity to still get a decent grade in the course. But I didn’t – my bad. I’m a big boy, too, and need to take responsibility for my own actions. The couple never did get back together.
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EFL teachers in Korea are much like our language learning students in several important aspects. We make mistakes in the tasks before us. With time and experience, our skills improve. We make mistakes and learn from them. We learn that the power of our words lies in the meaning that they convey. And we learn how to express ourselves in an increasingly refined manner. Hmm… How can I get all this into twenty 20-second slides? THE AUTHOR
David E. Shaffer is vice-president of the Gwangju-Jeonnam Chapter of Korea TESOL (KOTESOL). On behalf of the Chapter, he invites you to participate in the teacher development workshops at their monthly meetings (always on a Saturday). For many years, Dr. Shaffer has been a professor of English Language at Chosun University, where he has taught graduate and undergraduate courses. He is a long-time member of KOTESOL and a holder of various KOTESOL positions; at present he is national president. Dr. Shaffer credits KOTESOL for much of his professional development in English language teaching, scholarship, and leadership. He is also the editor-inchief of the Gwangju News. GWANGJU-JEONNAM KOTESOL ANNUAL CONFERENCE Date: March 10 (Saturday) Place: Gwangju National University of Education Theme: “Caring, Sharing, Daring: Adventures in ELT” Keynote speaker: Maria Lisak (Chosun University) SwapShop – Share with the group an activity or teaching idea that you have. For full event details: Website: koreatesol.org/gwangju Facebook: Gwangju-Jeonnam KOTESOL
March 2018
He had struck a tender chord. The papers in front of me got pushed off my desk and fell to the floor in dramatic fashion. “How dare he!” I thought. He was talking about my area of expertise – an area that I had a PhD in while he was still working on his bachelor’s. I’d lived my entire adult life in Korea and its culture – longer than he’d lived altogether. And on top of this, I was the professor and he was the student! I gave a now-forgotten retort to his remark and was surprised at the reaction: This former ROK soldier
It took very little reflection for me to realize that my mistake was larger than his. He was responding on the spur of the moment, in a stressful situation, and in a foreign language. I should have realized this, and I shouldn’t have raised my voice. I’d caused him to lose face in front of the whole class when he was trying his best to give a presentation that he’d spent hours and hours preparing. My bad! Further reflection reminded me that we need to be empathetic with our students; we need to be understanding role models, not callous authoritarians.
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LOSERS, WEEPERS It was a course in which one of the students’ tasks was to give a presentation on a language learning topic of their choice. There was one business major in my class of English majors, and he was motivated. Though his English might not have been the best in the class, his participation was outstanding. It was his turn to give his presentation, and I had a seat in the back of the class. I don’t remember exactly what he was talking on, but he made a statement that I challenged (which was common for me to do during these presentations). His response was “Oh, but you can’t understand because you are a foreigner.”
got quiet and began to cry! He did struggle through the remainder of his presentation, though.
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▲ Delicious goodies for sale at the Sungbin Orphanage Book and Bake Sale. (Photo by Diane Sejung Kim)
EDUCATION
Volunteer Motivation Why People Volunteer Written and photographed by Maria Lisak
G www.gwangjunewsgic.com
March 2018
wangju is a community of volunteers. But what really motivates people to volunteer? Looking at the reasons and motivations of volunteers can help them stay focused on getting and giving what they need to reach their goals. Understanding the decision to volunteer can also help organizations and groups to better interweave reciprocity into the volunteer experience. Some of the motivations that move people to volunteer stem from their core values. Some people, whether from religious beliefs or social awareness of being a good citizen or neighbor, volunteer because they think it is an important value to give back. Others are swayed by the power of direct talk. Many times volunteer groups and projects can successfully recruit volunteers due to the charisma and trust of a family member, friend, or colleague. But no amount of talk will motivate someone to return to a volunteer position unless the experience was meaningful to them. Meaning can take many forms. Some find meaning in the outcome of the volunteer work; others find the process – meeting like-minded people or
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doing some specific kind of project work – meaningful and worthwhile in and of itself. As a long-term volunteer in the Gwangju community, it is always upsetting when I hear people of my same age or older complaining about youth today not exerting a quality work ethic. This is not my experience of teaching young adults in Gwangju. Gazley and Dignam (2008) in The Decision to Volunteer: Why People Give Their Time and How You Can Engage Them found in their research that while older generations volunteer more, younger generations actually think volunteering is more important than older generations do.[1] I think with the abuse of internships in South Korea and the “Hell Joseon” attitude of Korean youth today, it is no wonder that their actions do not match their values. Their hesitancy to volunteer can be interpreted that they are instead choosing to expend resources to stabilize their working and living conditions in the face of high youth unemployment. When I was a youth in working-class America, I had been encouraged to do volunteer work to test out jobs that I was interested in as well as to network for a “real” job.
