Seoulonely

What happens on the streets of Seoul...

2008-11-28T22:34:00.005+09:00

Waiting for customers...

...here we are, grandfather buys cotton candy...

...and grandchild is overhappy.

...next customer is waiting. This time it is for a girl...

...and she seems not so happy as the boy. How sad!
I love sitting on a bench or wherever it is comfortable and observe the hustle and bustle on the street.

Street Setting Seoul

2008-11-28T22:06:00.003+09:00

Namsan Hanok Folk Village Seoul

2008-11-28T21:54:00.001+09:00

Birthplace of Choui Eusoon

2008-11-28T20:34:00.010+09:00

Muan county (무안군) is known for Choui Eusoon (1786-1866) who was a Zen priest and tea master Choui Eusoon wrote many books about Korea tea culture. His best known work on Korean tea culture is Dongdasong.
Korean tea culture died out by the influence of suppressing Buddhism and esteeming Confucianism policy during the Chosun Dynasty. Choui Eusoon revived Korean tea culture and is therefore known as the master of Korean tea culture.
Here are some more information about Choui Eusoon.

Returning to hometown

I returned to my hometown after 40 years,
Without recognizing the white hair on my head.

My house was gone, covered with grass
Like a moss – grown old grave.
Only regret tracing after each footprint.

My mind already died.
But where does this grudge come from?
Blood and tear are dried out even the last one drop.

This lonely monk leaves again following clouds
Gosh! It is a foolish thing
Expecting to returning to hometown.

-Choui Eusoon-

Lanterns

2008-11-23T21:40:00.000+09:00

I love tea and teahouses

2008-11-23T21:27:00.003+09:00

Happy Evening!

2008-11-09T21:26:00.002+09:00

Do you like Pansori?

2008-11-09T20:13:00.015+09:00

In Jeonju: she sung among others an excerpt of a Pansori.

Yes, I do like Pansori.
I remember very well when I went to a library in Hamburg half a year ago and borrowed a disc with Pansori music and was excited to get to know Korean traditional music. I had very little idea how this music sounds but I thought it might a be a little bit similar to Chinese traditional music. I was wrong. It was very different from Chinese music and after listening to it for half an hour I turned it off. It was too peculiar and it was even getting on my nerves.
I was disappointed. I could not understand the music at all. For me there was a very strange voice singing and accompanied by a drum. I was not listening to this disc again. Instead I brought it back to the library and borrowed a bunch of Haydn piano trios and thought this music is heaven.
Now - half a year later – I like Pansori and I am deeply moved by this music. I could listen to Pansori for hours. I guess to understand Pansori one have to see a Pansori performance live before switching to a disc. Pansori goes back to 10th century where it was performed by touring companies at the market places in villages. The Sorrikun (singer) tells a love story or a satire and is accompanied by one Gosu (drummer player). A Pansori performance lasts usually several hours. It is maybe comparable to a mini opera.
Watch this excerpt of a Pansori performance.

Komm in den totgesagten park und schau

2008-11-08T21:11:00.004+09:00

Komm in den totgesagten park und schau:
Der schimmer ferner lächelnder gestade
Der reinen wolken unverhofftes blau
Erhellt die weiher und die bunten pfade.
Dort nimm das tiefe gelb - das weiche grau
Von birken und von buchs - der wind ist lau
Die späten rosen welkten noch nicht ganz
Erlese küsse sie und flicht den kranz
Vergiss auch die letzen astern nicht
Den purpur um die ranken wilder reben
Und auch was übrig blieb von grünem leben
Verwinde leicht im herbstlichen gesicht.
Stefan George (1868-1933)

It seems....

2008-11-07T16:43:00.014+09:00

that I am hibernating. Not yet.
Every day I experience many things here in Seoul. There are shocking experiences, there are wonderful and touching experiences. The latter outweighs.
I have been very busy the last four weeks with midterm exams and weekend trips to other parts of Korea. And there are many things I want to write about this weekend: about Jeonju City, Jeju Island, Classical Music and Korean Traditional Music.
For today, some pictures that I took with my new digital camera but I still prefer my old Nikon camera.

