Gwangju and South Jeolla International Magazine I October 2019 #212 Dr. Faida Thalib: Guest Speaker to Gwangju’s World Human Rights Cities Forum
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1 Gwangju & South Jeolla Intern ational Magazine
October 2019, Issue No. 212
Published: October 1, 2019 Cover Photo Dr. Faida Thalib
Photograph courtesy of Jember Regency, Indonesia
THE EDITORIAL TEAM Publisher Editor-in-Chief Managing Editors Production Editor Layout Editor Photo Editor Photographer Communications Proofreaders Online Editor Researchers
Dr. Shin Gyonggu Dr. David E. Shaffer William Urbanski, Karina Prananto Isaiah Winters Karina Prananto Sarah Pittman Kim Yunkyoung Park Min-young Elisabeth Loeck, Di Foster, David Foster, Joseph Nunez, Ynell Mondragon, Timothy Berg, Rhiannon Howell-Matwichuk Karina Prananto Baek Ji-yeon, Lee Younny
The Gwangju News is the first English monthly magazine for the general public 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 © 2019 by the 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.
For volunteering and article submission inquiries, please contact the managing editor at gwangjunews@gic.or.kr. Special thanks to Gwangju City and all of our sponsors.
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For our second feature, we take you to a village in Uganda to tell you the story of how Builders and Brainchilds is providing much-needed support to the village primary school. Our third feature brings us back to a “village” in Gwangju, the printing village, to tell us the story of why the village is shrinking and the presses are not clicking as loudly as they did in yesteryear. October 9th is Hangeul Day; we celebrate it this year by bringing back to you past contributions to the Gwangju News explaining the holiday and the creation of the exceptional alphabet that the Korean red-letter day is all about. And you can bone up on your Hangeul Day language at “Everyday Korean.” Thinking of traveling over this holiday, or any holiday? You might wish to consider the “Capital of Tamerlane” in Uzbekistan. Or you may wish to consider Prince Edward Island in Canada. We bring you the scoop and the sights of both of these secret spots. For a one-day trip, however, the Sunchang Fermented Food Festival just might be the “hottest” trip for you – read all about it! Interested in the sights and sounds (and tastes and stories) around the City of Light? Our piece on the Gwangju Bombers hits it out of the park! Our review of the Spanish-style restaurant Asador Bosky is lip-smacking good. Rather dine at home? Our recipe for sweet-and-spicy shrimp exemplifies how good things come in small packages. Read the interesting account of one expat’s culture shock experience upon his return to Gwangju. And read about the cinematic experience that our resident urban explorer had on his most recent return to the first multiplex cinema in Gwangju, now standing dormant in a decade of dust. The poetry of “March of the Beloved” is music to the ears; hats off to our Gwangju Writes piece “Lucky Number 7”; our photo essay is the cat’s meow; our Eddie Izzard book review is “jazz chickens.” We’ve also got up-to-date city news, Gwangju happenings, the photo of the month, this issue’s crossword puzzle, and a Korea TESOL interview. Enjoy!
David E. Shaffer Editor-in-Chief Gwangju News
October 2019
Registration No. 광주광역시 라. 00145 (ISSN 2093-5315) Registration Date: February 22, 2010 Printed by Join Adcom 조인애드컴 (+82)-62-367-7702
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s the ginkgo trees lining the streets of Gwangju contemplate turning their leaves to their distinctive yellow and drop their ginkgo nuts to the sidewalks below, Gwangju ushers in October with the opening of the World Human Rights Cities Forum. Our cover feature this month showcases a guest speaker at the Forum, Dr. Faida Thalib of Indonesia. With the theme of the Forum being “Local Governments and Human Rights – Reimaging Human Rights Cities,” this doctor-cum-Mayor of Jember is an excellent example of how a city can be transformed to benefit its citizenry most in need.
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The 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 Email: gwangjunews@gic.or.kr GwangjuNews gwangjunews
From the Editor
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Photo of the Month
www.gwangjunewsgic.com
October 2019
ARTS & CULTURE
By Sarah Pittman
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CONTENTS OCTOBER 2019 Issue # 212
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26
Builders and Brainchilds
A Cinematic Experience
Sunchang Festival
The Capital of Tamerlane COMMUNITY 28. Expat Living: Reverse-Reverse Culture “Shock” – Politics and Language 30. Meet the Gwangju Bombers
FEATURES 06. Interview with Dr. Faida Thalib Indonesian Mayor and WHRCF Guest Speaker 10. “Builders and Brainchilds” Supports Ugandan Primary School 13. The Gwangju Printing Village Is Dying
FOOD & DRINKS 32. Asador Bosky: A Taste of Spain in Bongseon-dong 34. Kkanpung Saeu: Sweet-and-Spicy Shrimp
BLAST FROM THE PAST 16. Hangeul Has Its Day
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ARTS & CULTURE 02. Photo of the Month 39. Gwangju News Crossword Puzzle 40. Photo Essay: Neighborhood Watch 44. Gwangju Writes: The Unifying Poetry of “March for the Beloved” 46. Gwangju Writes: Lucky Number 7 48. Book Review: Believe Me: A Memoir of Love, Death, and Jazz Chickens by Eddie Izzard
October 2019
TRAVEL 18. Lost in Gwangju: A Cinematic Experience 22. Around Korea: Korea’s “Hottest” Sauce Event – The Sunchang Fermented Food Festival 24. From Abroad: Prince Edward Island: A Step into Island Life 26. From Abroad: The Capital of Tamerlane
EDUCATION 36. Language Teaching: Interview with Korea TESOL 38. Everyday Korean: Episode 22 – 한글날 (Hangeul Day)
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MONTHLY NEWS 04. Gwangju City News 49. October 2019 Happenings 52. Community Board
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Gwangju City News Reprinted with permission from Gwangju Metropolitan City Hall Photographs courtesy of Gwangju Metropolitan City Hall
MONTHLY NEWS
The 2019 Gwangju Urban Design Forum
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www.gwangjunewsgic.com
October 2019
wangju Metropolitan City held the 2019 Gwangju Urban Design Forum on September 19–20 at the Asia Culture Center. This year was the third International Urban Design Forum held under the theme of “Gwangju, Rebranding (#RE_ BRANDING_GWANGJU)” to find innovative ways to advance the city. In particular, this forum was held in conjunction with the 2019 Gwangju Design Biennale to provide a variety of attractions and create a forum for exchange and communication where experts and citizens could join together. On September 19, the Urban Design Tour was conducted, starting at the Gwangju Follies art project to the 2019 Gwangju Design Biennale, Balsan Village, and Green Way to introduce and experience the various cultural identities of Gwangju. On September 20, the opening ceremony was held at 9:00 a.m. All talk sessions were held under the theme of urban rebranding, urban regeneration, and urban design. At each session , experts from the fields of domestic and international architecture, as well as from fields related to urban design, discussed urban designs in Gwangju.
Gwangju Vice Mayor Jeong Jong-je speaking at the Design Forum.
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Roads Around Asia Culture Center in Gwangju to Be Expanded
Gwangju to Improve Street Conditions for Pedestrians
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oads around the Asia Culture Center (ACC) situated in downtown Gwangju will be expanded in an effort to reduce traffic congestion. Gwangju City Hall recently announced plans to inject a total of 34 billion won into the budget between 2020 and 2022 for the expansion of Gwangsan-ro. Gwangsan-ro is the 215-meter-long section connecting Chonnam National University Hospital and the ACC. The project will expand the street, which is currently 12 meters wide, to 25 meters in width. Among the total budget amount, 13.4 billion won is expected to be allocated from the central government.
Gwangju Opens Emergency Childcare Center
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he Gwangju Emergency Childcare Center opened in September at the Gwangju Work-Family Balance Assistance Center (광주광역시 일가정양립지원본부) in Seogu. The center provides 24-hour childcare in cases of emergency for citizens with children aged 6–36 months. The price is set at 1,000 won for each hour between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m., and 3,000 won per hour from 6 p.m. to 9 a.m. the next morning. Bookings can be made on the Childcare Portal at www. childcare.go.kr for daytime service, and on the Gwangju Emergency Childcare Center website at gjicare.or.kr for nighttime services.
Gwangju’s Buk-gu Officially Opens Dementia Care Center
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he Sajik-dong area in Gwangju’s Nam-gu District will undergo a revitalization project. The Nam-gu District Office announced that the project will be conducted from this year to 2022 with 22.3 billion won being invested to cover the 98,700-square-meter area in Sajik-dong so as to create residential and cultural communities. Rental housing for local youth, newlyweds, and senior citizens will be built, while a new safety system and streets will be constructed. The project will also create cultural tour spaces aiming to invite residents to benefit from them.
Construction of Gwangju Subway Line No. 2 Begun in September
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wangju City Hall held a launching ceremony for the city’s second subway line on September 5, as it began the first stage of construction. The 41.9 kilometer-long circular line will be constructed in three stages with an investment of over 2.1 trillion won from the budget. The first section, which is to be completed by 2023, is 17.06 kilometers in length, and connects City Hall to Gwangju Station through Sangmu Station, Geumho Complex, World Cup Stadium, Baekun Square, and Chosun University. The second section of 20 kilometers from Gwangju Station to City Hall will connect Chonnam National University, Ilgok Complex, Cheomdan Complex, and Suwan Complex, and will be constructed between 2020 and 2024. The first two sections will then be connected, forming a circular line, with construction of the third section, a 4.84-kilometer-long branch line between Baekun Square and Hyocheon Station. Construction for the third section will begin in 2021 with the aim of being completed by 2025.
October 2019
wangju’s Buk-gu District Office officially opened its Dementia Care Center on September 16. The facility had been run by the District Health Care Center since December 2017 on a temporary basis, as the government pushed for a national dementia care scheme. The new space, which opened in Dongrim-dong, ran a test period from September 2nd. It provides early diagnosis services for adults older than 60, medicine support, and various other aid projects for patients. There are also 15 professional staff members at the center to provide tailored care services to patients and their families.
Gwangju’s Sajik-dong Area to Be Renovated
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For more information, contact the Center at 73 Sangmujayu-ro, Seo-gu, Gwangju. 광주 서구 상무자유로 73 (치평동) Phone: 062-613-7996 Website: http://www2018.gwangju.go.kr/woman/
wangju City Hall announced that it has secured 1.23 billion won in funding to improve street conditions for pedestrians and people with mobility difficulties. The funds will be mainly invested in installing safety fences, setting up unmanned surveillance devices in front of elementary schools, and enhancing traffic conditions around accident-prone areas. The plans have been set to aid prevention of traffic accidents and encourage people to abide by traffic laws.
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Interview with Dr. Faida Thalib
Indonesian Mayor and WHRCF Guest Speaker Written by Farida Mohammed
www.gwangjunewsgic.com
October 2019
FEATURE
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ream big, dream together” is a slice of the modus operandi by which Dr. Faida encourages herself and her community to invest in the development of human rights. Now the first female mayor of Jember, Indonesia, Dr. Faida had long been a leader in the medical community, providing charitable medical operations and acting as CEO of a family hospital. Through corresponding with Dr. Faida, it has become apparent that little of her energy is spent on the fear of limitations, and obstacles are celebrated as both a ritual of growth and rediscovery of female and human empowerment. Recognized as a member of the 100 Most Powerful Businesswomen in Indonesia in 2011, she has gone on to receive numerous awards for her contributions to the medical community and for her creativity. Dr. Faida will be a guest speaker at the annual World Human Rights Cities Forum in Gwangju from September 30 to October 3, which will be held at the Kim Daejung Convention Center. Given her amazing accomplishments and expertise in the medical community, public service, and humanitarian assistance, it was a privilege to get to know the woman behind the success, as well as to get her perspective on some pressing matters in human rights.
the obstacles began to come. I found out when entering the sixth year that there was an election for regional head (regent). At that time, I was rumored to have been a candidate for regent and, as a result, the humanitarian action I was carrying out was blocked. Annoyed by the hampering of my humanitarian activities, I began to think that if I had the authority as regent, then I could involve many people and mobilize many parties to help the wider community, not only the sick and poor, but also the unemployed in poor living conditions, as well as better-off residents. The position of regent did not interest me, but it was the authority as regent that attracted me to move forward as regent. The reward for one decision issued by a leader who is able to change the way of life of many people is better than 1,000 rak’ahs of the Sunnah [1,000 prayers].
Gwangu News (GN): You have an amazing story of women rising to power in fields traditionally dominated by men. Could you share some reflections about why you chose to get into politics, and what it was like making that change? What were some reasons that motivated you to move into the field of politics after a medical career, and what advice do you have for young women looking to follow in your footsteps? Dr. Faida: Life must be beneficial for many people. Humans are given two hands, one to help themselves, one to help others. In addition, friendship consists of ears that want to hear, hearts that want to understand, and hands that are ready to help. When entering the sixth year of humanitarian operations (cleft lip surgery, clubfoot, hedrocyphalus, hernia, polydactyllis, and hyphospadia),
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Dr. Faida promotes human rights for the disabled.
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▲ Dr. Faida (third from right) on one of her missions to promote religious tolerance in the area.
Dr. Faida: What is eternal in the world is change itself. Entering the digital era, women must be literate in technology and open their broadest horizons following the times. Women in this era of openness must master information technology. Alfin Toefler once revealed that whoever controls information will rule the world. Advances in technology will open the door to the widest possible world. Women must be pioneers and dare to be pioneers of change.