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39 The emphasis on the professional benefits of volunteering cannot be overemphasized. Most volunteer work is teamwork on projects. These skills are easy to read about but tough to develop in real life, especially when wanting to work in intercultural spaces where many cultural miscommunications need to be overcome. Additionally, volunteers often work in suboptimal circumstances with limited resource access. Working within constraints is a valuable take-away skill regardless of what the volunteer’s goal is. People might be only volunteering for an hour. Many times the short-term or ad hoc volunteers might not receive adequate recognition. Being able to explain how short-term volunteer work helps an organization or group is an important step in thanking the volunteer and in educating him or her about the group’s larger goals and outcomes. Seeing how we fit into the big picture of a project helps to recognize volunteers, celebrate their work, and educate a community to act as a self-initiated advocate for the organization or group.
Inspirational Readings
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Maria Lisak is celebrating the 22nd anniversary of her first steps in South Korea this year. From the Midwest in the US, her Chicago accent still plagues her Korean pronunciation. She has been teaching public administration and social welfare at Chosun University since 2012. You can check out her degree pedigree on her blog: koreamaria.typepad.com/gwangju
Gazley, B., & Dignam, M. (2008). The decision to volunteer: Why people give their time and how you can engage them. Washington, DC: ASAE & The Center for Association Leadership. [1]
Values drive volunteers’ choices: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.
The power of direct talk Meaningful experiences keep people coming back While older generations volunteer more, younger generations actually think volunteering is more important. Emphasis on professional benefits of volunteering Recognize ad hoc volunteers. Organization strategy has a big impact on supporting/ discouraging volunteering.
Problems that discourage volunteering: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.
Lack of information about volunteer opportunities Poor follow-through by an organization Forgetting “thank-yous” Poor communication Lack of support/training Unclear roles High transportation costs
March 2018
Choi, H.Y. (2017, July 18). US Embassy, UNHCR exploit interns. The Korea Times. Retrieved from https://www.koreatimes. co.kr/www/nation/2017/07/371_233114.html Forney, B. (2017, July 6). South Korea’s brain drain: Why so many young South Koreans think of their country as “hell.” The Diplomat. Retrieved from https://thediplomat. com/2017/07/south-koreas-brain-drain/ Kim Jackson, J. (2017, November 21). Youth employment hits record low, senior jobs soar. The Korea Herald. Retrieved from http://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud= 201711 21000924 Jackson, B. (2017, July 24). Who is to blame for inequality? The Hell Joseon debate rumbles on. Korea Expose. Retrieved from https://www.koreaexpose.com/kaist-professor-helljoseon-debate-korea/
THE AUTHOR
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Thinking about how short- and long-term volunteers work within the organization has a big impact on supporting or discouraging volunteering. Strategic, not just tactical, planning is needed to make a holistic experience that is reciprocal in nature; i.e., the group supports the volunteer and the volunteer gives to the group. If volunteers feel that there is little meaning to the work they do for the group, this can act as an inhibitor to volunteering again or encouraging others to volunteer. Or perhaps, if volunteers walk away feeling that the organization does not respect boundaries like time or transaction costs (the time and money spent getting to the group’s location, for example), then the experience will have been more discouraging than uplifting. Marketing and promotion experts say that often people will share their bad experiences more widely than their good experiences. No matter the size of your group or organization, make sure you make some sort of strategy to support volunteers.
The writer organized coal fundraising to help the elderly in wintertime.