Fall has arrived in Seoul

2008-10-17T20:59:00.006+09:00

Bukchon Hanok

2008-10-17T20:36:00.013+09:00

Bukchon is one my absolutely favourite places in Seoul. It is a place where one can find traditional style houses – a rarity in Seoul.
While strolling around one could stop every second to watch the beauty of the world. May it be an old brick stone, a leave, a tree, a roof title, a flower. And it is such a peaceful place which is hard to find in Seoul. The only sounds I heard where the clicking of my camera, Bach’s music played by Glenn Gould from an open window and a meowing cat.
Update: Check http://www.kahoidong.com where one can find some very interesting background information about this quarter.

Wikipedia and the Nobel Prize in Literature 2008

2008-10-10T21:20:00.016+09:00

Every year I am very curious who will receive the next noble prize in literature.
So this year the noble prize goes to Jean-Marie Gustave Le Clézio.I must confess that I know very little about this French writer.
So where do I look up? Right, in wikipedia.Three minutes after the announcement I went to this website and I could not believe my eyes. The German entry was already updated that Jean-Marie Gustave Le Clézio is the Nobel laureate 2008. Curious as I am I searched other entries in other languages and in all languages - such as French, Swedish, Japanese, Italian, Arabian -it was updated. Fifteen minutes later Jean-Marie Gustave Le Clézio entry was expanded in seven more languages.
Is there any quicker encyclopaedia? I don’t think so. Amazed and thrilled by this experience I emailed my brother and telling him about the quickest encyclopaedia in the world and wondering what kind of people were so quick in updating the entries in the different languages. Promptly I got an answer from my brother telling me that he – who has never changed or written any articles for wikipedia - was the person who updated the German entry. I am here in Seoul and brother in Munich but we are still very close. I like it.

Poem

2008-10-07T22:02:00.007+09:00

One Day

I thought it was a visitor

One Day

I thought it was the master

Over those years

I dreamed of the smoke

Coming from the chimneys

I still do not know

who the poem is.

고은

A Picture Story in Seoul

2008-10-07T20:59:00.006+09:00

My Birthday Cake from 승연

2008-10-07T20:51:00.008+09:00

Thank you very much for this 승연. It was a very delicious cake!

A Korean Village

2008-10-07T20:03:00.009+09:00

Near Gyeongju – the capital of Korea during the Silla dynasty – one can find the town Oksan Seowon which is a wonderful peaceful place in the countryside. In Oksan Seowan one can find a Confucian school and a shrine established in 1572 under the rule of King Seonju. It is one of the few schools which were not destroyed by the Japanese.

Christianity in Korea

2008-10-07T19:46:00.005+09:00

The red points are church crosses.

When it is getting dark in Seoul and transforms to a sea of lights, religion becomes visible in the city. One can look around everywhere and there are red neon light crosses which are crosses of churches. Most churches in Korea exist of an apartment in a high rise building and there are only a handful churches in traditional style.

Korea is not a country where Buddhism is the main religion. The Christian population surpassed that of Buddhism and the number of Christians is still increasing.

Korean Christians are not comparable to Christians in Europe. They are deep religious. They attend the mass twice on Sundays and Korean priests cannot complain that churches are empty on Sunday mass as this is often the case in Europe. I have also experienced that Koreans were saying their prayers aloud in restaurants before they have their meal - a behaviour which I have never experienced before.

In order to become a Christ in Korea you have to pass a little exam. One have to study the bible for half a year and attend the mass every Sunday for six months. If you have not done this one cannot be baptized.

But why are Koreans so deep religious and why became Christianity the dominated religion in a country which has its roots in Buddhism? I asked this questions many times myself and other Koreans but nobody could give me a satisfying answer. My presumption is that it might be partly a reason that Americans influenced Korean society a lot after the Korean War and partly that many Koreans might feel not comfortable in the strong dominated Confucianism society and seek comfort in Christianity.