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Dr. Faida: As a candidate for regent of Jember, I promised the public that I would realize 22 work promises. Included among the twenty-two were initiatives to provide equal opportunity to the basic rights of education and health. These initiatives led to the realization of the One Village One Ambulance Program and the granting of 10,000 tertiary education scholarships with a total budget of around Rp 118 billion. I am grateful that we have been able to provide all neighborhoods with ambulances, totaling 248 vehicles, which provide free ambulance services to the people in the 31 subdistricts of Jember, whose population is around 3 million people. Now, the people of Jember can also study up to the tertiary level because free scholarships have been provided. As noted, there have already been 10,000 scholarships given out by the government of the Jember Regency to residents of Jember for living expenses and tuition fees. The scholarship recipients from Jember Regency go on to
October 2019
GN: We live in a world that is being increasingly shaped by rapid advances in technology. Could you share your perspective on where and how you believe communitybuilding meets technology?
GN: Can you share some information about Jember and the initiatives it has implemented at the city level to foster an environment supportive to the development of education and inclusiveness among different ethnic groups?
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Today’s women must dare to be pioneers. For me, the most important thing is that women have an equal opportunity to work. The main key to the advancement of women is in building self-motivation and fostering personal competence. In creating these conditions, all have the same opportunity. Men are indeed leaders in the family. But in the world of work, everything must follow the provisions and rules of the organization, where there is equal equality in career opportunities, both for women and men. Everything must be based on competency considerations.
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▲ Dr. Faida (left) and her family.
www.gwangjunewsgic.com
October 2019
study at various state and private universities throughout Indonesia. Scholarship recipients vary broadly across society: children of poor citizens, people with disabilities, orphans, children of pedicab drivers, children of Qur’an teachers, child survival cadres, construction workers, teachers, and those who generally excel, among others. There is still BKSM (Special Assistance for Poor Students) for 6,500 students and a free education program worth a total of Rp 7.8 billion. All have the same rights to getting proper education, both the rich and the poor. GN: You will be attending this year’s World Human Rights Cities Forum in Gwangju at a time when many cities are grappling with difficult human rights-related questions. What are you looking forward to in attending this year’s WHRCF, and what do you think is the value of such a forum at times like these? Dr. Faida: I think this year’s World Human Rights Cities Forum in Gwangju can inspire many people to equalize perceptions and take steps in realizing the fulfillment of citizens’ rights. Human rights are not only a matter of violence against humans, but rather the fulfillment of basic human rights, such as the need for education, health, and equal rights to work – for men and women,
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rich and poor alike. Also, obtaining equal access to public facilities for persons with disabilities, mothers, and children should be part of this fulfillment. GN: Jember is a city celebrated for its approach and initiative in the development of a human rights-friendly community. Could you talk more about the city’s history and how you participated in shaping it into the place it is today? Dr. Faida: During my time as regent of Jember, all community services have been sped up, and there has been no extortion. Enforcement of rules and eradication of corruption is really being carried out. The basic rights of the people are given without having to pay, such as free education, free health care, free residence certificate services, as well as free licensing. The Jember Regency also builds friendly human rights communities. The regent personally chooses officials to participate in human rights education and training in collaboration with the National Human Rights Commission. In the same class, there have been participants from NGOs and human rights activists. Starting from the alumni of this class, human rights communities from both government and society have been born.
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▲ Dr. Faida (front, second from right) with local children on the county’s festival.
GN: In light of your roots in Jember and your role as mayor, what observations and advancements has the city made over time in regards to inclusiveness and diversity that you are most proud of?
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The Author
Farida Mohammed is an English teacher, avid reader, and novice writer living in the Jeonnam region. Before Korea, she lived in Spain, where she taught English, and prior to that, she worked in the field of human rights and migrants’ rights in the U.S. She has a degree in political science, Spanish, and international relations, and her main fields of interest are immigration rights and sustainable development.
October 2019
Jember’s location on the map.
Photographs courtesy of Dr. Faida Thalib and Jember Regency
www.gwangjunewsgic.com
Dr. Faida: Jember now continues to improve, as it has been named a Human Rights-Friendly District. The Jember Regency makes policy through a regent regulation that requires companies to allot one percent of employment for people with disabilities, and this includes requiring that the construction of new buildings must be accessible to persons with disabilities. In addition, all public service facilities must be disabled-friendly. The Jember Regency also gives equal rights for citizens to worship according to their respective religions and maintains tolerance among religious believers, without distinction by race, religion, or ethnicity.
▲ Dr. Faida in one of her approaches to give free education for less fortunate families.
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FEATURE
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“Builders and Brainchilds” Supports Ugandan Primary School October 2019
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www.gwangjunewsgic.com
Written by Mary Abura
As the project coordinator, I spent the last week of the school term training the teachers at Akadot Primary
kadot is a land of bounty in Uganda interspersed with self-propagating tropical fruit. Though poverty is prevalent, people are joyful despite living off subsistence farming. Akadot Primary School has a staggering 1,048 students distributed amongst only nine teachers. One particular teacher is said to instruct over 200 students. What is more, Akadot Primary School also supports twelve other schools as the only examination center in the area. Therefore, the stakes could not be higher for ensuring the success of the current Akadot Primary School project, supported by the educational assistance provider Builders and Brainchilds.
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School on how to use the math and literacy educational boxes provided by R.I.C. Publications. The teachers found the material extremely helpful, as it supports the recent USAID-funded RTI (Response to Intervention) training they recently received. Our Builders and Brainchilds volunteers engaged in the following activities with the students: chess, learning the alphabet, sight word classes, graded readers, picture book reading, coloring and drawing, “Suspend” (a problem-solving and special ability builder activity), and soccer. The group successfully introduced baseball and volleyball to the school as well. While Builders and Brainchilds did well to partner with the GIC (Gwangju International Center) to supply stationery and literacy materials, we could not avoid a common pitfall of development. As they say, “Solving
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11 one problem inadvertently creates another.” USAID donated three metal boxes for storing the student and staff books, but the small four-foot-square room available, which serves as the staff room, does not have enough room to store all the books. In the absence of a storage container, the staff informed the team of the region’s infamous termite problem – they ravage through any unattended and unsecured wood (school benches) and paper (student books). In light of the anticipated shipment of more literacy material from the GIC, the staff offered an abandoned structure to store the material in. The headmaster said of this additional storage space, “It of course needs some reinforcement and plastering, but the books can be kept there,” as we sat under a large mango tree to discuss matters at the start of the week. While Builders and Brainchilds initially explored the possibility of raising funds to refurbish the abandoned structure, due to internal challenges within Akadot Primary School, a request will be made to Irish Aid to help refurbish the building. Irish Aid has a stronger footing in Uganda and has successfully built entire schools in the region with local contractors. Once the building is renovated, a literacy center is to be established there with the goal of children reading a new book each week. Two teachers will manage this program, reporting to Builders and Brainchilds periodically.
The author (third from left) with the staff at Builders and Brainchilds.
Here is some additional feedback from our volunteers. www.gwangjunewsgic.com
“In continuation, we have been able to identify some challenges. In class, I have realized that the pupils have a big challenge
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The author (right) and Maria Lisak organize the book donations from the Gwangju community.
October 2019
“I had a discussion with the teachers on issues pertaining to the long-term goals of the project and how best we could be of help in our absence. Looking back on the activities, we did engage with the students. I strongly believe it was positively impactful. The children learned new games and have been forthcoming in learning and reading the flash cards and storybooks, among other things. The materials do fit the situation at hand, and I am confident that this project will become a success.” — Mugisha Enock
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www.gwangjunewsgic.com
October 2019
A primary classroom in Uganda.
with reading texts, for example, short stories and simple words like names of animals, fruits, and other things that surround us. I think this problem is caused by a lack of reading materials. From my experience, I can tell that these pupils really have great potential, and if they had these writing and reading materials from the start, they would have now been at a level high enough to compete with pupils in Kampala, where everything is available to them (Kampala, being the capital, has better-provisioned schools). Furthermore, the ratio of pupils to teachers is too wide; this makes learning hard for the pupils and teaching also very hard for the teachers.” — Monica Mahitta
Going forward, to make such intervention educational projects possible, we hope to strengthen our partnership with the GIC in providing literacy resources. In the coming month Builders and Brainchilds is going to set up more platforms where Koreans and expats alike can donate directly to our community outreach projects. We are exploring the possibility of monthly subscription donations, as well as once off donations.
“They need to improve their grammar. Most of the children don’t know English because they are taught in their native language.” — Mutumba Ronald
After graduating with a Masters in Development Cooperation from Ewha Womans University in Seoul, Mary Abura hit the ground running: Builders and Brainchilds, an educational social enterprise, was founded. The mission at Builders and Brainchilds is simple: to build people and develop communities through education. Builders and Brainchilds is a dedicated group of education consultants working to improve selected Global South communities through education initiatives. After spending a year building a technocratic network, Builders and Brainchilds’ next phase is to expand their visibility and community.
The local partner organization for the Akadot Village Project of which the Akadot Primary School project is a part is Teso Professionals Enterprise Development Organisation (Teso PEDO). It facilitates and supports the coordination, implementation, and supervision of the Akadot programs, in addition to the establishment of economic projects for poultry and tree planting already earmarked in the region. All surviving alumni and supporters will be asked to pull together to make the Akadot Village Project a sustainable one.
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Photographs courtesy of Builders and Brainchilds
The Author
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The Gwangju Printing Village Is Dying
FEATURE
Paper on the feeder of a Litherone.
Written and photographed by Madeline Miller
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My first afternoon quickly turned into several days spent with three small business owners in Dong-gu. Each laughed as they explained that, of course, Korean and Californian printing are quite different, but my shock still came as no surprise to them. The local culture dictates a give-and-take that hearkens to Confucian ideals of community. It is best in the industry here to be a specialist – the specialist, if you can – for a specific machine or process, and rely on others around you to be experts of their specialty, machine,
October 2019
For those of you who may not know, the print industry is the backbone of almost everything you can see. From the labels on your fast food wrappers, to calendars you get and throw away at the start of every school year, to the instruction manuals you definitely do not read in the boxes of medicine handed to you in every pharmacy – we could not live in today’s world without print.
It should come as no surprise that Korea, too, relies heavily on its printing industry to function. But, to my surprise, Gwangju has a whole separate living entity in its “Printing Village.” Coming from a background of printers, with perhaps even a little ink in my blood, I always understood that it was better for your business to be a ways removed from your competition. So, cue the shock when I came to learn that Gwangju print shops actually intentionally gather together.
www.gwangjunewsgic.com
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alking through Gwangju on my albeit irregular commute through downtown, I have always been so curious about the familiar sounds and smells that seem to be coming from unfamiliar places. Just a few short steps away from the Asia Culture Center, on street after street you can hear the “clack-clack-clack” of offset1 presses running in the early morning. After poking about in places I probably did not belong, I was invited to spend the afternoon with a few experts in their field, known as pressmen.
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14 pieces, the printer will plan to make 1,200 pieces to allow for trial and error in the various stages of printing. After printing, sometimes the size of the product should be adjusted by cutting. The cutter’s job is exactly what it sounds like. Sometimes this just means cutting separate pages of a book apart, or perhaps creating an irregular shape for the finished product. Next may come binding, which has a wide variety of components. If pages need to be stapled together, or if there are some kind of stamps, die-cuts, or other decorative processes for the product after printing, it is done in the bindery. Lastly comes shipping and handling – this could include grouping and banding finished pieces together, packaging, and labeling. Gwangju’s Printing Village and my parents’ company differ the most in this area. The Printing Village shops deliver the finished product directly every time, so they do not typically need additional packaging. My parents’ company, though, often relies on shipping companies, in addition to the company’s drivers, because of how far each customer is from the shop. Gwangju print shops are typically close to the customer and thus handdeliver.
www.gwangjunewsgic.com
October 2019
Looking down the length of a Mitsubishi four-color offset press.
or process, to fill in your gaps. U.S. printing generally is a “one-stop shop” in which the company tries to fill as many steps of the process as possible, rather than selling a job to someone else, which puts the business in danger of losing some of the profit, as well as running the risk of making mistakes down the line you as the primary seller cannot control. The first step is to come up with a proof. This is the “ideal” for the finished product, like a template. This often includes a design phase, choosing colors, images, and text. Then the customers should request any changes they want to see by doing markups. Sometimes this is an incredibly quick process that involves using a computer wordprocessor, typing out some text, and printing immediately. Sometimes it takes some back-and-forth between the printer and the customer. The next step is the actual printing. If it is on a digital press, it does not take too much make-ready, but on a traditional press, this can take a lot of practice runs to make sure the alignment, colors, and air flow are just right. Usually there is a certain percent of “overs” – if the customer orders 1,000
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The major difference between the Printing Village and my experience in the U.S. print industry is that you have to turn over the job to someone else at each step of the process, but, somehow, that does not seem to interrupt the communication flow. As long as the proof is delivered to the next shop, too, there is less chance than I had expected of error or a dissatisfied customer. This co- and inter-dependence of experts in their tiny single-room factories led to the emergence of the Printing Village. The majority of the jobs in the 1970s and 1980s were centered around the Old Provincial Office because of the number of commissions relating to government materials. I was at first confused: Delivery seems to be fairly straightforward; what advantage was there to being so close? Could you not just send a truck with the finished job to the customer? My pressmen let me in on a little secret: Back in the day, he was a messenger, and in the winters running proofs back and forth between the Old Provincial Office and the shop was bad enough even in close proximity. Then, additionally, carrying the plates, proofs, or ink all the way across town, as a single-machine shop counting on another single-machine shop to finish a commission, would only compound the issue. In order to work together with other shops, and for the Old Provincial Office during the winter, print shops needed to be as close as cabin fever would allow.
