The first trip was to the Island of Sorokdo. Broken down by syllable (so-rok-do), the name means "little deer island" because when viewed from above it is said to be in the shape of a baby deer. I did see a picture of the island from the air, but I must admit, I didn't see a deer in it. It was a bit like someone telling you there is a man in the moon and straining your eyes to make the dark spots fit the description only to eventually shrug it off with a "yeah okay, sure I see him."
Sorokdo is interesting however for a very different reason than it's odd shape. Sorokdo is the island that, during the Japanese invasion, the lepers were quarantined to. All of those with Hansen's Disease (or Leprosy) were rounded up and shipped off to the small island of Sorokdo, long before there was a bridge connecting it to the mainland. On the island, the lepers worked constructing a beautiful garden that is now the focal point of the island as a tourist destination.
In addition to being treated poorly during their lives, there were gross violations of their rights after their death. Families of the lepers who lived back on the mainland wanted their relatives bodies after they died for a proper burial, but there were many who wanted to study their bodies to try and determine a cause and a cure. While it was an honest curiosity and a valuable goal, the manner in which the experiments and autopsies were done after a person with Hansen's Disease died violated their pre-stated wishes and the desires of their families. Also regarding the families, it was said that there would be long lines waiting for small ferries that could only shuttle a couple people to the island at a time to visit their quarantined relatives, causing a lot of grief and trauma. It wasn't all bad however, as it is recognized that the many German and Dutch nurses who lived on the island worked hard to keep the people on the island comfortable, and established lasting relationships that are preserved to this day in Korea's memory. There are memorials to the nurses as well as the patients around the island.
I visited the island with two of my friends on a very cold Tuesday. These days there are museums, galleries, preserved buildings showing the disturbing conditions of the housing and autopsy rooms, and, of course, the garden. The garden is notable for it's memorials and a special type of tree that blooms in the winter. The flowers are thick and either white or pink with a very sweet aroma that gave the entire garden a pleasant odor. To this day a few lepers still live on the island, though now by choice, to maintain the garden.
The second day trip of the week was with two different friends of mine to Gwangju. You might remember my description of Gwangju from and earlier post. It is a rather large city, and is home to one of the friends I traveled with that day. About two hours away, we drove up after my friends got off work and had a great Korean barbeque meal before heading to one of their houses. There I was taught blackjack and informed we would be spending the evening at a nearby casinobar.
Generally in Korea, gambling is illegal, though there are lot of special permissions for certain industries, such as tourism. Lotteries are also permitted, but only if for public welfare promotion. To get around this, a lot of the gambling that takes place happens in what is called a "casinobar" where rather than winning cash or chips, you win bar credit. This worked out beautifully well for me, as my elementary ability to play blackjack managed to provide me with drinks for the night without ever having to buy more than $9 worth of chips as we walked in the door.
Needless to say we had a blast and spent the night in Gwangju at my friend's house, as a trip home would have been too much. The experience was amusingly Korean, as you might imagine if you have ever been to a music concert, club, or bar in Korea. Koreans are incredibly nice drinkers, dancers, and partiers. Unlike other western countries I have engaged in any of the above activities in, Koreans are incredibly calm and polite. Similarly, at the casinobar, though the music was uncomfortably loud and the strobe lights were blinding, everyone there was seated calmly at a table, smiling and nodding. No one threw their arms up when the won, or shouted when they lost. The behavior, from my perspective contrasted the environment in every way.
Now, I realize that many of you who follow the blog are aware that J and I are currently on vacation, and, you may have been hoping for tales of our adventures through Southeast Asia. But, as we will be traveling for better than three weeks, and have only been gone a matter of days, I will be waiting until next week's post to fill you in. You can expect a one week's post on Indonesia, and the two weeks following to detail Vietnam. After those few weeks of gloating about the heat and drool-worthy photos, we will return to our regularly scheduled programming on life and culture in Korea.
Have a great week!
-K
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