South Korea – Seoul, the Soul of Asia
“Seoul, the Soul of Asia” is quite a catchy characterization of Seoul. It is not my phrase, but it did inspire some curiosity in me. How was the soul of Asia like?
To the extent possible, I explored Seoul on foot and by public transport. My first impression of the Soul of Asia was the efficiency with which the city was set up, and its accessibility throughout. The cabs of Seoul were especially tourist-friendly. Ever since South Korea hosted the 1988 Summer Games, the cabs have all been wired to English-speaking operators, should the tourist be unable to communicate with the driver. I did not have to use that service even once, however, as I somehow was able to make out the pronunciation of the sites with English transliteration. The drivers certainly were very savvy in understanding the tourist as well.
I knew very little about Korean history before the Korean War, and by visiting the many palaces in Seoul I had the opportunity to learn the fascinating stories of Korea’s dynastic past. The Changdeokgung Palace was the first that I visited. I highly recommend that fellow travelers join a tour, as many stories about the palaces were told. Otherwise one would miss the significance of the sites. The tour came across the Daejojeon with Hanja that I could read, meaning “the big creation” in Chinese. The tour guide said it was where the royal babies were made. I found that to be hilarious.
At Changdeokgung I heard the exceedingly moving story about the empty house outside the palace. It was where the last king and queen of Joseon Dynasty lived their last days. The courts there were not painted, which was quite a contrast with the colorful restoration of the palace proper. Yet the plain wooden structure stood proudly in its natural state, as the witness to a dynasty fallen, stripped of its power and wealth, yet keeping its dignity. The queen lived there until she passed away in 1989, when the “empty house” really became empty. The last king and queen of the Joseon dynasty died without issue, as such the dynasty, and its symbolic significance for modern South Korea, ended. As I stood there admiring the scene, I seemed to sense the house breathing a kind of spirit that bears the weight of history, its structures being the last home to Korea’s monarchy.
I was able to find my way to Jongmyo on foot. At first I thought it was an ordinary temple, but soon realized that it was the royal ancestral shrine where the dynasty memorialized its spirits. The spirit tablets of the kings and queens were supposedly enshrined in the spirit chambers, but it was closed when I went. The ancient Koreans held ceremonial rites there. An elongated, plain structure of the shrine certainly meets the solemnity required for this purpose. I saw no one there at Jongmyo, maybe except the spirits that rested.
I then cabbed to Insadong Gil as recommended on the Lonely Planet, “it boasts a delightfully confusing mishmash of back alleys.” At first glance, Insadong was disappointing as it seemed too eager to cater to the tourists. I wanted to see antique stores that were old, decrepit and mold-smelling. I walked around dutifully as a tourist, bought some snacks here and there and felt like I was fainting from the cold. Then came a delightful teahouse in sight and I had mei-cha (plum tea) there. That was the turning point for me in Insadong and I came alive. I asked the waitress to teach me how to say, “where is the Hyewa train station” in case I got lost somewhere and had to get back to the hostel with no sense of direction. She wrote the phrase in a way that I could pronounce as an English speaker, “haywa yo, chabon churgu.”
Back in the neighborhood of the hostel I finally had my first Korean grill in South Korea. It was then that I learned that every restaurant serves grilled meat for two people’s portion at the minimum. My dining there alone made me seem like an odd duck. The Koreans do not eat grilled meat dinners alone.
On this first full day in Seoul I had a taste of what the Soul of Asia was like. Seoul has many sites of history to show for, and it certainly welcomes outsiders with open arms. I did wonder though if there would be more in the coming days, or would it just be a city life that bears mutual semblance in all developed parts of the world? As my journey progressed, I became increasingly drawn to South Korea as a country.