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15 As is to be expected, the industry has faced many changes over the years. One of the major sources of work for Korean presses was textbooks and notepaper for schools and universities. As course materials have been sourced more and more from big publishing companies and office suppliers have taken over the notepaper market, our little print shops have had to focus more and more on the government jobs. Because of the advance of digital presses and laser printing, the whole process of proof-to-print is something you can see in a quick trip to the local copy shop – they may even have a tiny bindery where you can pay 10,000–20,000 won for a copy of a textbook and watch them do the whole thing. Granted, the quality is a little less than the original, but it is cheap and takes less than a couple hours. In fact, this is largely what is bringing about the slow death of the Printing Village. The pressmen told me that because the customer now cares more and more about speed than about quality (and perhaps cannot even see much of a quality difference), the “real” presses are becoming less valuable, and people are turning more and more to a copy shop to do that kind of work. While the Korean population is fond of sticky notes, labels, and other adhesive products that are also run through a press, the majority of these types of jobs, too, have been claimed by a much bigger company, mainly because they require several types of special equipment that most general printers would not traditionally be trained on or have the capital to buy in the first place. Cutters especially seem to have less work now than before. As there are more and more customers preferring digital print, products are coming in pre-cut sizes. A4 is
satisfactory for anyone walking into a copy shop, and most people can use a hand cutter for a small quantity. Things like calendars, large envelopes, and 500-page manuals for inhouse training are still printed regularly but are anticipated to phase out in the near future. Fliers for tourism, like the 2019 FINA swimming competition’s commission for maps, are keeping a work flow, but when asked about the future of the Printing Village and the industry at large, all three of my hosts told me spryly that they are the last of their kind but also do not plan to retire anytime soon. A special thanks to: Cheon Hong-gi (천흥기) at Cheon-il Printing (천일인쇄) Cheh Chun-shik (최춘식) at Seong-eun Cultural Printing (성은문화사) Pak Heong-ohk (박형옥) at Aju Printing (아주인쇄) Footnote 1 In offset printing, the design is transferred from the design plate made of thin metal, somewhat like a stencil, to a rubber blanket that mirrors the design, to the target substrate (typically paper or cardboard). It has been in use since 1875.
The Author
After living in Gwangju for four years and having studied Korean, Maddy Miller has a unique opportunity to find areas of particular interest that others may not have access to because of the language barrier. Luckily, the pressmen were nice to her; she can be a little pushy sometimes. A love of real books prompts her to do her part to keep the printing industry alive.
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October 2019
The main controls of a Litherone four-color offset press.
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www.gwangjunewsgic.com
October 2019
blast from the past
Hangeul Has Its Day Unlike Korea, few nations have a holiday celebrating their alphabet. In commemoration of this day and the Korean alphabet, we bring you a compilation of excerpts from two related articles appearing in the Gwangju News over the years. The contributions below are from “Hangeul Day” by Heather Douglas (October 2012) and “The Thorny Paths Hangeul, the Korean Alphabet, Traversed” by Dr. Shin Sangsoon (August 2004). — Ed.
recently, in 2009, Hangeul was introduced in the town of Bau-Bau on the southeast coast of Indonesia. It was reported by Korean media that many children of a minority Indonesian tribe were being taught Hangeul to transcribe their native language, Cia-Cia. Proud advocates of the program have continued to sing Hangeul’s praises and point to the contribution that this easy-to-learn, scientific writing system can make, not only to the CiaCia tribe, but to the world.
HANGEUL DAY October 9 is once again the time to honor one of Korea’s most famous inventions, the Korean alphabet Hangeul (한글). Hangeul Day is the annual recognition and celebration of the written Korean script, which consists of 24 characters: 14 consonants and 10 vowels. Hangeul Day was originally decreed a holiday in 1945, giving government workers the day off. Due to the intense pressure for longer work time, the legal status was changed from holiday to “commemoration day.” However, the Hangeul Society has successfully fought for Hangeul Day to regain its former status as an official holiday.
Hangeul Day is often marked by speeches, ceremonies, and songs – especially “Arirang,” a Korean folk song that is often dubbed the unofficial anthem of Korea. It is a chance to witness the pride that comes from a unique invention that has stood the test of time – the Hangeul alphabet.
Hangeul was created under King Sejong, the fourth king of the Joseon Dynasty, in the mid-15th century. During the period of Hangeul’s creation, only a small, elite segment of society had the resources to learn the classical Chinese language in its written form, which was Chinese characters, or hanja (한자) in Korea. King Sejong is often esteemed as the greatest king in Korean history because of his everlasting contribution to Korean society. Under Sejong’s rule, Hangeul was created to make the written language accessible to the illiterate masses. In fact, fastforwarding to many years later, Korea would become one of the most literate countries in the world. Outside of Korea, Hangeul is recognized around the world. This is a huge source of pride to the Korean people. In 1944, Hangeul was described by Discovery magazine as the most logical writing system in the world. Hangeul has even spread outside the boundaries of Korea. More
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THORNY PATHS For a country where the official written language and writing script had been Chinese rather than its indigenous language for centuries, the invention of a new, simpler, scientific, and easy-to-learn phonetic script should have been a blessing celebrated nationwide, irrespective of class or social rank. However, a group of Joseon-era scholars headed by Choe Manli petitioned King Sejong in 1442 objecting to the creation of the new writing system. The grand work of creating an authentic national script, nevertheless, continued and was completed in 1443, but it had to wait three years for its promulgation. There were pro-and-con arguments among the officials regarding the new national script, but fortunately, King Sejong’s sagacious leadership prevailed, and the 28-letter (now 24) Hangeul alphabet was finally promulgated in 1446. Hangeul’s original name was Hunmin-jeongeum (훈민정음), literally “the correct sounds to educate the people.” But the elite, who had been used to using Chinese characters, preferred to call it Eonmun (언문), “vulgar script,” or Amgeul (암글), “female script,” meaning “a script suited for women.” Amgeul was a derogatory term
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King Sejong, the creator of the Korean alphabet.
Hunmin-jeongeum: King Sejong’s proclamation of the Korean alphabet with the explanatory Chinese characters glossed in the Korean alphabet.
for both the script and women. This was at a time when Joseon was strictly following Confucian ethics, which included male predominance over women according to Confucian ethics. The ruling class, which was used to Chinese characters, naturally declined to acquire the new script. They were rather afraid of the enlightenment of the masses through literacy by way of Hangeul.
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Arranged by David Shaffer
October 2019
After Sejong’s death in 1450 and up until 1455, the court was drawn into a maelstrom of political intrigue surrounding the throne. This generated factional strife among the scholars who had collaborated in creating Hangeul. In such socio-political turbulence and in a society imbued with the use of Chinese characters,
EPILOGUE: THE UNWRITTEN SCRIPT Although Hangeul was created almost six centuries ago and although it was intended to make the masses literate and informed, it was not until the turn of the 20th century that Hangeul began to be widely used. In its infancy, Hangeul was used for a few government documents, and it was used to write the lyrics of a few Korean songs, but these works were all by the elite and for the elite. Realizing that the only way to continue to have an iron grip on power was to keep the masses uneducated, and that the only way to keep the masses uneducated was to suppress the learning of Hangeul, the Korean yangban (양반, literati) perpetuated the use of the difficult-to-learn Chinesecharacter script. But with the reformist movement of the 1890s and the appearance of the first Hangeul-only newspaper, Tongnip Sinmun (통립신문, The Independent), the Korean alphabet began its spread across the nation to contribute to giving South Korea one of the world’s highest literacy rates and to making Hangeul one of the world’s most celebrated of writing scripts.
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How King Sejong was engrossed in the creation of Hangeul can be seen by the fact that he had his two sons participate in the task, particularly in the task of collaborating with the royal academy of scholars commissioned by the king. In 1445, King Sejong had his scholars translate Yongbi Eocheon-ga into Hangeul. This was a collection of songs praising the founding of the Joseon Dynasty and the greatness of the royal court. In 1447, he had his second son translate Seokbo-sanjeol, the life story of Buddha, into Hangeul. Thus, we are aware of Sejong’s sincere efforts to make Hangeul an authentic national script.
establishing Hangeul as an authentic national script was a difficult thing to do.
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October 2019
TRAVEL
18 Lost in Gwangju
The Christie P35GPS projector and Sankor anamorphic lens in all their glory.
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1919
A Cinematic Experience Written and photographed by Isaiah Winters
F
or years, I’d had my eye on a huge abandoned cinema downtown that always seemed impenetrable. Every six months to a year, I’d revisit it in the hope that one of the dusty old doorknobs would finally turn, satisfying an itch over half a decade in the making. Nevertheless, after years of reconnaissance and repeat attempts, nothing ever budged – that is, until last month. On that occasion, desperate for a novel discovery, I revisited the old multiplex one more time just days before this article’s submission deadline and – ka-chink! – one of its doors finally gave way. Largely spared from vandalism and theft, the cinema was in terrific shape, with mostly dust and time to blame for its defects. The most recent movie posters included X-Men Origins: Wolverine and Watchmen, both slated for spring 2009, which showed both how long the cinema had been abandoned and just how long the movie industry has been relying on superhero movies (with no end in sight ten years later). Some of
the Korean films last advertised included the thrillers Private Eye (그림자 살인) and Insadong Scandal (인사동 스캔들), also from spring of that same year. As if these weren’t conclusive enough, a few calendars hanging around the cinema confirmed its exact time of death: April 2009. After snooping around a few of the projector booths with a friend, film strips soon turned up, one from The Simpsons Movie (2007) and another from a particularly explosive part of Wolverine. By far the most captivating find were the half-dozen movie projectors still in place. Draped with plastic to keep out the dust, the large Christie P35GPS projectors came with impressive Sankor anamorphic lenses from Japan. Given that the projectors were left sitting in complete darkness, they were hard to shoot, so my photos came out blurrier than usual. Still, the projectors and the rows of empty theater seats they overlooked were fascinating to see up close.
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October 2019
Film strips from 2009’s X-Men Origins: Wolverine soak up the incoming sunlight.
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20 As for the history of this cinema, a little online research revealed that it was actually the first multiplex theater in all of Gwangju, and its launch engendered the downfall of many older theaters in the area that simply couldn’t compete. That success, however, was short-lived once other multiplex theaters with even bigger names like Megabox, Lotte Cinema, and CGV came to town and set up shop in higher-density pedestrian areas. Thus, after just ten short years, Gwangju’s first multiplex cinema closed its doors for good. Though surprising, this process is recurrent in today’s Korea, with small shop owners pushed out by medium-sized chains that themselves get outcompeted by the country’s massive conglomerates.
Early storm clouds from Typhoon Tapah as seen from the rooftop. ▼
In addition to having what was probably the biggest Lotteria then in Gwangju, the cinema also
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October 2019
It’s worth emphasizing just how big a deal this cinema must
have been when it opened 20 years ago. It featured a two-story Lotteria that now sits exactly as pristine as the day it closed, if a little dustier. Specially branded as a “Hollywood Movie Star Lotteria,” it featured Hollywood Walk of Fame movie reel seals and movie poster décor that set it apart from any other Lotteria I’ve ever seen. The checker-tiled internal staircase and secondfloor eating area gave it a spacious feel that was at odds with its oldtimey chrome and red-cushioned diner chairs. It must have been an impressive sight two decades ago, though its days were similarly numbered from the start, as another fast food goliath made its debut in Gwangju not even a month later: McDonald’s.
What was once (and may still be) the biggest Lotteria in Gwangju, 20 years on.
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My friend Ryan Berkebile stalks the halls of Gwangju’s first multiplex.
▲ An ornately decorated Chinese restaurant occupies the cinema’s top floor.
The Author
Originally from Southern California, Isaiah Winters is a Gwangju-based urban explorer who enjoys writing about the City of Light’s lesser-known quarters. When he’s not roaming the streets and writing about his experiences, he’s usually working or fulfilling his duties as the Gwangju News’ heavily caffeinated chief proofreader.
October 2019
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In summary, this was intended to be the cinema to top all cinematic experiences in Gwangju, and yet it was a colossal failure. What it succeeded in doing was teaching me a major lesson in persistence, as years of darkening its doors finally paid off. It was also a stark reminder of just how quickly fortunes can
change after mammoth businesses wade into local economies. When I finally climbed to the rooftop to snap photos of Typhoon Tapah’s approach, I couldn’t help but draw parallels with economic storms that suddenly roll in and jolt local communities. I hope we’ll weather the next ones better than this cinema did. www.gwangjunewsgic.com
featured a large, ornately decorated Chinese restaurant on the top floor with access to an outdoor patio overlooking downtown and Mudeung Mountain. What’s more, it had a massage parlor, a wine bar, and an arcade still lined with bulky video game cabinets from the 1990s – all under the same roof. To top it all off, there was a swank underground karaoke club with lots of English gibberish adorning its walls, though one quote I found rather profound: “Everyone here is drunk on their special cocktails and their own importance.” I couldn’t have said it better myself.