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40 Where to Eat
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March 2018
FOOD DRINKS TRAVEL TRAVEL SPORTS & &ACTIVITIES
Sure, I Would Love to Live a Natural Life Gwangju’s Vegetarian Buffet Written and photographed by Wilson Melbostad
Y
es! It’s true. As the title of this monthly column indicates, Gwangju does indeed eat. But let’s focus our gaze on a perhaps more pressing matter: Does Gwangju eat meat? Being vegetarian or vegan in the meat-filled hills of Korea could be compared to trying to stay dry in a shower: It is certainly possible (I’ve done so myself), but one must exert superhuman strength to do so. Thus, unless you are from the fictional kingdom of Wakanda, finding a nice guilt-free vegan meal in Gwangju might be a little bit of a challenge. Fortunately, this column serves as a mechanism to bridge the gap between you (the reader) and the otherwise seemingly impossible. I want to let you all in on the well-kept secret of the vegetarian buffet. The official name of this wondrous establishment is Jayeon Saenghwal (자연 생활), or “Natural Life.” Although the buffet’s facilities don’t provide opportunities to frolic about in the forest, practicing hunting and gathering techniques, visitors can still pursue a rather natural version of themselves while chowing down on completely organic and vegan goodness. The buffet is located near the Asia Culture Center just a street over from Art Street and a stone’s throw (though please don’t throw stones) from Chonnam Girls’ High School. Accessing the restaurant is made easier by the large Tower of Sauron-
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like green signpost reading “Chaesik Buffet” (채식부페) and sitting out in front of the parking lot. There is also a mansion across the street that ironically belongs to one of Gwangju’s biggest meat-selling moguls of the 1970s and 1980s. Once you walk into the buffet, on your right you’ll see a cool assortment of health products stacked high to the ceiling. Walk past the register at the front (you pay at the end), and feel free to set your stuff down at any of the open tables. Once you’re situated, you can grab your plates and utensils and gather all the herbivore-compatible food products your heart desires. The buffet line-up includes some of the Korean staples like assorted kimchi and jeon (looks like a pancake), but for the most part the buffet includes rarely seen items like beans, sweet and sour tofu, pumpkin, corn, and fresh fruit. As the restaurant does operate as a buffet, all buffet rules apply. In other words, don’t feel guilty for going back for seconds (or thirds, or fourths, or… you get the idea). Once you finish your meal, be sure to take your used dishes to the back sink where you line up your plates cafeteria style. Also, don’t forget to give a nice thank you to the cooks and dishwashing staff, and make a pit stop at the cash register to also give your thanks in the
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Jayeon Saenghwal Restaurant
Food items arranged beautifully at the restaurant.
The buffet includes a variety of rarely seen items.
Owner Park Soo-nok (left) with her son, who also helps out at the buffet.
THE AUTHOR
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JAYEON SAENGHWAL 자연생활뷔페 Seoseok-ro 85-beongil 12, Dong-gu, Gwangju 광주 동구 서석로 85번길 12
￦
062-228-0485 Lunch: 11:30 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. Dinner: 5:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. closed every Friday and Saturday 5,000 won (children), 10,000 won (adults)
March 2018
form of some currency. The prices are fairly affordable as far as buffets go: 10,000 won for adults and 5,000 won for children (is Generation Z into veganism?). Overall, I can’t recommend this place enough. If you’re looking for a healthier stop or just a break from the aggressive fermentation of Korean food, then look no further than Jayeon Saenghwal. Your inner natural life will be glad you did.
www.gwangjunewsgic.com
Health products and snacks on sale at the restaurant.
Wilson Melbostad is an international human rights attorney hailing from San Francisco, California. Wilson has returned to Gwangju to undertake his newest project: The Organization for Migrant Legal Aid (OMLA), which operates out of the Gwangju International Center.
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42 Kitchen Stories
Korean Fruit Teas
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March 2018
FOOD & DRINKS
Written and photographed by Karly Pierre
I
ride bus 35 until the end of the line: Mudeungsan Mountain National Park. It’s a clear, sunny day, and as I step off the bus, two old men walk past me wearing bright green hiking jackets. The base of the mountain is covered in a fresh layer of snow, probably the last this winter will bring. I walk past a row of buses in the parking lot to the main street packed with stores selling hiking gear and restaurants. It’s late afternoon on a weekday, so the area is pretty sleepy, except for a smattering of hikers coming down from the mountains. After a quick stroll along a snow-covered stream, its waters glinting in the sunlight, I loosen the scarf around my neck and unzip my coat. The weather is warmer than I had expected. I head back in the direction of the bus stop and climb the stairs to my favorite teahouse. The teahouse is a blend of new and traditional aesthetics. The chairs and tables are made of a heavy, dark wood, and celadon pottery sits on antique cabinets. Above, the lights are covered in paper lanterns, and the sun streams in from the large windows overlooking the balcony. A waterwheel fountain in the corner of the teahouse spins as babbling water pours over it. When I walk through the door, the owner greets me in a casual hanbok with a shaggy pink shawl draped over her shoulders. “Coffee is over there,” the owner says, pointing to the Angel-in-us cafe adjacent the teahouse. Admittedly, I haven’t been to the teahouse in a while, so I’m not surprised that the owner doesn’t recognize me. When I explain that I would like traditional tea, I recognize a familiar flash of panic in her eyes, and I know what she is thinking: Will I have to explain something to
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this woman in English? I order adeptly, and she smiles, appearing relieved that everything went smoothly. For the record, I dislike coffee. When I first arrived in Korea, I’d anticipated living in a tea lover’s paradise. But, to my disappointment, I quickly came to realize that this was one of the most coffee-loving countries I’d ever been to. So when a student of mine introduced me to this café a few years ago, I was pleasantly surprised and began to earnestly learn more about traditional Korean tea culture. There are four types of traditional Korean teas: medicinal, fruit, grain, and tea leaf (primarily green tea). The tea plant, camellia sinensis, came to Korea from China during the Three Kingdoms Period (57 BC to 668 AD) and spread throughout the peninsula along with Buddhism. When Confucianism became the dominant religion, tea consumption was suppressed by the ruling class, and its popularity declined. Fruit, medicinal, and grain teas replaced the tea leaf as popular drinks during the Joseon Dynasty. I’ve become particularly interested in traditional fruitbased teas. They are healthy, simple to make, and versatile. The most common Korean fruit teas are daechu-cha ( 대추차, jujube tea), yuja-cha (유자차, citron tea), omija-cha (오미자차, Schizandra tea), mogwa-cha (모과차, Chinese quince tea), seongnyu-cha (석류차, pomegranate tea), maesil-cha (매실차, plum tea), and byeonggyul (병귤, citrus platymamma). The primary method of preparation for most of these teas involves drying the fruit skins or thinly slicing them, then sweating the fruit in honey or sugar until a syrup forms.
