I’m in Ganghwa Island for the weekend, bumming around old fortresses and temples for a story I’m working on for SEOUL. Anyway, just thought I’d post a couple of photos for you:
Ganghwa Anglican Church (consecrated in 1900), which beautifully harmonizes Korean and Western architectural concepts.
Gwangseongbo Fortress, scene of intense hand-to-hand combat between Korean defenders and bluejackets of a certain other nation in 1871 (be sure to check out this site as well)
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Ganghwa Island was the only tourist place in South Korea where I felt like being a white man was considered an insult to the locals.
Don’t know if it was a fair feeling on my part or not.
But a couple of reactions I got at the bus terminal just after I arrived stuck with from there on, and I not longer after I started looking around, I decided to dust off my sandles (Biblically speaking) and pass on seeing the rest of the place.
Again, this was the only place I went site-seeing where I came away with a bad taste in my mouth…
I have been to Ganghwa Island a handful of times and never had any problems there with the locals. It is a nice day trip for those living in the Seoul area as the island has various historical and cultural sites to see not to mention some great views looking across into North Korea if you know where to go.
I particularly liked that second picture.
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I felt guilty, there, too, even though as a Canadian I had nothing to do with any of the events that took place there. Gangwha Island was the scene not only of a French invasion (which the Koreans repulsed, after the French looted many precious royal artefacts that had been stored there), but of an American one, a Japanese one, and a Chinese one. The museum there takes pains to explain every foreign problem that has landed on Gangwha-do, but also failed to note the assistance of many foreign countries in the Korean War, something I felt was an unfortunate imbalance. I suppose there are other monuments commemorating those events.
Perhaps some Marmot’s Hole readers might enjoy the post at my old blog on this island, featuring three little known national treasures, a dolmen, and some other odds and ends. The post can be found here.
Yeah, Ganghwa is always interesting,
especially Mani-san and Bomun-sa.
I’ve never experienced any nationalistic
negativity there, m’self. It’s been
awhile tho, i should go back…
makeshift base - it’s crap
USinkorea—I’m sorry to hear you had a bad experience there. Mine was excellent. Found the locals to be exceedingly friendly—good country folk.