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TRAVEL
22 Around Korea
Korea’s “Hottest” Sauce Event The Sunchang Fermented Food Festival
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October 2019
Written by Lea Moreau
T
his fall, let me introduce you to Sunchang, the city of gochu-jang (고추장, red chili pepper paste) – a city surrounded by beautiful nature and influenced by its long history of traditional sauce-making. Sunchang is particularly known across Korea as the birthplace of gochu-jang, and it has become the city’s speciality over the years. Every household in town makes its own sauce according to its age-old secret recipes. Each year, the city holds an annual festival to celebrate the harvest season and showcase all the different ingredients needed in the fabrication of Korean traditional sauces. It is a great place to discover not only gochu-jang but also different fermented products such as doen-jang (된장, soybean paste), gan-jang (간장, soy sauce), ssam-jang (쌈장, soybean-chili pepper paste), and cheongguk-jang (정국장, a soybean paste). The festival offers different activities
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under the theme of traditional sauces accompanied by diverse experiences and shows. It offers a huge variety of food selections across the entire Sunchang Gochujang Folk Village. The dress code is red, so participants are all encouraged to enjoy the festival in red clothes, rocking the gochu-jang fashion style. When you visit the village, you will be amazed to see traditional Korean jars stored in the backyards of each hanok, or traditional Korean house. Meju (메주, bricks of dried fermented soybeans), are often seen drying outside, giving you a reason to take out your camera. The 14th Sunchang Fermented Food Festival (제14회 순창 장류 축제) will be held this year for three days, October 18–20. The festival itself has been selected as a Culture and Tourism Festival for nine consecutive years by the
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23 Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, highlighting the importance of the festival at a national level to preserve and celebrate the cultural heritage of traditional Korean ingredients, including its well-known sauces. Participants can take part in cooking sessions, including cooking bibimbap using gochu-jang and eating tteokbokki (떡볶이, stir-fried rice cake). At the Gochujang Sauce Charcoal Grill Experience Zone, you can taste different types of meat cooked with gochu-jang sauces. Inside the Sunchang Fermented Sauce Cave will be a chimaek (치맥, chicken and beer) experience, a perfect event for hanging out with friends while enjoying chicken and beer in a cave that showcases the sauce fermentation process and a collection of international sauces. At the same time, the Sunchang International Fermented Sauce Expo will be held. The two events, held at the same location, will offer incredible opportunities to learn more about fermentation processes, taste local sauces, buy the products you most love, and have fun with a lot of different activities. The Sunchang International Fermented Sauce Expo is an exhibition that celebrates world-famous sauces, invites chefs to different sauce lectures called “food shows,” offers traditional alcohol tasting, and organizes a cooking contest and a Street Food Zone. This specialized event highlights each country’s unique food culture, sharing both cultural and economic values of such resources, and it includes sauces, dressings, spices, syrups, jams, oils,
and beverages. Kids can play in the outdoor playground, built especially for the occasion, that includes a tightrope, climbing experience, and zipline experience. Another fun activity to add on your list would be to visit the incredibly beautiful Gangcheonsan County Park by night! In fact, Sunchang County just launched this new project, offering visitors the opportunity to walk around the park while enjoying colorful light shows displayed near the Cheonu Falls, Byeongpung Falls, and Golashi Rock. This new attraction features fairy-tale characters and classic Joseon Dynasty stories cherished by children and adults alike. If you are seeking a fun getaway for the weekend or a chance to hang out with friends and family, then look no further – the answer is Sunchang. Photographs courtesy of Sunchang County
The Author
Lea Moreau is a French travel specialist currently based in Sunchang, Jeollabuk-do. She works with local government entities in order to develop tourism in the Jeolla provinces and actively promotes both Jeollanam-do and Jeollabuk-do on social media and TV. She has created two YouTube channels in order to share her passion for travel, while giving useful tips and advice. You can follow Lea on Facebook at Leadventure and on YouTube at Leadventure. For more information about Jeolla Travel, check out Lea’s other YouTube channel Jeolla Go.
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October 2019
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24 From Abroad
Prince Edward Island A Step into Island Life Written and photographed by Katy Ryan
TRAVEL TRAVEL
O
riginally from Memphis, Tennessee, I have always imagined retiring on the East Coast of the U.S. amongst quaint fishing villages and rocky beaches. The scent of salty air and seagulls has always been of interest to me. It reminds me of storybook settings and the picturesque town in Stephen King’s Haven. This summer, while visiting my boyfriend’s family abroad, I was surprised with an overnight trip to Canada’s famous Prince Edward Island.
Our first stop was in a tiny city center near the bridge. We were able to have a pit stop and then window shop for Green Gables trinkets, island crafts, and afterwards eat some delicious Cows Creamery ice cream. From there, we made the drive to Charlottetown. The drive, though long, was beautiful. The landscape was breathtaking, with its rolling hills, deep-green grass, and white cottages dotted between them. The mud on PEI is authentic red mud that is iron-rich and great for growing the island’s famous potatoes. Potato stands on PEI can typically be seen along the roads. They are unmanned, and there is usually a small basket for the customer to leave money in.
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October 2019
Prince Edward Island (PEI) was the inspiration for L.M. Montgomery’s famed Anne of Green Gables series. The story revolves around a fiery redhead who was mistakenly adopted from an orphanage in Nova Scotia. The series, consisting of eight books, encapsulates the adventures and successes of Anne. I became enthralled with the story when I was in middle school and never imagined that I would visit Green Gables farm. Before I knew it, we had driven from Fredericton to PEI and were at a tourist information
center, gazing at Confederate Bridge, which spans the Abegweit Passage. The bridge itself is massive and is actually the longest bridge over ice-covered waters in the world. The toll on the bridge is hefty – 45 Canadian dollars – but I think the price is worth it when the maintenance cost of the bridge is considered.
Beautiful coastline of Prince Edward Island.
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25
A miniature lego of the Green Gables house.
▲ Anne’s room at the famed Green Gables site.
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I highly enjoyed my experience on PEI. I wish that I had been able to stay longer and do more. Hopefully, one day I will visit again. I will always treasure my memories and experiences there. It is truly a beautiful place with friendly people. If it were not for the amount of snow in Canada, I would consider relocating to PEI! I want to encourage readers to research a vacation to the island. It would be something you would never forget!
The Author
Katy Ryan is from Tennessee in the U.S. She majored in criminology and sociology. She currently is a hagwon teacher who lives in Mokpo.
October 2019
The next day, we traveled to the famed Green Gables site. The scenery from the road was just as breathtaking, as I was able to see the sea from my car window. The Green Gables property is set behind a visitor center that has a gallery displaying a timeline of L.M. Montgomery’s life and the inspirations for her book series. There are book covers from around the world, gift shops, and a miniature Lego Green Gables house. The home is tidy and reminiscent of
the series. The rooms are set up to remind guests of certain occurrences in the book. For example, Anne’s room has the slate she broke, and the pantry is stocked with strawberry cordial. There is a path behind the house called Lover’s Lane that Montgomery would frequent when she was writing. The path is beautiful, with informative plaques and lookout decks. If you are ever on PEI, I highly recommend the Green Gables house, even if you are not a true fan. It is a step back into a life that once was. www.gwangjunewsgic.com
Charlottetown itself is a small and cozy city. It is home to the University of Prince Edward Island, the Government House, and beautiful Victoria Park. Unfortunately, the weather was unusually hot for PEI when I arrived, and the heat prevented us from seeing everything. I was told that typically the weather, accompanied by a sea breeze, is usually cool and refreshing. That night, we were treated to a showing of Anne of Green Gables: The Musical at the Confederate Center of Arts. The musical has been performed since the 1960s and is considered the crown jewel of The Charlottetown Festival, a celebration of Canadian performing arts. In my opinion, the show was amazing! The entire cast was vivacious and engaging. At times, I felt overwhelmed with the emotions that the characters displayed. I would highly recommend the musical; tickets can be purchased in-person or online. The cost is typically around $30 (Canadian).
▲ A Korean version of the Green Gables, published in 1995.
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26 From Abroad
The Capital of Tamerlane Written and photographed by Cami Ismanova
R
ight in the heart of Central Asia stands a magnificent city known as the “Capital of Tamerlane,” or Samarqand. Its name comes from the Old Persian words asmara (stone, rock) and sogdian qand (fort, town). It means “stone fort” or “rock town.” Known as Maracanda in the 4th century B.C.E., it was the capital of Sogdiana, located on the territory of modern east-central Uzbekistan. Throughout its history, Samarqand was captured by
Alexander the Great, then later ruled by Central Asian Turks, the Arabs, the Samanids of Iran, and subsequently destroyed by the Mongol conqueror Genghis Khan. After the revolt against the Mongols, Samarqand became the capital of the Timurid Dynasty. Timur (also known as “Tamerlane”) made Samarqand the most important economic and cultural city in Central Asia. Samarqand played a crucial role in linking China and the West via the Silk Road. During the reign of Tamerlane and his descendants, Samarqand thrived. They built madrassah, mosques, city squares, and other impressive monuments of medieval architecture. Bazaars (traditional markets) were full of silk, gold, silver dishes, various fabrics, well-bred horses, and products of local and foreign craftsmen.
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October 2019
TRAVEL
We travel not for trafficking alone; By hotter winds our fiery hearts are fanned: For lust of knowing what should not be known We make the Golden Journey to Samarkand — By James E. Flecker
Minora or minaret of the Gur-E-Mir.
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27 travel to Samarqand from Tashkent (the capital of Uzbekistan) by airplane, train, car, or bus. If you prefer to get to your destination quickly, you should book a direct flight from Tashkent to Samarqand. On the other hand, if you want to see how the nature and suburbs of the country look, you should book a train ticket (the journey will take around 4.5 hours).
▲ Inside the Tamerlane’s mausoleum where walls are covered with golden ornaments.
In 1500, the city was conquered by Uzbeks and became a part of the Khanate of Bukhara. By the 18th century, the city declined and lost its economic power in the region. A virtual ghost town, it lay uninhabited for 50 years from 1720 to 1770. However, it had a chance to recover after it became a provincial city in the Russian Empire. Railroads, new infrastructure, and administration saved it from oblivion. Now Samarqand consists of an Old City (“Eski Shahar”) and a New City (“Yangi Shahar”). The city is a historical and cultural hub of Central Asia. It carries the inheritance of so many different cultures and nations. Samarqand was named the “Crossroad of Cultures” by UNESCO in 2001, and the city now attracts tourists from all over the globe. According to the local Department of Tourism Development, in the past twelve months, 1,560,000 locals and 239,000 foreign tourists visited Samarqand. Here are some trip tips you ought to know when you decide to visit sunny Samarqand, Uzbekistan.
Secondly, you should know that attractions like “Gur-e-Amir,” “Shakh-iZinda,” and “Bibi-Khanum” happen to be mausoleums and mosques, which require a certain dress code, for locals take those places seriously. This is not an absolute requirement, but I assure you that local people will appreciate your respect for their culture.
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The Author
Cami Ismanova is a student at Chonnam National University majoring in economics. She writes poems both in English and Russian as one of the ways to express herself. She also loves traveling around and reading classics.
October 2019
Thirdly, as for expenditures, it is more convenient to use cash both at the attractions and at bazaars. You can exchange your money for the local currency (Uzbek som) at any bank (during working hours, typically 9:00– 18:00). Also, hotels are pretty affordable in Samarqand. You can book an enormous room with all the facilities for around US$22 per night. Tickets to many attractions can be bought for less than US$3. In addition, you can
In conclusion, Samarqand is a magical land of historical wonders and a crossroads of cultures that carries the inheritance of all nations that resided there. It is a must-see destination for anyone visiting Central Asia.
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First of all, planning when to go is the most important part of your preparations. This is because of the continental climate in Uzbekistan, with very hot summers and extremely cold winters. I would not recommend you visit Samarqand during the summer and winter seasons. The best choice is to go during spring or autumn when the weather is nice and warm, and all bazaars are full of goods.
The must-visit attractions in Samarqand are “Gur-e-Amir,” “Registan Square,” “Bibi Khanum Mosque,” “Shaikh-i-Zinda,” “Afrasiab Settlement,” and others. “Gur-eAmir,” which is literally translated as “The Grave of Emir,” is the mausoleum where many rulers of the Timurid Dynasty were buried, including Tamerlane himself. The walls of the mausoleum are decorated with gold and silver, making the whole place absolutely gorgeous. It offers displays showing Tamerlane’s life history. “Bibi Khanum,” the beautiful mosque, is known for being enshrouded by legends and tales of Tamerlane and his favorite wife. The yard is a peaceful place to spend time in under the shade of trees. Each place has this calm, royal atmosphere that surprisingly demonstrates not only the lives of members of the dynasty but also the lives of ordinary folks.