Butterflies

2008-09-29T21:59:00.001+09:00

East Coast - Gangwon Province

2008-09-28T21:52:00.009+09:00

Maybe it was the fall season, maybe this was not the reason. I cannot tell.

The East Coast is such a peaceful place. Peaceful might sound a bit ironic since the Gangwon province is very close to the border to North Korea.

On Saturday morning I woke up, listened to the wave that were bashing against the beach, observing the sun arising and eating fresh fish. Then Seung-Yun and I rode the bike along the coast breathing the fresh maritime air. We saw deserted beaches, empty streets and empty parking lots. The people were gone. It was a spooky atmosphere, in comparison to Seoul - a never sleeping city.

Street Book Store

2008-09-28T21:35:00.000+09:00

Ko Un Exhibition

2008-09-28T20:14:00.013+09:00

Ko Un who has published a new poetry book at the beginning of this month celebrated the 50^th anniversary of his debut this year. For this anniversary the Korea Foundation Cultural Centre exhibited paintings and calligraphies of Ko Un. In addition, the Korea Foundation organized a special event where ten ambassadors were reciting Ko Un’s poems in their own language. At the end Ko Un himself read poems from his new book and thanked the ambassador with a song “Airrang”.

Tiny Little Stores

2008-09-28T19:32:00.010+09:00

I like tiny little stores.

There are many tiny little stores in Korea. Some usual stores and some traditional stores.

I went to one of the tiny little cosy traditional stores – to a stamp maker.

First my friend and I had to fight through a crowd of people on a busy street and then we entered the store. We left behind us the noises of the hawkers who were promoting their products, the noises of giggling middle and high school students, the noises of the cars and motorbikes and we escaped from the smell of fish, fruits and sweets.

The stamp store was the smallest store that I have ever entered in my life. As soon as we entered the store the only thing that we could do was settling down on the seats that were half a meter from the door. Next to our chairs there was sitting the stamp maker and besides him his working place - his little desk and stamp making implements. The walls were full of photos and certificates that he had received.

The stamp maker was very talkative and spoke in a low voice.

I like tiny little stores.

Palaces in Seoul

2008-08-23T19:45:00.002+09:00

Subway System Seoul

2008-08-23T09:41:00.007+09:00

Since the last three days I came up with this list that makes the subway system here in Seoul so comfortable and should be adopted in other “subway cities”:

There is at least one restroom in every station and of course very clean.
Every station has many exits (sometimes until 13 different exits) which one might think is confusing but this is not the case at all. Every exit is marked with a number and buildings that are located in this direction.
Just before the train is approaching there is a sound which sounds like a telephone.
On the platform there are marks, so you know where the door will open and before the train arrives people stand in line. There is no pushing as I am sometimes used in Germany.
In the train every stop is announced in English as well. It is also a good way to practice Korean. First try to read the electronic notes in Hangeul and then check if you read and spelled it correctly.
If you are approaching a transfer stop it is announced through classical music (so far I recognized Vivaldi, Mozart, Boccherini).
Trains commute very often. When the train does not arrive in five minutes one gets impatient.

Welcome to my brand new blog

2008-08-18T04:27:00.028+09:00

I have kept my other blog for two years.
I am ready for a change and created this new blog.
I am also ready for another change.
I am going to spend a semester in Seoul and study Korean culture and Korean language. I like to study Korean literature which is absolutely wonderful.
I have discovered Korean poetry for myself some time ago. Bit by bit I am getting a better understanding of Korean literature and all the more I read poems by Korean authors I shake my head and wonder that Korean literature is so little known.
Here is a poem by Ko Un, probably the best known Korean poet in the Western world.

The late watches

In thousands ten-thousandfold darkest night
one flower has bloomed
after screaming alone
and close beside it
a red flower has bloomed
speechless as iron.

The Sound of My Waves
Selected Poems by Ko Un, translated by Brother Anthony of Taize