To be honest, I knew nothing about Korea before going there. The world seemed so small when I was young that I only concentrated on the area where I lived. Besides, I’d never move to Asia! Why worry about a heritage and culture half way around the world that would never affect me? Ha!
I have met quite a few Koreans, alas, I never took the time to get to know their heritage and culture. I am not claiming to be an expert now, but spending a blink of time there has really opened my eyes and given me a compassionate heart towards all they have been through.
We took the time to explore their history and war museum, palace area, and the DMZ (De-Militarized Zone)/JSA (Joint Security Area) areas through tours and guides. It is sometimes difficult to imagine countries with histories that are as long as Asia’s. Korea has been in control by dynasties for thousands of years and fighting China, Japan, and Russia for longer than any American history we have been taught. We learned that one of the battles that was doomed to fail led the military leader to kill his wife and family before battle so they would not be made to serve the conquering land. Wow. We learned of their furnace like ingenuity that heated their cold floors with pipes of boiling water long before we dreamed of them. We learned about each country bringing in their religious thought to help form their way of life today. Their flag shows the ying/yang of Confucianism, half the country claims Buddhism as their way of thought, and a quarter say Christianity is their claim due to the Americans coming for the Korean War.
Korea has a strategic geographic location being the peninsula on the way to China, Russia, and Japan. These countries continue to foam at the mouth to have control of this gateway. Yet the saddest part of Korea is the split of itself into the North and South. Thousands of years of a country fighting for itself is now a country divided by itself. I learned that South Korea didn’t want the cease-fire after the war because it did not include reunification. Neither the North or South wanted to give up their way of government, so the cease-fire spilt country, government, and families. Barrett and I were saddened to see the bridges ready to blow in case infiltration comes.
Our hearts broke to hear of the poverty of the North that we gazed at under the protection of armed soldiers. We saw the bridge of no return that was the gateway for the POW’s of the Korean War to choose their home for good. And the eeriness of the empty railway station that is ready to transport goods and people across protected lines but has yet to fulfill this promise of goodwill. We heard of the brazenness of the North in trying to project their power through tall flagpoles and empty buildings, yet their own people are barely surviving. We saw the signal blockers that keep the North from knowing or communicating with anyone in the South. It made me wonder what our country would be like if we ever come to the point of dividing once again on ideological and government ideas.
Then Barrett and I discussed the marketing of the DMZ and JSA. Instead of a somber tour, we were immersed in commercialization of the infiltration tunnels, train station, and Army base. Soldiers are made into tour guides and war sites into shows and a somber location now has an amusement park marking its location . Alas, capitalism at its finest!
Seoul shows the fruit of the South’s chosen government. They have grown so much in this system that they have satellite locations as the city is too large to hold its growth. Technology is king as Samsung and Kia rule the land along with ship building and trade. Traffic slows down the city streets but the partying last through the night, or so we are told. Although the Koreans seem to embrace westernization, they continue to prize their heritage and ways of life. Rice farming, Kimchi making, and honoring your family is still practiced and cherished.
We wished we could have learned more and seen how the country changes as you head even further south, but all vacations need to end. I’m so thankful for a chance to look into the history of a country by exploring it and asking many annoying questions to the locals. I have gained an appreciation for what Korea has gone through and the price of freedom for this country. I learned from one of our guides how to remember to look at people through their history and mindset and not my own. Where they are today is because of what they have gone through for thousands of years. How they are ruled and governed is normal and acceptable from their perspective.
Hmmm…the world really has become smaller for me as I have gained years and technology and transportation have shrunk the lands. The Lord has taught me to see the beauty in all cultures and to love people that have experienced a much different life than what I’m used to. I realize that my time was less than a blink of an eye to fully understand and appreciate all of Korea, but I’m really glad we were able to go there and learn as much as we could as a family. There will be kimchi tonight!