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43 My two favorite fruit teas are yuja-cha and mogwacha. There is nothing as soothing as smelling fresh yuja (citrons). It’s a joy for me to head out to the market and buy a bag of them when they are in season. Available in late fall and early winter, they give off a delicately aromatic citrus fragrance. Beloved by King Sejong, yujacha is believed to soothe colds and aid digestion. Mogwa, commonly known in the West as quince, is also available in late fall and early winter. This fruit is tart and tastes like a blend of apple and pear. Koreans often drink mogwa-cha to soothe sore throats. Both of these teas are made using the sweating method. The syrup produced in making the tea can also be used to glaze meats or be added to baked goods.
gangjeong (엿강정, sweet puffed rice squares) in charming traditional ceramic dishes. Then my order of maeshil-cha and roasted karae-ddeok (가래떡, rice cake sticks) arrives. As I sip tea, I relax into my chair listening to “Una furtiva lagrima” being played through the speakers above on a haegeum (traditional Korean string instrument), its lazy whine filling the teahouse. A clump of snow on the roof drips onto the window. Another season has passed. THE AUTHOR
The owner of the teahouse first serves me a complimentary pot of gamip-cha (감잎자, persimmon leaf tea) and yeot-
Karly Pierre has an MA in mass communication and has worked as an editor and writer for several publications. She is currently an assistant professor in the ESL department at Chosun University.
Yuja-cha 유자차 (Citron Tea) I love making Korean fruit teas because I can add personal touches to them. Sometimes I add a few thin slices of fresh ginger or pear to the yuja-cha mixture to give the tea a subtle complexity. While some Koreans use white sugar to preserve the purity of the color and taste of the yuja, I use brown sugar and honey to give the tea a warmer flavor.
Ingredients
600 grams of thinly sliced yuja (citron) 500 grams of sugar (brown or white) or honey baking soda (optional)
Equipment
vegetable slicer 1 glass jar with lid 1 bowl
Method
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March 2018
Fill a kettle with water and then heat. Place a spoonful of the yuja mixture in a mug and pour hot water over the mixture. Stir and enjoy a warm cup of yuja-cha!
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Scrub the yuja (citrons) clean with a vegetable brush or baking soda. Pat dry. Use a vegetable slicer to thinly cut the yuja. Removing the seeds is optional. Place the sliced yuja in a bowl and mix with sugar or honey. The yuja slices will begin to sweat. Wash the glass jar clean, then sterilize it in a pot of boiling water. Allow the glass jar to cool, then place the yuja sugar mixture in the jar. Store the jar in your refrigerator. If you notice mold forming, that means you didn’t include enough sugar.
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44
Korean Culture
Introduction to Korean Pastes (Jang)
www.gwangjunewsgic.com
March 2018
FOOD & DRINKS
Written by Cho Namhee
K
orean pastes (jang) are the basis of Korean cuisine. Whenever you visit a Korean restaurant, it will have either dishes based on pastes or serve pastes as a sauce to enhance the taste. Out of over two hundred different kinds of pastes made and eaten in Korea, doenjang (soybean paste) and ganjang (soy sauce) are the most conventional and widely consumed of them all. Soy sauce may be universal to Asian cuisine; however, bean paste is more specific to Korea, and the procedure of making it adds another layer of uniqueness. March, often the first full month of the lunar year, was traditionally the time when Korean families got together and made various kinds of pastes. Just a few decades ago, it was a common sight to see blocks of dried fermented soybean paste (meju) dangling under the eaves of roofs or on verandas. However, such sights can only be found in rural areas nowadays, not only because the blocks diffuse a strong odor but also because it takes time and energy to make them. Briefly, the procedure for making a jangdok (crock) of bean paste has several steps. The first and most important step is to prepare the meju. To begin, soybeans are washed, boiled, and chunked to be compressed and shaped into brick-like blocks. After drying them in a cool, shaded area, the hardened blocks are then typically tied with rice straw under the eaves of the house to air-dry. During the weeks of air-drying, the beans of the blocks are fermented, after which they are finally washed and sun-dried for use.
