Tripitaka Koreana Goes To Seoul

Oh, to be in Seoul now that the Tripitaka Koreana ( a.k.a. Goryeo Tripitaka or Palman Daejanggyeong ("Eighty-Thousand Tripitaka") is making a brief appearance at  the 2010 International Archival Culture Exhibition. The theme for this year's exhibition is "기록으로 만나는 세계" - "A World Re-discovered in Archives" .

Monk checking on the condition of the woodblocks for the Tripitaka Koreana in Haeinsa

What's so special about the Tripitaka Koreana, aside from the way the name trips on the tongue?

It is...

1. National Treasure No. 32
2. one of the most comprehensive and oldest examples of Buddhist scripture; "Because of the accuracy of the Tripitaka Koreana, the Japanese, Chinese, and Taiwanese versions of the Tripitaka are based on this Korean version." ( from wikipedia)
3. listed in the UNESCO Memory of the World Register
4. an artefact from Goryeo Dynasty and has survived Mongol attacks and remained well-preserved over 1000 years
5. "...not only (historically) invaluable, it is also aesthetically valuable and shows a high quality of workmanship.( from wikipedia)

An excerpt from the Chosun Ilbo shows how important the TK is:

"To make its second public debut the scriptural work was transported from Haeinsa, a Buddhist temple in South Gyeongsang Province. Monks carefully moved the treasure onto a palanquin and held a special ceremony with over 400 followers. The blocks were delicately wrapped in Korean mulberry paper and placed in a special box before starting the four-hour journey to Seoul."

In addition, you can also see some uigwe featured at this exhibition.So, hurry! IACE 2010 will be held for less than a week between the 1st and 6th of June at COEX A hall, National Archives (Nara repository). Hope some blogger in Seoul will be interested enough to cover this event.  It would help if that person can read Hanja and translate! Ok -I'm half-kidding about the translating but please take lots of pics and check out the hands-on activities.

Sources:
http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2010/06/02/2010060200791.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tripitaka_Koreana
http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/737
http://www.iace.or.kr/eng/exhibition/writing_invitation.html?Fnum=70&Fnum2=71

Gongju City Tour, Gongju Part 3

Console myself that if I’m too late to enjoy its festivals, at least I can still join the City Tour which is a bit of a misnomer because:
1) Gongju is not a city; instead it’s a provincial town, and
2) the tour goes out to neighbouring attractions also.

This free 7-hour tour, operating between April and October on Sundays, is the best way to explore the town and its environs while interacting with Koreans

Photo: Anyone lose a bike at the Ceramic Art Village?

Indeed, I should count my lucky stars as I’m allowed to board this already crowded bus without any prior reservation. The kind ladies at the Tourism Information Booth take pity on me and I guess it helps that I’m at the pickup point way before the departure time of 10 am. Soon the coach is packed with Korean families and one sole foreigner, looking forward to an interesting day.
The tour guide announces to everyone through the bus PA that I speak English and during the day, I’m surrounded by children who want to practise their conversational skills. It’s great to see the young ones so enthusiastic and not as shy as their parents who beam with pride whenever they overhear their offspring string sentences in English to try them out on me.

Almost all the children have English names and when I ask them what they want to be in the future, the replies from Olivia, Clara, Angela and Ken are: a violinist, a fashion designer, an actor, an IT programmer ( but not necessarily in that order!)

One toddler, the brother of one of the children, has no Western name as he’s not enrolled in a hagwon for English as yet. Photo: Children following ceramic master's instructions closelyAm a little disappointed to learn that my tour route for the day doesn’t include the Folk Play Museum, the Park Dong-jin Pansori Instruction Centre, the Imrip Art Museum nor the Chungnam Forests Museum. However, we do visit the Gyeryeongsan Ceramic Art Village which produces Buncheong porcelain, the Natural History Museum, the Gongju National Museum and the Tomb of Muryeong-wang, the 25th ruler of the Baekje kingdom. More on each later.

Photo: At the Gyeryeongsan Natural History Museum














sources:
http://sjnmuseum.go.kr/english/tourguide/tourguide_01.html
http://gongju.museum.go.kr/html/en/media/media_04.jsp#

A Museum Dedicated to An Invasion?

Part 2 The Jinju National Museum

Source of photo: KNTO webpage

 Not surprisingly, a museum dedicated to the story of the 1592 invasion can be found on the grounds of this fortress. The Jinju National Museum (open all days except Mondays and New Year’s Day) should please those interested in history, particularly military history and, those who are not so fond of the subject but are blessed with imagination, may find themselves drawn to the different folding screens which portray the different battles and how the Korean fortress was besieged by the Japanese armies.

There are many other exhibits to engage the young and the young at heart; you can learn more about the the military campaigns through the audio-visual presentation; you can put on the fake gold crown and pose as royalty for the digicam; you can collect an ink stamp of the famous turtle ship ( geobukseon) invented by Admiral Yi shun-shin who defeated the Japanese at sea.

You could also take advantage of the free access to the Internet available in the museum gift shop to email an update of your travels to friends and family.

Fun Comes First In Gyeryeongsan Natural History Museum

Where can kids and parents have a great time together indoors while touring Korea?
Answer: GYERYEONGSAN NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM
Address: 511-1, Hakbongri, Banpomyeon, Gongju, Chungnam. Tel: (042) 820-7500.
http://www.krnamu.or.kr/

It seems fitting that this museum in Chungcheongnam-do which is dedicated to natural history should be situated on the foothills of Gyeryongsan, or Rooster-Dragon Mountain. The latter got that nickname as its ridge line looked like a dragon wearing the crown of a rooster.

When I joined the day tour from Gongju, I didn’t have high expectations for one of the stops on the itinerary. The fake dinosaurs, placed on the sides of the road leading up to the three-storeyed building, looked a little tacky although the kids on the tour were obviously thrilled. However, the Gyeryeongsan Natural  History Museum proved to be more edutaining than I first thought.

Taken from the website of the GNHM

Its three floors are packed with fascinating exhibits arranged according to the following themes:
1. The World of Dinosaurs
2. Universe, Earth and Life ( which includes a pretty collection of minerals and gemstones)
3. Nature and Human Beings.

Those who don’t speak Korean may rent a device that looks like a Palm Pilot and gives a brief commentary in English when you key in the relevant display number.

Indeed, “Fun Comes First and Learn Comes Naturally”, the motto of the Gyeryeongsan Natural History Museum may be flawed grammatically but its heart is in the right place. The curators have taken great pains to present the exhibits in interesting ways and to incorporate as much interactivity as possible to make learning very entertaining.

Magnifying glasses are provided for those who want to scrutinize nature’s handiwork on the wings of moths and butterflies. An outline of a brontosaurus is filled with badges collected from different partner universities and institutions. MRI scans and X-rays allow fresh insights into the anatomy of two Korean mummies from the Joseon Dynasty.

We had less than two hours to spend in this museum but I would think half a day is needed to do justice to this place. It’s a great place for the whole family because there seems to be just about everything to fascinate each generation.

Frommer's review of the museum

sources:
http://krnamu.or.kr/eng/index.html
http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Gyeryongsan