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Reverse-Reverse Culture “Shock” Politics and Language Written by Caleb Sekeres
www.gwangjunewsgic.com
October 2019
COMMUNITY
W
hen I first left the United States for Korea in 2008, I told myself that I wanted to travel more. It was not about a job or money, though of course both were necessary; rather, it was about experience. I wanted “out” of my routine – out of my familiar life – and, honestly, out of America. I had experienced 9/11 while starting a theatre company in lower Manhattan (a traumatic influence) and had become disappointed in my country’s president (and leadership), in addition to becoming exhausted by work and life. I wanted change. After comparing opportunities abroad, I chose Korea, mainly because it looked beautiful. I went to teach English at a hagwon (학원, private institute) in Chuncheon, in Gangwon-do. That first year, I traveled throughout the country and studied the language as planned, and after my contract ended, I decided to remain. The experiences I had gathered were more interesting than I had expected, and I could accept the challenges of living in a foreign land. A friend recommended I come to Gwangju, and I secured a position at Chosun University, where I worked for seven years. My initial culture shock in Korea slowly faded away, especially with the help of my girlfriend, whom I married. We started a family in Gwangju, and I settled into my Korean life rather happily, traveling within Korea and internationally. Then suddenly, because of my father’s death, I re-evaluated priorities, and my family and I moved back to America to Providence, Rhode Island, ostensibly so that my two young children could get to know their grandmother and extended American family. Time is unforgiving, and sometimes decisions are made for you. My wife and I have talked frequently about cultural differences, and I undoubtedly experienced reverse culture shock upon returning to my hometown and my
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home country. In spite of having a job lined up thanks to my oldest friend, it was a difficult transition. The United States’ political landscape had changed enormously, and many people were surprised that I had “decided” to return during a period of such political divisiveness. Even in the city I had grown up in, I found life disorienting, and sometimes I had difficulty finding the words to express myself in English. I had lost some of my native language ability! In addition, simple tasks like driving, ordering food, finding Wi-Fi, cultural expectations, all manner of daily tasks, and bureaucracies are handled in different ways in America. It took time to get our children enrolled in daycare and to find a home to “settle” in, but the truth is that I never felt settled. I am also, by nature, a restless person. Our plan was to spend three to five years in the United States and return to Korea. Well, here we are, back in Korea after three years in America. For me, the decision to come back was easier than for my wife, who had a fresh perspective on her independence in America. I, on the other hand, had had an unexpected medical emergency and felt trapped in my home country for the final three months, unable to leave. So after a long recovery, I was ready to return to Korea. We have been back since late August 2019. My children had adjusted to life in the United States with relative ease, and the truth is that they have seemingly readjusted to life back in Korea without a problem. They are enrolled in daycare and enjoying it. They have also spent time with extended family and friends (during Chuseok and on playdates), and the typical worries that (international) parents have for their children, of language struggles, cultural faux pas, and potential bullying, have dissipated. A common saying that “children are like sponges” regarding language acquisition, and the idea that children adjust to change more easily than adults, seem to be true for my family. Perhaps for them, other than
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29
Downtown Providence, Rhode Island. (Photo by Kenneth C. Zirkel)
Gwangju at night. (Photo courtesy of Gwangju City Hall)
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The shock for me, so far, is that there has been none!
The Author
Caleb Sekeres, an artist and educator, has lived in Korea for over eight years. He has recorded and released original CDs as a pianist and singer, performed off-Broadway and in Korea, and taught students from elementary through university. He lives in Gwangju with his family.
October 2019
While I have lost a good deal of Korean language ability in three years and must be thoughtful when choosing how to communicate, there has been virtually no reverse-reverse culture shock for me either. I have had to rely on my wife for assistance with some daily tasks, such as turning on the thermostat and washer to the correct settings, interpreting certain words when ordering and buying products, and asking for help at the community center, but I consider these to be minor issues and not out of the ordinary. I can travel where I need to go, communicate most of what I need to, and am able to live my life, so far,
without feeling alienated in a foreign country. Readjusting to life in a large city like Gwangju (Providence, Rhode Island, is a city of approximately 200,000 people) has not been intimidating, perhaps because I lived here for many years and have a network of family and friends that is very supportive. It has been easier than expected to navigate the daily “politics” of language and culture.
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missing friends and family in the United States, there is no reverse-reverse culture shock. That may change when my older son enters elementary school and must deal with the Korean language in a more intense way, but for now they seem happy. They are, after all, Korean.
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www.gwangjunewsgic.com
October 2019 SPORTS & ACTIVITIES COMMUNITY
30 30
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31 31
Meet the Gwangju Bombers Written by Joel Klimas
T
he Gwangju Bombers baseball team is now finishing its sixth official season in the city, although the team did exist in an unofficial capacity for a bit prior to then. The team has played in a few different leagues throughout that tenure, including a year in a league in Naju, but has mostly played in Gwangju in the Cheomdan area because the majority of fields in the city are gathered there beside the river. The team usually plays games on Saturdays from the first week of March until the end of September. On average, we will end up with about 15 registered players every year with one volunteering to be the coach for a two-year stint. We have, throughout the team’s existence, had the benefit of a sponsorship from Tim Whitman and his restaurant, The First Alleyway. In fact, if you look to the right of the bar area in The First Alleyway, you can see some Bombers memorabilia on the wall, as well as our very own trophy shelf, which has slowly been filling up.
Off the field, the team also enjoys a lot of time together. During the season, we do monthly team dinners at
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You can also meet Remy “No Sleeves” Warren, our resident right fielder who unfortunately suffers from the inability to wear shirts with sleeves on them. Sadly, modern medicine has not yet offered any relief for his condition. You would also find yourself in the close company of Robert Sproule, the retired coach and allaround stand-up guy. Also, there is James “What Time is the Game” Gardener, Jeff “The Hammer” Hamilton, and myself, Joel “The Coach” Klimas. We all have a lot of fun and welcome anyone in the community who would like to play baseball and possibly earn a new nickname. Photographed by Jackie Choi
The Author
Joel Klimas is an American living in the city of Gwangju. He has been in the country for eight years and in this city for five. He enjoys playing baseball and being active in the foreign community.
October 2019
Most of the players have families and look forward to Saturdays to get out of the house and enjoy the comradery of sport and hang out with friends. In truth though, it is a competitive team. Guys work hard to improve their skills and play at a top level to win. However, the team has players of all skill levels and anyone, regardless of ability, is encouraged to join the team for the love of the game.
If you do show up to play a game, you will most likely meet guys like Justin “Long Ball” Gunn-Taylor, who won this year’s league homerun championship with nine, three of which came in just one game. Then there is Jackie “Hollywood” Choi, who works off the field to get the team organized within the league. On the field, he continually finds ways to keep the bench laughing with his antics on the base pads. There is also Ian “The Workhorse” McCloud, who is both the starting pitcher and backup catcher, and who will literally play every position on the field throughout the season. Not to be outdone is Jimmy “Wheels” Harris, the lead-off hitter, starting shortstop, stolen-base leader, and not-halfbad guitarist to boot.
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All in all, being on the team is a great way to socialize, get some exercise, and play a sport that most guys grew up playing when they were younger but found little opportunity in their adult life to play again. The team consists of foreigners as well as Koreans and plays against other Korean teams in a ten-team league division.
The First Alleyway and other events, like cornhole tournament BBQ’s and trips to watch the Kia Tigers. I would highly encourage anyone who enjoys the game of baseball and would like to get on the field to consider joining. Just look up the Bombers Baseball Team Facebook group and send a message.
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FOOD & DRINKS
32 Where to Eat
Bosky by day.
www.gwangjunewsgic.com
October 2019
The eggplant is muy bueno.
Bosky by night.
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The inside: cozy and classy.
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33
Bosky
A Taste of Spain in Bongseon-dong Written and photographed by William Urbanski
F
rom Ricky Martin to the Macarena, the cultural exports of Spain are virtually innumerable. And while French and Italian cuisine usually get a lot of shine in Korea (and rightfully so because they are amazing), Spain is perhaps the most overlooked European country in terms of gastronomy. Beyond soccer and the occasional separatist movement, Spain and its beautiful culture remain relatively unknown in Korea. Asador Bosky, a new restaurant in Bongseon-dong, is more than a restaurant in this respect: It is a cultural bridge, showing that Spain is more than just a country of party islands and bullfighting. Originally, we intended on visiting “Bosky” over the Chuseok weekend, but fortune, my constant enemy, thwarted my plans yet again. While walking up to the gorgeous, wood-panelled doors, my wife and I both exclaimed “¡Ay, caramba!” in unison as we saw that the restaurant was closed. While I would have normally just shrugged my shoulders and gone home to a cup of ramen, we were with friends and ended up going to some joint that served BBQ octopus or something. A taste of Spain would have to wait.
After taking a seat, I looked in my wallet, frowned, and then ordered something on the menu with the number
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Something to keep in mind with this restaurant is the operating hours. In Spain, as in much of Europe, people tend to eat dinner quite late, often at 9:00 or 10:00 p.m. Keeping with this tradition, Bosky does not open until 5:00 p.m. and takes its last orders at midnight. Bosky is easy to find, just steps behind the E-mart in Bongseondong. You can go anywhere and get something to eat. What Bosky offers is more than just food in your stomach – it offers a dining experience. Hasta la vista, Bosky.
The Author
William Urbanski, managing editor of the Gwangju News, has an MA in International Relations and Cultural Diplomacy. He is married to a wonderful Korean woman, always pays cash, and keeps all his receipts. 아사도르바스키 ASADOR BOSKY t Daily, 5 p.m. – 2:00 a.m. P Hyosarang-gil 12, Nam-gu, Gwangju 광주 남구 효사랑길 12 À 062-654-3990
October 2019
Regarding the price, I would definitely say that Bosky falls under the category of “special treat” restaurants. A meal for two including tapas (appetizers) would definitely run upwards of 50,000 won, not including any kinds or drinks. So if you are looking for pure quantity at a cheap price, this is not the place. But, if you are looking for a romantic night out with a special someone, or just a very nice place to enjoy a classy dinner with some friends, Bosky has you covered.
Speaking of the regular menu, a big feature is the selection of tapas, a Spanish specialty. The other highlight is the “wood fire” section, which has all sorts of meat and squid dishes. If that does not make your bull run, there are also some pizzas and pastas. And of course, there is a wide selection of fancy wines.
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A few days later, a short window of opportunity opened up for us to try again. After work, I walked over to Bosky and was relieved to see the “open” sign. Upon entering, I was pleased with the tasteful decorum and was struck by how fancy yet accessible it seemed. Bosky is quite a small restaurant, which gives it an “exclusive” feeling for the diners.
nine beside it. I was not even sure what I had ordered until something resembling a flat pancake with bingsu (빙수, ice flakes with syrup) on it was placed on my table. It ended up being eggplant topped with finely shredded cheese. It was sweet yet savory and left me wanting more; overall amazing, and a welcome change from the sandwiches and ice cream that comprise my regular diet. If the eggplant was any indication of the overall quality of the rest of the menu, then it would definitely be worth coming back for a full and proper meal.
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www.gwangjunewsgic.com
October 2019
FOOD & DRINKS
34 Korean Recipe
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Kkanpung Saeu Sweet-and-Spicy Shrimp Written by Joe Wabe
O
ctober to November is the shrimp season in Korea, so it’s the perfect time to find good shrimp at a good price everywhere. There’s even a big shrimp festival that’s been held since 1907 on the west coast at Namdang-hang Port, which draws many visitors every year from early September to mid-October. To celebrate this season, I’ve put together this delicious recipe for sweet-and-spicy shrimp, or kkanpung saeu (깐풍새우). Kkanpung is the Koreanized pronunciation of the Chinese for “stir-fry,” and saeu is “shrimp” in Korean.
Chinese cuisine is known to have developed near the port city of Incheon during the 19th century, where a large population of ethnic Chinese lived.
Although it’s not traditional Korean cuisine, being instead more of a Koreanized Chinese cuisine, it’s quite popular among food-lovers. Its taste resembles the taste of tangsuyuk (탕수육) the popular sweet-and-sour fried pork served in most Chinese restaurants. Korean-
Joe Wabe is an established photographer and Gwangju local business entrepreneur. He has been contributing to the GIC and the Gwangju News for more than eight years.
Ingredients
Preparation Clean and devein the shrimp, then let it sit and dry. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. In a bowl, add the starch and eggs and mix them well. Next, add the shrimp to the batter and coat it evenly. In a deep fryer or large pot, deep-fry the shrimp until golden. Deep-fry in smaller batches to allow more space, and remove and drain when necessary. You can fry the shrimp a second time if you want it extra crispy. In a small bowl, prepare the sauce by adding the soy sauce, oyster sauce, brown sugar, vinegar, lemon, rice wine, anchovy sauce, and sesame oil. Mix it well and let it sit. In a large frying pan with a little bit of oil, start by sautéing the red and green pepper first, then add the rest of the vegetables. Once they are sautéed to a golden color, add the already-made sauce and let it cook for a couple of minutes until it thickens a little. Next, add the shrimp and stir until the sauce is almost absorbed. Finally, turn off the heat and serve.
October 2019
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1/2 kilo of shrimp (about 20) 4 small, dried, red hot peppers 5 sliced garlic cloves 1/2 red bell pepper 1 chopped green chili pepper 1 small, thinly sliced ginger root 1 chopped green onion 1/2 chopped onion 2 tablespoons of soy sauce 2 tablespoons of oyster sauce 3 tablespoons of brown sugar 2 tablespoons of vinegar 1 tablespoon of lemon juice 2 tablespoons of rice wine 2 tablespoons of anchovy sauce 1/2 tablespoon of sesame oil 8 tablespoons of potato or corn starch 1 egg salt and pepper frying oil
The Author
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• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
(Serves 4)
This recipe is good to serve as a side dish, and for those who don’t like spicy food, it can be adapted as a nonspicy dish. Now that the weather has gotten much cooler, this exotic and colorful dish is a good way to prepare for Korea’s beautiful autumn foliage.
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36 Language Teaching
Interview with Korea TESOL Interview by Dr. David E. Shaffer
www.gwangjunewsgic.com
October 2019
EDUCATION
For this article in the Korea TESOL column, the editor-in-chief of the Gwangju News thought that it would be an interesting idea to interview himself as the president of Korea TESOL. Herein are the results of that undertaking. — Ed.