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When the blocks are ready to be used, various amounts of brine are put into a jangdok with the meju to make portions of ganjang or doenjang on demand. The more brine put into the jangdok, the more ganjang can be made from it. For further fermentation of the mixture, the jangdok should then be
closed and placed in the best possible spot for sunlight. It normally takes 70 to 80 days for a jangdok prepared on the first day of the lunar calendar to be fermented, but this period gets shorter when they are prepared closer to summer. The juice in the jangdok can be used as sauce, and the fermented blocks can be removed and mixed with additional salt to make doenjang. The condiments made out of soybean vary by region and by ingredients put into the jangdok. Depending on the climate of the region, the amount of wind, and the changes in sunlight, the taste of the soybean blocks within a jangdok can vary significantly. This delicate procedure involving both environmental and human factors is the legacy of our Korean ancestors. This introduction is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Korean pastes, but hopefully this helps readers understand why there is so much variety to Korean sauces. THE AUTHOR Cho Namhee currently studies communication at Chonnam National University.
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Gwangju Writes
45 45
The Technology Collection Written by David Shaffer
HARD DRIVE
The world around me keeps swirling twirling turning churning While I stand still motionless inert ineffectual in my inconsequential existence.
Engines roaring firing on all cylinders Pedal to the metal steadfastly zooming forward
ARTS & CULTURE
ALTERNATE REALITY
Finish line in clear sight Fuel gauge needle pointing right to “empty.” SOFT WARE
VIRTUAL REALITY Ah! Rocky, Reaching that last step. Neil Armstrong, Stepping on the moon. Moon Jae-in, Winning that election.
THE AUTHOR
David Shaffer has spent many years in Gwangju as tenured faculty at Chosun University. He is very much a digital immigrant. At unexpected moments, a poetic urge overwhelms him, even though his postgraduate degrees are in linguistics rather than in literature, creative writing, or poetry. Dr. Shaffer is presently GIC chairman of the board and editor-in-chief of this fine publication.
March 2018
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Operating systems all on “go” CPU traveling at the speed of light hitting that proverbial firewall that oh-so-dreaded blue screen.
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Oh! The VR headset then comes off dropping to the floor for me to find that I am only me.
Formless Carefree floating in the cloud lost in the Ethernet on the information highway.
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March 2018
ARTS & CULTURE
46 Photo Essay
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Celebrating Resilience Written and photographed by Annalise Reinhardt
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At 13 years old, I had wondered about their stories, families, and struggles. At the time, I knew very little about the shared experience or cultural identity of the people who waited for work. I did, however, know that many – perhaps even most of them – did not have their families and loved ones with them. I held much respect for the abundant sacrifice they had made by coming to an unfamiliar place so far away from home to seek opportunities greater than those they could access in their home countries. I knew then that there must have been a crucial need in order for them to endure all that they had been through to make it to that point. Fast forward to May 1, 2016, the day these photographs were taken. It was International Workers’ Day – also known as May Day or Labor Day. In the United States, Labor Day is observed on the first Monday in September; however, May 1 is a public holiday celebrated in many countries.
March 2018
While driving in and out of state border lines, geographies, and climates, the real and envisioned stories of the land and its people moved across my mind like the highway lines guiding us. I saw people, mostly men in their 20s and 30s, who had arrived in my hometown of Brewster, New York, from Mexico, El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala. They came seeking work and would wait every morning on the sidewalk for someone to pick them up and give them a
manual labor job.
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I
am new to Gwangju. Before moving here in December 2017, I lived on the West Coast of the United States for eight years, and for seven of them, I called Portland, Oregon, my home. Before settling into my community in the Pacific Northwest, New York was my home. Born and raised in New York State about an hour north of the “Big Apple,” I spent my early adulthood in Brooklyn. Gradually, I wished to live in a place closer to nature with a less kinetic pace. And so, two friends and I drove across the country to move to Oregon, a state we only imagined could be what we sought.
