The Korea herald reported today that the Sungnyemen gate in Seoul is nearing completion. I was in Seoul when the vandalism occurred and people were in shock the morning of the incident. For those of you that aren't familiar with the incident, on the cold evening of February 10 2008 an elderly Korean man with a grudge set fire to the near millennium old gate. At the time, the story was that the perpetrator had had property taken from him by the government. He felt he was not properly compensated. According to The Korea Herald, he was eventually found to have mental problems. The Korea Times reported the same.
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| Before |
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| After |
Every news channel devoted full time coverage to the event and specifically the perpetrator. Every discussion for the entire day was centered on the gate. At the time I was a bit surprised that and old city gate held such value. People wept outside burnt shell for days.
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| Namdaemun Market |
The last time I was in Seoul, the gate, located in Namdaemun Market, was completely covered in tarps. I first saw it I was not that impressed. It was simply an old gate in the middle of a modern city. Having seen how important this monument was to the Korean people, comparisons to Mt Rushmore or The Washington Monument are not far off the mark, I am eagerly anticipating the completion of the restoration.
According to Wikipedia, both China Southern and Asian fly into Seoul from Changchun and a quick check on their websites show prices of around $260...not too bad for an extended weekend I have plenty of places to stay in Seoul and my cousin will soon be stationed there. I'll have to check the new regulations for soldiers, but if I can take him out in Hongdae for a night it might be worth the trip.
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