G
wangju News (GN): Good day, Dr. Shaffer – “Dave,” if I may. I have so many things I want to ask you about KOTESOL and about Korea, but before that, I would like for you to tell our readership a little about yourself. Korea TESOL President (KOTESOL): Well, I am originally from western Pennsylvania in the U.S. After studying education at the Pennsylvania State University, I volunteered for the U.S. Peace Corps and ended up here in Korea in 1971. I taught vocational education at the government-run vocational training center in Gwangju. After leaving the Peace Corps four years later, I moved across town to Chosun University (a mere walk back then). I spent the remainder of my teaching career at Chosun, getting advanced degrees in linguistics and getting married and raising a family along the way.
GN: Life in the home and in the community certainly has changed. What about in the classroom – what changes have you seen in English education in your time here? KOTESOL: We must remember that back then, Korea was still in recovery mode from the devastating Korean War, so resources were scarce. A typical classroom at my university had rough wooden desks and chairs, a blackboard, chalk, and an eraser. No heating, no cooling – that is why Korea has long winter and summer vacations. Public school classrooms, however, did have a coal-briquette space heater in their center. If your seat was near, you could feel the heat. Educational materials were extremely limited, often consisting of a single textbook for a single course. There were no English lessons on radio or TV, and Internet had not even entered the English lexicon. When audio cassette tapes did become available, the sets of tapes were so exorbitantly priced that many families could not afford them. English study then began in middle school, and middle school teachers made their own visual aids. Public school teachers had very little training available to them other than the undergraduate schooling that they received, and very little
GN: 1971?! That was almost a half century ago! You must have seen quite a few changes in Gwangju and Korea since then. KOTESOL: Oh, yes, changes for sure. Gwangju was much smaller in area, and the population was only one-third of what it is today. Transportation was much slower and much less comfortable. The main road from Jeonju to Gwangju, for example, had no tunnels and was only a lane and a half wide – all unpaved, all bumpy. Gwangju had no apartment buildings when I came. I stayed in a hasuk-jip (하숙집; one room in a single-story home with board). Houses had no indoor plumbing, just a single spigot or hand-pump in the communal wash area. Electricity was iffy; it could go off anytime for any length of time. It was used mainly for lights; the average household had no refrigerator, no telephone, no television. What did people do for entertainment? There were three options: go to a tearoom, go to a movie, or go drinking.
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▲ Dr. Shaffer at the Korea TESOL National Conference in 2017.
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37 of that was related to improving their language skills. The grammar–translation method was still in its heyday. Inservice training was not yet a realized concept, though over the years, it has come to contribute considerably to English teachers’ professional development. GN: What about KOTESOL – what was it like in the early days? KOTESOL: There was no teachers’ organization for the average English teacher early on. When I began my master’s studies, I joined the two organizations that our English faculty belonged to: LSK (Linguistic Society of Korea) and ELLAK (English Language and Literature Association of Korea). There was a third, less known organization of college English professors, now known as KATE. KOTESOL per se did not come into existence until 1992–93, but its predecessor AETK (Association of English Teachers in Korea) had been operating mainly in the Seoul area since the early 1980s. Information on an English teachers’ association that included expats did not filter down to the Gwangju area until Park Joo-Kyung (now a professor at Honam University) returned from a 1992 Jeonju conference with news that KOTESOL was forming. In order to establish a KOTESOL community in our area, she asked me to join. The result was that the “Cholla Chapter” became KOTESOL’s first. Regional chapters quickly formed from the north to the south of the nation. KOTESOL held its first national conference within its first year after birth. Its first publication, a journal-cum-newsletter, came even faster, followed by full-fledged journals, conference proceedings, and newsmagazines. Likewise, membership grew quickly, partially due to the dearth of information available on teaching materials and teaching techniques.
GN: Awesome. I wish we had more time to discuss more. KOTESOL: It has been my pleasure. Thank you for this unique opportunity!
The Author
David Shaffer, as president of KOTESOL and a member of the KOTESOL conference committee, invites you to attend the 2019 KOTESOL International Conference and consider joining KOTESOL. As vicepresident of the Gwangju-Jeonnam Chapter of KOTESOL, he invites you to participate in the teacher development workshops at their monthly meetings. Dr. Shaffer is presently the board chair at the Gwangju International Center and also editor-in-chief of the Gwangju News.
GWANGJU-JEONNAM KOTESOL MONTHLY MEETING Date: October 26 (Saturday) Place: Gwangju National University of Education • Super-SwapShop Session: Share with the group your (a) international conference take-aways, (b) Halloweenthemed activity, and (c) general ELT activity, teaching idea, etc • Halloween-themed after-meeting party For full event details: Website: http://koreatesol.org/gwangju Facebook: Gwangju-Jeonnam KOTESOL
October 2019
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GN: What would you consider to be KOTESOL’s major accomplishments during you tenure as president? KOTESOL: Well, I can say that KOTESOL is as vibrant as ever – at both the national and chapter level. Our recognition is expanding: We have developed additional partnerships with both domestic and international ELT associations. Our areas of concern are widening to include not only ELT techniques but additional concerns that affect the learning environment, such as inclusivity and privacy issues.
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GN: And KOTESOL today, how does it differ from the other English language teachers’ associations across the nation? KOTESOL: There are now over a dozen English teachers’ associations that are national in scope, and they are nearly all identical in that they consist of an executive board, organize an annual conference (or two), and publish an academic journal. KOTESOL has all these, but operates in English and is a more expat-friendly organization. What distinctly sets KOTESOL apart from the other ELT associations is our network of regional chapters. The chapters have monthly meetings and annual conferences with presentations on all things ELT (English language teaching), led by KOTESOL members or others in the ELT community. Chapter events create opportunities for members to get involved in leadership roles. In addition, KOTESOL has a number of special interest groups (SIGs) focusing on topics from classroom management to reflective practice to women and gender equality.
GN: I hear that you have a conference coming up soon. KOTESOL: That is correct! In addition to our spring national conference, we have an international conference each October. I have been quoted elsewhere as saying that “it’s the best darn ELT conference in Korea.” It is by far the largest, and very classroom-oriented. We have a team of over 50 members making preparations for the October 12–13 event at Sookmyung Women’s University in Seoul (https://koreatesol.org/IC2019).
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TOPIK GUIDE (topikguide.com) is the most comprehensive website devoted to the TOPIK exam. It has been helping Korean language learners pass the TOPIK (Test of Proficiency in Korean) for more than eight years. On our website, you can get all the TOPIK updates, grammar and vocabulary material, and study tips.
Everyday Korean Episode 22: 한글날
(Hangeul Day)
Prepared by Harsh Kumar Mishra
EDUCATION
아나: Ana:
정민:
10월 9일은 무슨 공휴일이에요? [Meo-ri kkak-kaya ha-neun-de i geun-cheo-e yeo-ja mi-yong-shil-man in-neyo.] What public holiday is on October 9th?
몰라? 한국어 공부하는 사람에게 꼭 알아야 하는 날인데. 매년 10월 9일은 한글날이야.
[Molla? Hang-gu-geo gom-bu-ha-neun saram-ege kkok a-raya ha-neun na-rinde. Mae-nyeon shi-wol gu-i-reun han-geul-lariya.] Jeongmin: Don’t you know? It’s a must-know day for someone studying the Korean language. Every year, October 9th is Hangeul Day.
아나: Ana:
정민:
한글날? 한글을 홍보하는 날인가요? [Han-geul-lal? Han-geu-reul hong-bo-ha-neun narin-gayo?] Hangeul Day? Is it a day to promote the Korean alphabet?
맞아. 한글의 우수성을 널리 알리기 위해서 한글날을 기념해. 하지만 그보다도 한글의 발명을 기념하는 날이야.
[Ma-ja. Han-geu-rae usu-seong-eul neol-li al-ligi wi-hae-seo han-geul-la-reul gi-nyeom-hae. Ha-jiman geu-boda-do han-geu-rae bal-myeong-eul gi-nyeom-ha-neun na-riya.] Jeongmin: Right. It’s celebrated to spread the excellence of the Korean alphabet. But more than that, it’s the day to commemorate and celebrate the invention of the Korean alphabet.
아나:
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October 2019
Ana:
정민:
우와! 세종대왕 덕분에 한글뿐만 아니라 공휴일도 가지게 되어 참 좋아요. [Uwa! Se-jong-dae-wang deok-bune han-geul-ppun-man a-nira gong-hyu-il-do ga-jige dwe-eo cham jo-ayo.] Wow! Thanks to the great King Sejong, we not only got Hangeul but also a holiday.
(웃으면서) 맞아. 세종대왕이 우리 한국인에게 그만큼 위대한 분이셔.
[Maja. Se-jong-dae-wang-i uri hang-gugin-ege geu-man-keum widae-han buni-sh-yeo.] Jeongmin: (laughing) True. For us Koreans, King Sejong is the greatest of kings.
Grammar ~ (으)ㄴ가요: : This ending is used as a polite way to ask questions. Ex: 요즘 많이 바쁜가요? Are you quite busy these days?
~뿐만 아니라: This is used with nouns (N) when you want to say “Not only N but also N.” It can be used with verbs and adjectives as well in the form of “(으)ㄹ 뿐만 아니라.” Ex:
제 친구는 영어뿐만 아니라 스페인어도 할 수 있어. My friend can speak not only English but also Spanish.
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General Vocabulary
Alphabet-Related Vocabulary
무슨 공휴일 (빨간 날) 꼭 홍보하다 우수성 널리 덕분 위대하다 분
글자 자음 모음 소리 격음 경음
what kind of public holiday certainly/surely to promote excellence extensively/ far and wide thanks to to be great honorific form of 사람 (person)
letter consonant vowel sound aspirated sound a hard consonant
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CROSSWORD PUZZLE
Look for the answers to this crossword puzzle to appear in November in Gwangju News Online (www.gwangjunewsgic.com).
Created by Jon Dunbar
ACROSS
DOWN Korea University location Baseball player Sammy Mix with a spoon Traditional roofing material Chuseok memorial service Seoul’s river Fish roe soup
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Taejo’s dynasty Shrinking Central Asian sea City of pears and gomtang Stryper genre Hurray! Send help! Small piece of grass Irritation Public TV channel PEF ___ Partners Debtor’s promise Korean court music Alanis Morissette song Goes with politics or tagging N Seoul Tower location Lotte chocolate brand Female chicken First band of the night Airborne toy Mountain goat Goes with hard or ransom Jeonju International ___ Festival Gears Instrument similar to taepyeongso CFC member nation
October 2019
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
8 9 10 11 19 21 24 25 26 28 29 30 34 35 36 37 38 39 42 43 44 46 47 48 51
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Subordinate to mgr. Heritage preservation agency Actor Dong-won Law & Order actor Chris 2001’s homicidal AI Type of examination Eastern continent Colony insect Indian monarch Andrew Kim Taegon or Yu Gwan-sun Refugee’s goal Small island Expat photographer Alonzo Rice beverage served after meal Endangered intel-sharing pact Globe “Queen of K-pop” Gwangju ___ Biennale Controversial justice minister nominee “V for Vendetta” actor Stephen National Assembly member ___ Heroes baseball team Lister of Korea’s seowon Int’l bank transfer need Brightest object in the sky Greenhorn Garr or Hatcher Query Cogito ___ sum CEO Opposite of yea Ascend
ARTS & CULTURE
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www.gwangjunewsgic.com
October 2019
ARTS & CULTURE
40 Photo Essay
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41
Neighborhood Watch Written and photographed by Terrie Liebenberg
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Instagram is super saturated with personal accounts detailing the lives of pets, but strays are often overlooked. I think people avoid them because they are wild, shy, and a little rough around the edges, but that’s why I like them. I recently started the Instagram account @catsonpatrol, where I post new pictures, so check it out if you’re into it.
October 2019
I really miss having pets, as I’d always had cats back home. Snapping random cats on the street fills that void. This is an ongoing series titled “Neighborhood Watch.” I feel it’s pretty fitting, as cats are always wary of strangers and always suspicious of anyone getting too close. After a while, I start to notice their different personalities,
and I think they’re starting to trust me a bit. Some let me get really close and even pet them, while others are super sneaky. Animals in general make great subjects for photography, but cats make it extra fun.
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T
he cats are neighborhood strays, though some might be pets. I didn’t really make a conscious decision to start photographing cats, I just naturally gravitated toward them as subjects while out shooting in the streets.
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www.gwangjunewsgic.com
October 2019
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October 2019
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Terrie Lienbenberg is a 28-year-old South African who’s been living in South Korea for four years. Terrie lives in Yangsan at the moment. Terrie studied documentary video production and only recently really started getting into photography. Find Terrie’s work on Instagram @terrieliebenberg.
www.gwangjunewsgic.com
The Author
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44 Gwangju Writes
www.gwangjunewsgic.com
October 2019
ARTS & CULTURE
The Unifying Poetry of “March for the Beloved” Written and photographed by Marcy L. Tanter
May 18 National Cemetery
T
he co-opting of “March for the Beloved” by protestors in Hong Kong this summer was a remarkable event. For many citizens of Korea, hearing the familiar tune with Cantonese lyrics may have been jarring, but it was also a source of pride. The translator of the Cantonese lyrics, according to an article in the Dong-A Ilbo (June 17, 2019), wrote them in 2014 after the “Umbrella Revolution.” The spirit of the song permeated through the Hong Kong protestors who gained strength from hearing and singing it. Inasmuch as the March is a song for democracy, it is also a poem that reminds us of Korean patriotism, in the tradition of the Korean poetry that followed the final quiet that fell over Gwangju at the end of May 1980. “March for the Beloved” is an emblem of the pain suffered by the people of Gwangju, but it becomes a torch of hope when the voices of thousands of people swell together and raise the melody to the sky as happened during the Candlelight Revolution in 2016. Whether it is sung slowly or quickly, the poetry of the lyrics creates emotions that unify people and give them encouragement to keep their movement going. The lyrics of the song were translated into English by Chonnam National University English professor Robert Grotjohn:
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We will leave no honors, no love, no fame. We promised to keep working on, long as we shall live Streams and mountains remember though the years pass by Waken’d spirits are calling us as they shout this cry: “We are marching on; keep faith n follow us.” “We are marching on; keep faith n follow us.” Dear comrades have gone; our flag still waves. While working for days to come we will not be swayed Streams and mountains remember though the years pass by Waken’d spirits are calling us as they shout this cry: “We are marching on; keep faith n follow us.” “We are marching on; keep faith n follow us.”