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March 2018
As a day of solidarity and recognition for workers and labor unions, it honors the working classes and celebrates their contributions. Since 2000, labor unions have merged with immigrant rights movements in the United States, and now May Day has become synonymous with much more, like appreciation and support for all that immigrant communities contribute and the acknowledgement of their human rights. When taking these photos, I was at the Oregon State Capitol in Salem to support undocumented workers and to stand in solidarity with immigrant communities. These photos are relevant today, as immigrants and migrants around the world are among the most marginalized people. Targeted and vulnerable, both globally and in my home country, I am regularly saddened and angered by updates of their present plight despite being halfway across the world. On March 5, 2018, the Trump Administration is set to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. Launched in 2012 by the Obama Administration and described by former President Obama as “a temporary stopgap measure that lets us focus our resources wisely while giving a degree of relief and hope to talented, driven, patriotic young people,” the program currently protects roughly 800,000 undocumented people living in the United States. The DACA program temporarily protects participants, also known as “Dreamers” (referring to the continually reintroduced but never-passed DREAM Act), their average age being 24,[1] from deportation and grants them Social Security numbers in addition to two-year work
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permits offering access to work opportunities, financial aid for college, and a path to citizenship. According to the research of Roberto G. Gonzales, a professor of education and author of Lives in Limbo: Undocumented and Coming of Age in America, “Under DACA, beneficiaries saw increased educational attainment, higher social mobility, and better mental health.”[2] As mass deportations occur every day in the United States and Congress continues to maintain a stasis of conflict and irresolution, I think of all the “Dreamers” and immigrants whose resilience, heart, and courage define a humanity I deeply respect. Pew Research Center, 2017. Gonzales, February 16, 2018, www.vox.com.
[1] [2]
THE AUTHOR
Annalise Reinhardt (b. 1985, New York) is a photographer, art educator, and ESL teacher living in Gwangju, South Korea. Annalise seeks to engage with experiences of creative expression, vulnerability, and transcendence, and creates collaboratively with others through the mediums of photography and video. Annalise completed the Full-Time Certificate in Documentary Studies program at the International Center of Photography in 2008 and graduated with a BFA in arts practices from Portland State University in 2014. Presently, Annalise is eager to find others in Gwangju who would like to collaborate on projects in and around portraiture, performance, and community activism.
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March 2018
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50
Photo of the Month
www.gwangjunewsgic.com
March 2018
ARTS & CULTURE
By J.T. White
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51 51
W
e’d walked around the small lake admiring the cherry blossoms. We were there for them. I saw her walk up to the edge of the water, hanbok blowing in the breeze. It was like she was from another time. She stayed there for a while and just stared. So did I. Gyeongju, South Korea.
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Do you have any photos that you would like to show to Gwangju (and the world)? Gwangju News features a photo of the month to create more opportunities to promote more photographers based in the Jeollanam-do region and to show off our beautiful province from different areas and angles. Submissions can be posted in the “Photography in the South” Facebook group throughout the preceding month. Alternatively, you can also send your submissions to the editor by email: photos@gwangjunewsgic.com
March 2018
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March 2018
Traveling through Yinning By Valentin Nerding
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By Lorryn Smit
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March 2018
Aboard a bus on a late evening run through Seo-gu. By Adam Travis
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54 Book Review
“We Left with Empty Hands”
The Dispossessed, by Ursula K. Le Guin Written by Kristy Dolson Image courtesy of The Easton Press
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March 2018
ARTS & CULTURE
I
t should come as no surprise that most readers have a list of authors they consider to be both phenomenal writers and incredible individuals who challenge us to be better people. Near the top of my list is Ursula K. Le Guin, an American novelist best known for her groundbreaking works of science fiction and fantasy. I was deeply saddened to hear of her passing on January 22 of this year because I have long admired her indomitable spirit and lifelong opposition to the forces of corporate capitalism. In honor and remembrance of that spirit, I have chosen to review The Dispossessed, one of Le Guin’s most celebrated books in the science fiction genre.
his own revolutionary spirit.
This novel, a classic work of speculative science fiction, is the exploration of a society that practices anarchism. These days, the word anarchy evokes the idea of lawlessness, often associated with violence. But anarchism as a political theory actually refers to a state with no government, wherein the members of society organize themselves on a voluntary and cooperative basis. In this novel, Le Guin presents readers with two futuristic utopias, one anarchist and the other capitalist, and invites us to contemplate the moral questions involved in the creation and evolution of such vast social experiments.
Despite a publication date of 1974, this book has a timeless quality because it is about fundamental human problems. Even though these are alien cultures millions of lightyears away, the systems are recognizable, the power structures are very familiar, and the characters are unmistakably human and relatable. This is why one of the central themes of the book – capitalism and the struggle to own or be owned – still resonates in 2018. Le Guin’s questions of power, class, ownership, gender, and freedom continue to go unanswered by most societies today. In some societies, these questions are not even being asked.
The novel begins and ends on a moon called Annares, where a colony of anarchist revolutionaries has existed for 180 years. The original colonists failed to overthrow the capitalist government of Urras, a nearby planet, and were given the chance to migrate to Annares to establish their own anarchic society on the condition that no one ever returned to Urras. However, after nearly 200 years, the anarchic revolution has become complacent and centralized systems have gained power over the colonists. As a result, some members of the society have grown discontented and are now willing to break old taboos.
Although we have lost an important voice, we have not lost the spirit or wisdom of Le Guin. She will live on through her writing, and I hope she continues to inspire and encourage us for generations to come. We all have a responsibility to never stop questioning and to oppose those forces that are damaging to humans and the earth we inhabit. We should all be looking for our own revolutionary spirits. Perhaps you will find it in The Dispossessed. If not, I can guarantee you will find an incredible story.
The novel’s protagonist, Shevek, is one of these discontented individuals. He is an Annaresti physicist who has spent his life trying to prove that time and space are the same thing. In his pursuit of intellectual freedom, Shevek is driven to do the unthinkable: He accepts an invitation from a university on Urras in the hopes that he will be able to publish his theories there without restrictions. But the longer he stays on Urras the more profoundly he feels the effects of the State, the tempting call to ownership, and the awakening of
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What makes this novel so fascinating is the way in which the story is told. The chapters alternate between two periods in time. The first period details Shevek’s present-day voluntary exile to Urras and the linear progression of his experiences in the capitalist utopia. The second period looks backward, as Shevek recalls the past events of his childhood and young adulthood on Annarres. This structural choice sets a great pace for the book since each chapter reveals more not only about Shevek and his loved ones, but more importantly, about Annarres and Urras simultaneously.
And maybe you will add a new author to your list. THE AUTHOR
Kristy Dolson lived in South Korea for five years before taking a year off to travel, read, and spend time with her family in Canada and Australia. She holds a Bachelor of Education and has just returned to Gwangju where she splits her time between teaching Korean teachers at JETI and reading as much as she can. (Photo by Lisa Crone)
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Movie Review
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A Blast From the Past
Revisiting E.T. The Extra Terrestrial Written by Natale Ryan
E
.T. The Extra-Terrestrial may be one of the most personal blockbusters ever made. Inspired in part by director Steven Spielberg’s suburban upbringing and his parents’ divorce, the film tells the story of a suburban boy named Elliot, himself a child of divorced parents, who becomes the caretaker of a wise and gentle alien creature, stranded on Earth and desperate to find a way back to its home planet. It is the story of two lost souls, both longing for the comfort and security that only a true home and family can provide, who ultimately rescue each other through the power of love and friendship.
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THE AUTHOR
Natale is an English teacher in Mokpo. She is from Memphis, Tennessee, in the United States. She attended college in Jonesboro, Arkansas, and majored in criminology and sociology. In her free time, she enjoys watching scary movies and writing short stories. Her favorite movies are To Kill a Mockingbird, E.T., and Memento. Her heroes are Snoopy and Audrey Hepburn.
March 2018
Another aspect that distinguishes E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial from other alien “invasion” films dating back to the 1950s is the simple fact that the story’s alien actually does “come in peace.” This is a trait the film shares with Spielberg’s earlier feature, Close Encounters of the Third Kind. E.T. is portrayed as an intergalactic botanist, a vegetarian whose very touch can heal the wounded and bring dying plants back to life. The United States government agents are the villains of the piece. Their cold detachment and treatment of E.T. as a specimen to be studied stands in stark contrast to Elliot’s own psychic link and emotional attachment to the creature. Spielberg has said that the story was partially inspired by federal cuts to the space program at the time
The story of E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial is not entirely unique, reminiscent as it is of countless Disney or Children’s Film Foundation films that precede it. It is Spielberg’s direction, the intimate lighting and photography, and the design of the creature itself that truly distinguish E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial from the standard Saturday morning fare. Critical response to E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial was incredibly favorable, and the film would go on to earn the highest box office ratings of the 1980s, spawning both countless imitations and a wide array of merchandise, including an ill-fated Atari video game, the failure of which nearly bankrupted the company. Looking back, however, it becomes clear that the story of E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial is far too intimate to have inspired a thrilling video game adaptation. E.T. is simply a lost child, attempting to make it back home, a task that can only be accomplished through the love and friendship earned from Elliot and his family. E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial is a film that will long live in the hearts of those who see it, and a story that serves as a reminder that it is a small universe after all.