The lyric is a promise made to the dead while it recruits the living. Poetry has the power to connect the poet and their reader, the narrator, and their subject; reading the song as a poem is a powerful experience. The first two lines indicate immediately that the movement is not an attempt to seek personal satisfaction or benefit, while the “Streams and mountains” of the third line will keep the marchers accountable as the “Waken’d spirits” raise the call to action. The marchers are led by supernatural forces rather than by humans, infusing the cause so that it becomes so much more than just the people’s response to the massacre. The spirits’ cries for (an implied) democracy come from the living, breathing land, symbolizing Korea the nation and a national crusade.
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45 The narrator/s of the lyric lament the deaths of their friends in line 7, but “our flag still waves” despite those losses. The thirst for democracy does not die with the dead but increases because of the dead. The marchers “will not be swayed” by the violence of Chun Doo-hwan’s military, but they will keep going, spurred on by the memories of their friends and by their obligation to their country. The “waken’d spirits” of the first verse conjure the spirits of the land and water, but the spirits of the second verse are those of the ancestors and the friends who have died for the sake of Korea. Chun’s violence might have been his attempt to threaten and strike fear into the marchers, but to avenge the dead and to free their nation, the marchers have to keep going. The Gwangju Uprising spurred hundreds, if not thousands, of poems during and after that dreadful May. Patriotism is not the only theme found in the poems, but it is present in many. The poetry of the era is full of sorrow and mourning, but much of it calls for the people to carry on the cause of democracy for the sake of the nation with the same passion as “March for the Beloved.” In the final verse of “Ah, Kwangju! Korea’s Cross!”, from the gaze of Mudeung Mountain, Kim Joon-tae calls for the people of Gwangju to stand together patriotically through the generations that follow: City of youth growing ever younger as time goes rolling on. Now we are surely united, firmly. Surely, firmly, we rise up hand in hand.
(Translation by Brother Anthony.)
This past May, Hong Kong musical duo Anthony Wong and Tats Lau had a huge hit with their song “Is It a Crime?” about the June 4, 1989, military action in Tiananmen Square, Beijing. Since the Chinese government refuses to acknowledge the incident, despite the deaths of thousands of citizens, activists and artists keep working to remind the world that it happened. According to The Daily Herald, “the composition has been banned in mainland China, where all discussion of the protest movement and the military crackdown is strictly taboo” (June 2, 2019). In a striking parallel with the Gwangju Uprising, Tiananmen Square also began with peaceful protests by students and today, in early September 2019, thousands of Hong Kong students who are refusing to attend their first days of classes are protesting peacefully in the streets. “March for the Beloved” ties together the Gwangju Uprising, Tiananmen Square, and the current Hong Kong protests through its history, purpose, and message. The poetry of the song speaks to the past, present, and future of anyone whose nation is struggling to fight oppression.
The Author
Marcy L. Tanter is a professor of English at Tarleton State University in Stephenville, Texas. She has taught two summer school sessions at Chonnam National University and is compiling an anthology of poems in English about the Gwangju Uprising.
Freedom stays alive behind the history of sacrifice. Though it disappears from this age, the flower of democracy will bloom. As the wind of reunification blows on the road I left, tears well up at the spring news of national liberation. (Translation by JP Song & Anne Rashid.)
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Memorial to student activists at the May 18 National Cemetery.
October 2019
Kim underscores the time people need to mourn and the time it will take for democracy to be established. From the spring that saw the sacrifice of the people, democracy will bloom in a later spring when the poet is older, but he is sure it will come.
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For Kim Yong-Taek, the aftermath of the Uprising brings a chance for democracy and unification; protests were popping up all over the country as the people were inspired by Gwangju. If the people of Korea would unify in their desire for democracy, then it would surely come:
Considering the belief in democracy that permeated Korean poetry after the Gwangju Uprising and seeped into music, it is easy to see how “March for the Beloved” appeals to the protestors in Hong Kong. As of this writing, they have already faced some violent actions from the Chinese government, but to protect the citizens who fear extradition to the mainland, they cannot back down. The fight for their fellows is not only about the people affected at the moment, but it is also about Hong Kong’s sovereignty and their patriotic duty to her.
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46 Gwangju Writes
Lucky Number 7
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October 2019
ARTS & CULTURE
Written by Joe Wabe
L
ast July 7, I decided I wanted a nice picture in my computer room. I usually spend many hours sitting in front of my computer, and the empty wall behind my monitor and in front of me grew a bit dull, so I decided it was time to fill that emptiness with something colorful and happy. I headed down to Daiso, where I remembered seeing a few things that caught my eye. While browsing for pictures, I was particularly attracted by this design that contained only a circle and the number seven. One of the reasons I loved it was because it was simple and had only three colors: a purple background, an orange circle, and a big yellow number seven. This symmetry was pleasing to the eye, and the choice of font was also something that stood out. With a nice 5,000-won price tag, I had no doubt I had found a winner and, without hesitation, picked it up and got ready to head down to the checkout line. As I turned around, ready to go out, I bumped into this man who apparently had been standing behind me all that time, most likely looking at the same frame that I had chosen. With a soft and crisp voice, he told me it was a very good choice, and that it was too bad that this picture was possibly the only one left in all stores. “I came too late,” he said. My first thought was to let him have it, but there was a voice inside me saying, “Don’t! Move on and take it home.” The man spoke perfect English, and I kind of gave him a smile and replied back with small talk very politely, hoping to make my way to the cashier as soon as possible. I was afraid that Mr. Kim – later he told me his name – could be a churchgoer who would try to convince me that I must repent and give my soul to God. So, I quickly tried to move the opposite way, but then heard him say, “You know what? Seven is my favorite number, I was born July 7, 1977, have seven cats, and have been looking for that picture specifically. This is the seventh store I’ve visited!”
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Wow! Now he had caught my attention! I came back to the conversation. We kind of moved away to a corner of the store to avoid being in the way of other shoppers. He told me how he believes seven is his lucky number and how that is why his entire life has always revolved around the number seven. Many amazing things had happened to him, and therefore he wanted to buy the same picture that he had seen before, but he wanted to wait until July 7 to purchase it. Today was the day. “Do you want to know one of my amazing stories?” he said. I was not in a hurry, and he seemed like a very interesting person, so I said, “Go ahead!” He said he was driving one day on the highway, and suddenly a red MAGA (Make America Great Again) hat flew inside the car and landed on his head! Not a perfect fit, but close! What? What are the odds not only of finding one of those here in Korea, but for it to have it flown inside the car and landed on his head? He was a short man, so the story sort of made sense. He told me a couple more lucky stories, but this hat deal was something that I could not get out of my head. I kind of became deaf to the rest of the stories he was telling me about, and then I suddenly realized that 20 minutes had passed and I needed to get moving. Mr. Kim’s stories made me change my mind about not giving him the frame. I gave in and let him have it – after all it was his birthday! We said our goodbyes and I walked out. After I left Daiso, I got in the car with one mission: to find out what the odds are of something like this happening. I thought my first step would be to Google it and see if I could find similar stories, but while driving I remembered I used to teach a class in the office of Highway Control and Maintenance, and I knew a couple of people who worked there. When I arrived home, I dug up one of my ex-students’ numbers and contacted him to ask a couple of questions. One of the questions was if he knew some
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47 of the statistics about highway maintenance, such as cleaning, accidents, repairs, etc. To my surprise, I was very lucky, and Mr. Lee had access to a lot of these data. I felt this number seven was doing its magic. I asked him if there were records of the most popular debris cleaned every year from Korean highways. He actually had this information, explaining that it is important to keep data of everything happening on the highways, including the most popular animals killed on the road. I was shocked to find out that the number one item found on highways is hats, followed by tire debris and rope. I could not believe it. Mr. Kim’s story started to make more and more sense. Mr. Lee also told me they had records of the colors of the hats as well. According to him, these details are important in order to understand the causes of accidents on highways, so they document every single detail.
Joe Wabe is an established photographer and Gwangju local business entrepreneur. He has been contributing to the GIC and the Gwangju News for more than eight years.
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Annual Membership Fee: General: 40,000 won; Student: 20,000 won; Group: 20,000 won (min. 10 persons) Inquiry: member@gic.or.kr / 062-226-2733
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October 2019
The Author
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I continue to wonder about Mr. Kim’s story and the MAGA hat flying out of nowhere right onto his head – all while driving! I thought about all the statistics the government collects and how amazing it is to know that even the colors of hats on the highway are relevant. I was also impressed with how I made up this story while I was driving, and I am sorry to disappoint you by revealing that neither Mr. Kim, the statistics, nor the lucky number seven are real – but it would be pretty cool if, one day, a hat flew into my car and landed on my head.
The Gwangju International Center (GIC) is a non-profit organization established in 1999 to promote cultural understanding and to build a better community among Koreans and international residents. By being a member, you can help support our mission and make it a reality! Join us today and receive exciting benefits!
COMMUNITY
White was the number one color of hats found on the roads, followed by green. Other colors documented were brown and yellow, but there were no records of red hats. I asked why it was important to document the colors, to which he replied that knowing the colors can help create more detailed statistics of accidents on highways. Many accidents are caused when motorists try to avoid unknown objects on the road, and having a better understanding of these objects could help them develop new prevention protocols for the future. I asked him if he believed that a hat could land on someone’s head while driving, but he said it did not seem possible. He mentioned there were a couple of cases where hats flew inside cars that had their windows opened and blocked the driver’s view, thereby causing an accident; but usually hats on the highway are flattened by cars running over them, and the chances of a hat being in good enough shape to fly through a window and land on someone’s head are very unlikely. He wanted to give me more data regarding other types of accidents, but at this point, the information I was looking for had been provided, so I quickly say “Thank you,” and we closed the chat with a nice goodbye and a polite “Let’s have a drink sometime.”
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2019-09-25 �� 2:37:24
48 Book Review
Believe Me: A Memoir of Love, Death, and Jazz Chickens by Eddie Izzard
www.gwangjunewsgic.com
October 2019
ARTS & CULTURE
Written by Kristy Dolson
O
ctober is my favorite month of the year. The weather is perfect; in Canada, we celebrate Thanksgiving and Halloween, and the hectic schedules of September slow down to a more comfortable pace. But I have another, more personal, reason for loving the tenth month of the year. In Canada and the USA, it is LGBT History Month. Both countries adopted it in honor of October 11th being National Coming Out Day. And here in South Korea, pride and queer culture festivals have started taking place across the country. I was so happy and proud to attend Gwangju’s first-ever Queer Culture Festival last October. And while Incheon’s 2018 QC Festival was marked by protests and violence, the 2019 one reversed that experience with staggering attendance and a peaceful pride march. This demonstrates the endurance and commitment that the people of South Korea have for improving their country. In keeping with that spirit, I bring you Eddie Izzard’s memoir this month. Izzard is a long-time British comedian and actor who came out as Trans* in the mid-80s and has been using his stand-up comedy fame to promote LGBT visibility and human rights awareness around the world. He now plans to stand for Parliament in 2020 with the hope of making his country and the world better for everyone. His book is a reflection of endurance and belief in oneself with an optimistic gaze towards the future. Despite Izzard’s lampooning of religious figures – a staple of his shows – he does believe strongly in humanity. And in this book, he warns that if we humans can’t get together and make it work this century, for all 7.5 billion of us, then it could very well be the end. Despite this bleak warning, he maintains hope for the future because he has to: Despair tears us down, hope lifts us up.
Believe Me: A Memoir of Love, Death, and Jazz Chickens is written in the first-person, using a very intimate and conversational tone reminiscent of his stand-up. Izzard
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dispenses wisdom and advice from his long years of personal and professional struggle. Since his childhood, he really wanted to get into dramatic acting. Somewhere along the way, he got into comedy and decided to follow that path instead. Mostly, he failed. His first three performance attempts at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival met with failure. Undeterred, he became a somewhat good street performer, before getting onto the London stand-up circuit. Once he achieved success there, he told his agent he wanted to get out, go on tour, and try bigger things. This was a big risk. But he’d realized that to be creative and successful, you have to take risks and you have to endure – and learn from – the failures. Now Izzard tours the world, performing his comedy in English, French, German, and Spanish. He has said in multiple interviews that people are the same everywhere, no matter what language they speak. He aspires to learn more languages so that he can reach more people, and he encourages young people to take up the challenge as well. His knowledge of other languages and cultures, combined with his comedic wit and endurance, will serve him well in the next step on his journey. With individuals like Eddie Izzard taking the initiative to make the world a better place, I have hope that humanity will survive through the 21st century. Moreover, with young people’s commitment to change, we’ll thrive in a future that accepts and celebrates everyone, everywhere.