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Spielberg’s creative choice to position the camera from the point of view of the children in the film only adds to the intimate atmosphere. Even the film’s most sweeping cinematic moments, particularly Elliot and E.T.’s flight through the air on Elliot’s bicycle, which would go on to become one of the most iconic film sequences of the last forty years, possess a sense of innocent wonder that helps to distinguish the film from many of its louder and brasher contemporaries. Though it is a timeless story, E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial is also very much a product of its time, perfectly capturing the atmosphere of a suburban home and neighborhood in the early 1980s. This is evidenced by Elliot’s Star Wars figures as well as Gertie’s Speak & Spell educational handheld. Even the Reese’s Pieces that Elliot employs to lure E.T. into the house seem very much part of the era in which the film is set.
during which the film was made, and it is a film very clearly designed to inspire awe for the universe that surrounds us. Decades later, Spielberg would go on to produce a more standard alien invasion scenario with his 2005 adaptation of War of the Worlds, a film greatly inspired by the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Yet it is E.T. The ExtraTerrestrial that seems to best represent the director’s view of our place in the universe and the curiosity that has driven the human race to explore worlds beyond our own solar system.
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Community Board
Have something you want to share with the community? Gwangju News Community Board provides a space for the community to announce club activities and special events. Please contact gwangjunews@gic.or.kr for more information. UNESCO KONA VOLUNTEERS KONA Storybook Center (KSC) is a registered small public library supported by UNESCO KONA Volunteers (UKV). UKV is a registered organization that helps disadvantaged children to learn English independently through storybooks and story-maps. We guide the family and children to develop a love of reading storybooks in English. We also give guidance to volunteers in using storybooks. We are looking for longterm volunteers who desire to enrich their lives. We are asking volunteers to commit to helping at least once a month. For more information, please visit http://cafe.daum.net/ konavolunteers or our Facebook pages for KONA Storybook Center and UNESCO KONA Volunteers, or contact Kim YoungIm 062-434-9887, or email konacenter@gmail.com. VOLUNTEER TEACHERS NEEDED for the Gwangju UCC (Universal Cultural Center). Any levels of experience, English teachers here in the Gwangju area during 2018 can participate. UCC has a Facebook profile if you would like to see what kind of other services are available. To participate in the international cultural exchange programs, you may email peter.j.gallo@gmail. com, or phone or text 010-9490-4258.
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March 2018
GWANGJU FILIPINO ENGLISH TEACHERS (GFET) Every 3rd Tuesday of the month 10 am – 12 noon, GIC, Room 3 (2F) We are a group of Filipino English teachers in Gwangju who conduct regular accent training and lectures to help fellow English teachers to become better educators. PILATES/YOGA WITH VALLE GIC Hall, 1st Floor 7:00–8:00 pm, Tuesday 10:00–11:00 am, Thursday Facebook: Yoga/Pilates with Valle This is a weekly class appropriate for all levels on a donationbased level. GWANGJU INTER FC The Gwangju International Soccer Team (Gwangju Inter FC) plays regularly every weekend. If you are interested in playing, email gwangju_soccer@yahoo.com or search “Gwangju Inter FC” on Facebook. GWANGJU ANIMAL SHELTER VOLUNTEERING Every Sunday. Meet at The First Alleyway at 12 for brunch and carpool to the shelter.
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Walk dogs 1–4 pm. Please wear comfortable clothing. See you there! Facebook: Gwangju Animal Shelter Volunteering GIC ZUMBA WITH THANDO GIC Hall, 1st floor, GIC 7:00–8:00 pm, Thursdays Facebook: GIC Zumba with Thando Zumba is BACK at the GIC! It is a fun-filled cardio class that fits all levels, no experience needed. Dress comfortably and be ready to sweat. Also, bring along water and a towel.
I WANT TO FIND MY PARENTS/ ANY LIVING RELATIVES
Han Ok-hee in April 1969 (left) and present (right).
I want to find my parents or any living relatives. I was abandoned outside Gwangju City Hall on March 23, 1969. On the same day, I was taken to the Social Welfare Society (대한사회복지회) in Gwangju. My Korean name, Han Ok-Hee, was given to me by a social worker in Gwangju. I was adopted and went to Sweden on September 20, 1969, and am now 49 years old. If anyone has any information, please contact me in Korean or English. Your information can perhaps fill the missing parts of my sometimes wounded heart. All answers will be replied to. Contact info: Malin Bergström Jordgränd 16 19247 Sollentuna Sweden Email: malin.m.bergstrom@outlook.com
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Attorney Attorney Park’s Park’s Law Law Firm Firm We're ready to serve your best interests in legal disputes. We provide affordable consultation & representation.
▶ Areas of Specialty contracts, torts, family law, immigration, labor ▶ Civil & Criminal Attorney Park, Duckhee
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#402 Simsan Bldg, 342-13 Jisan-dong, Dong-gu, Gwangju Location: next to Gwangju District Court
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