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 now lives in Yeosu, where she splits her time between teaching at the new Jeollanamdo International Education Institute and reading as much as she can. (Photo by Cheyenne Taylor)
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Gwangju Happenings Compiled by Baek Ji-yeon
THE 2019 GWANGJU BIENNALE 2019 광주 비엔날레 t September 9 – October 31 P 111 Biennale-ro, Buk-gu, Gwangju (Gwangju Biennale Exhibition Hall) À 062-608-4114 ` https://www.gwangjubiennale.org/gb/index.do
THE 13TH GWANGJU INTERNATIONAL TEA FAIR 제13회 광주국제차문화전시회 t October 17–20 P 30 Sangmunuri-ro, Seo-gu, Gwangju (Kim Daejung Convention Center, Exhibition Rooms 2 & 3) À 062-611-2212, 2254~2256 ` http://www.teaexpo.or.kr
GWANGJU KIMCHI FESTIVAL 광주세계김치축제 t October 25–27 P 60 Kimchi-ro, Nam-gu, Gwangju (Gwangju Kimchi Town) À 062-613-3991 ` https://kimchi.gwangju.go.kr/
PHOTO EXHIBITION: 2019 REPUBLIC OF KOREA 100 YEARS – 10 SCENES THAT CHANGED HISTORY 2019 대한민국 100년, 역사를 바꾼 10장면 사진 전시회 t February 28 – December 15 P 110 Haseo-ro, Buk-gu, Gwangju (Gwangju National Museum) À 062-570-7000 ` https://gwangju.museum.go.kr/
2019 GWANGJU FRINGE FESTIVAL 2019 광주 프린지 페스티벌 t April–December (every Saturday) P Along Geumnam-ro, Dong-gu, Gwangju À 062-223-0410 ` http://fringefestival.kr/
MONTHLY NEWS
CHUNGJANG FESTIVAL 2019 추억의 충장축제 t October 2–6 P 1 Seonam-ro, Dong-gu, Gwangju (Chungjang-ro, Geumnam-ro, Culture Center, Street of Art) ￦ Free À 062-608-2421~4 ` http://www.donggu.kr/cjf
t Daily 10:00–18:00 except Mondays P 38 Munhwa-jeondang-ro, Dong-gu, Gwangju ￦ Free À 1899-5566 ` http://acc.go.kr
극장1야외무대
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DRIFTING RECORDS OF ASIA: ACROSS A STORMY VOVAGE 아시아의 표해록(漂海錄): 바다 건너 만난 이웃 July 9 – October 27 Library Park Special Hall 3 라이브러리파크 기획관3
October 2019
THE 2019 ACC BIGDOOR CINEMA 2019 ACC 빅도어시네마 October 2–6 ACC Theater 1 Outdoor Stage
MALAYSIA POP MUSIC EXHIBITION < POP NUSANTARA: LAGU~LAGU 1960S–1980S VOL. 2 > 말레이시아 대중음악 컬렉션 기획전: 팝 누산타라 노래들 September 6, 2019 – April 19, 2020 Library Park 라이브러리파크 주제전문관
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ACC Events
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Gwangju Theater P 62 Chungjang-ro 5-ga, Dong-gu, Gwangju (Two blocks behind NC Wave) ￦ 8,000 won À 062-224-5858 ` http://cafe.naver.com/cinemagwangju (Korean) * Synopses excerpted from Wikipedia, IMDb, and Hancinema. All English language films are presented with Korean subtitles; non-English international films are presented with Korean subtitles only.
MAGGIE 메기
Drama, Mystery, 89 min., Korean (no subtitles)
An X-ray capturing sexual intercourse turns a hospital upside down. Nurse Yeo Yoon-yeong suspects it might be herself and her boyfriend. On her way to work, she worries that she might have to quit her job, but then even worse things happen in the hospital. Director: Yi Okseop Starring: Lee Joo-young, Moon So-ri, Koo Gyo-hwan
FANTASTIC REALISM ART EXHIBITION As artists, we identify with the fantastic realist tradition in the arts. To the fantastic realists, artists and their creative processes are extensions of the universe’s creative processes, mediums through which magical powers fashion works of art. To these artists, art is the beauty of spirit, and art-making is the sacred practice that yields insight into the wonder of life’s sacred dimension. Yes, art has the capacity to open one to the sublime. t October 1–31 P GIC Gallery, 1F of the Gwangju International Center
2-DAY TREKKING TOUR ON THE MUDEUNG MOUNTAIN LOOP, MUDOLGIL
Do you like hiking near Gwangju? Are you nervous about finding your way? Don’t sweat it. This is a free, two-day, guided tour along Mudolgil, a 51-kilometer trekking path that goes all the way around Mudeung Mountain. The tour is offered by the Mudeung Mountain Conservation Council (무등산보산보호단체협의회) to increase awareness of Mudolgil OUR BODY 아워 바디 and advocate conservation efforts around Mudeungsan National Drama, 95 min., Korean (no subtitles) Park. The trail has easy-to-moderate terrain, with only moderate, Ja-young has spent eight years preparing for the public steady climbing involved. administration examination. Exhausted by failing it every time, she notices charming, healthy jogger Hyun-joo and wants to run Course: The course begins in Duam-dong, Buk-gu, near as well. Her desire to be like Hyun-joo helps her regain her zest Gakhwa Sports Park and ends near Gyodong Village, Dong-gu. It passes through Damyang and Hwasun Counties. Expect some for life. beautiful countryside scenery and hillside vistas. Director: Han Ka-ram Starring: Choi Hee-seo, Ahn Ji-hye, Kim Jung-young What to Prepare: Comfortable shoes for walking, a small backpack, a toothbrush, a small towel, snacks, and a water bottle. FREE MY SOUL, FREE MY SONG
나의 노래는 멀리멀리
More Details: Visit the Facebook event page “2-Day Trekking Ji-hee is mentally challenged and has low self-esteem. She feels Tour on the Mudeung Mountain Loop, Mudolgil.” comfortable when she is invisible among people. Her encounter with a guitar changes her life, and she begins to open herself to t October 5–6 the world. However, she does not have her own song, and she ` Ian Knecht, ifk5000@gmail.com wants to write a song to tell her story. The journey is not easy, but she finds her way. Director: Hyun Jin-sik Documentary, 83 min., Korean (no subtitles)
BORDER 경계선
Fantasy, 110 min., English, Swedish (Korean subtitles)
A customs officer who can smell fear develops an unusual attraction to a strange traveler while aiding a police investigation that will call into question her entire existence. Director: Ali Abbasi Starring: Eva Melander, Eero Milonoff, Jörgen Thorsson
VERTIGO 버티고
Fantasy, 114 min., Korean (no subtitles)
This melodrama is about a woman who feels like she is falling from her office in a tall building and a rope climber who walks on a rope amidst a forest of buildings like Spiderman. They face each other on either side of a glass window until they finally meet on the rooftop of the Machunru skyscraper. Director: Jeon Gye-soo Starring: Chun Woo-hee, Teo Yoo, Jung Jae-gwang
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South Jeolla happenings THE 2019 JANGSEONG HWANGRYONG RIVER YELLOW FLOWER FESTIVAL 2019 장성 황룡강 노란꽃잔치 t October 1–13 P 461-1 Gisan-ri, Jangsung-eup, Jangsung-gun, Jeollanam-do 전라남도 장성군 장성읍 기산리 461-1 À 061-390-7381~7384 ` http://www.노란꽃잔치.com
OVER HERE: SPECIFIC MOMENT EXHIBITION The Over Here: Specific Moment Exhibition highlights the moments when two artists capture and record someone’s memories on their own. Through different perspectives and expressions of the artists living at the same time, the two artists’ memories are observed. Artist Maharani Mancanagara explores modern and contemporary Indonesian history based on personal and family experiences. The history is a record in the “History of Education in Indonesia from 1915 to 1935” and “Buru Island Camp” associated with the National Tragedy G30S (30 September Movement), which she found in the diary of her grandfather, whom she never met. The artist, who works on the theme of memory, started by exploring the family, one’s closest environment, to find identity. Her works are based on Bandung in Indonesia and present a work that reconstructs history so that anyone can know about the tragic events that took place in Indonesia.
Gwangju) À 062-351-2254 ` http://overlab.creatorlink.net/
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À 061-270-8441~8442 ` http://www.yeosu.go.kr/
THE 2019 HWASUN GUKHWA FESTIVAL 2019 화순 국화향연 t October 25 – November 10 P 85 Jingak-ro, Hwasun-eup, Hwasun-gun, Jeollanam-do 전라남도 화순군 화순읍 진각로 85 À 061-375-3575 ` http://www.hwasun.go.kr/festival
THE 2019 KOREA MAHAN CULTURE FESTIVAL 2019 대한민국 마한문화제 t October 11–13 P 747 Gobun-ro, Naju-si, Jeollanam-do 전라남도 목포시 영산로 75번길5 À 061-339-8722 ` http://www.naju.go.kr/tour/
THE 2019 YEOSU NIGHT BEACH FIREWORKS FESTIVAL 2019 여수밤바다 불꽃축제 t October 26, 19:00–21:30 P 385-6 Jungang-dong, Yeosu-si, Jeollanam-do (Yi Sunshin Square) 전라남도 여수시 중앙동 385-6 (이순신광장 일원)
À 061-270-8441~8442 ` http://www.yeosu.go.kr/tour/operation_
guide/popup?idx=9319&mode=view
October 2019
t October 4–13 P OverLab. (5-4 Guseong-ro 76-beon an-gil, Nam-gu,
전라남도 여수시 중앙동 385-6 (이순신광장 일원)
www.gwangjunewsgic.com
Through dialogue, the second artist, TaraJay feels people’s memories as if they were her own experiences and works on behalf of their voices to expand their memories and records to various media, including publishing, video, and exhibition. She has continued The Story of the Lost and Found Memory Project, “Finding Happy and Forgetting Memories,” which explores her artistic record in relation to Maharani’s and leaves new records and traces in the archive. In addition, a program is being run to capture the novel in unknown memory through conversations with female exhibition-goers of various ages during the exhibition.
THE 2019 MOKPO HARBOR FESTIVAL 2019 목포항구축제 t October 3–6 P 68 Road 92 Samhak-ro, Mokpo-si, Jeollanam-do
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Community Board Have something you want to share with the community? The Community Board provides a space for the community to announce activities and special events. Please contact gwangjunews@gic.or.kr for more information.
Calling All Dance Enthusiasts
The Gwangju Performance Project’s official Dance Troupe is back in session! Our troupe offers classes, workshops, and opportunities to perform for people from all walks of life. NO DANCE EXPERIENCE OR AUDITION NECESSARY. All we require is a strong desire to TWERK and SLAY as hard as humanly possible. * Classes are held twice a month on Sundays from 3 to 5 p.m. at the GIC or from 3 to 6 p.m. at one of our varying studio spaces. * Please Note: On occasion, our troupe holds classes at different dance studios throughout Gwangju. * Once added to our official Kakao Group via our admin, we will be sure to notify you of the location. Granted access to our official Kakao Group may be reached by sending a message to our admin Iman Smith (Kakao ID:@Naima915). We hope to have you join us for this dance extravaganza!
www.gwangjunewsgic.com
October 2019
Baseball in Gwangju
Are you interested in playing baseball? Do you enjoy the sport but haven’t had the opportunity to participate here in Gwangju? Well, you are in luck! For the past six years, the foreign baseball team, the Gwangju Bombers, has been playing competitively in a baseball league in the city. The team is always looking for players to add to the roster. The team consists of both foreign and Korean players, and plays every Saturday from March to October. Come, play, and have fun! If interested, contact Joel Klimas at joelklimas@gmail.com.
Gwangju Inter FC
The Gwangju International Soccer Team (Gwangju Inter FC) plays regularly every weekend. If you are interested in playing, email seehand@naver.com, phone or text 0107126-1207 Facebook: Gwangju Inter FC
Gwangju Spanish Club
Every two weeks on Saturdays, 3:30–5:30 p.m., GIC Global Lounge (1st floor) Spanish – English – Korean language exchange No importa tu nivel de español. ¡Únetenos! Facebook: Gwangju Spanish Club – Int/Adv
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GIC Citizens’ Choir
Are you interested in joining a choir? The GIC Citizens’ Choir is inviting sopranos, altos, tenors and basses. Send your application to gic@gic.or.kr with the following information: name, phone number, email, voice part, and brief self-introduction on your singing experiences. You can also visit and observe the GIC Citizens’ Choir rehearsing on the first floor of the GIC at 10:00 a.m. every other Saturday.
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 learn English independently through storybooks and story-maps. We guide families and children to develop a love of reading storybooks in English. We also give guidance to volunteers in using storybooks. We are looking for long-term 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. Also, you can contact Kim Young-im at 062-434-9887 or email konacenter@gmail.com.
Waygook Chingu
Cultural exchange program where you can build friendships that will last across the borders. Regular meetup every Wednesday 7:30 p.m. and Saturday 5 p.m. Facebook: WaygookChingu
Volunteer teachers needed for the Gwangju UCC (Universal Cultural Center)
English teachers in the Gwangju area for 2019 with any level of experience are welcome to 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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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
former judge, GIC board member Services available in Korean, English & Chinese
#402 Simsan Bldg, 342-13 Jisan-dong, Dong-gu, Gwangju Location: next to Gwangju District Court
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Tel: 062) 222-0011 Fax: 062)222-0013 duckheepark@hanmail.net
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