Home

Little  story

Gallery

Leica M story

Wasteland

Hara Chair Story

 

 

                                                            

                                                                         * Clicking each image will make large one for you.

 

   If you want to see and know something beautiful, you may be disappointed.  Because I will write and show natural and ordinary lives and features of korea. It sometimes goes to you as the beautiful but sometimes not. But in my opinion, this is really for you who want to know korea more seriously. Whenever I have time to write, I will describe them one by one. It will take more than several years to complete this page for my busy days. But it will surely be done.

 

        

  

  Notice: The pictures posted on this hompage don't tell all about Korea. You must not take Korea for a poor country in Africa or Asia. Korea is a highly developed country now. If you want to see only the beautiful look of Korea,  please visit to other sites . You can get it. It is natural that one says his own thoughts and feelings using his own language. If you want to know where Korea is, click the small map and it will tell you that.   

 

   In my view, this picture is the feature of present korea. Two storied gate, Namdaemun, is located in Seoul and the treasure that almost koreans consider best of the best heritage of korea. But look arround. You can't understand why korean did make that feature. Unbalance made by traditional and modern buildings.  It can be found in almost of areas in korea. Korea has great traditional culture as other countries do. But sad to say, we, koreans didn't take advantage of it. .........

 

 

 Seoul?  It is not easy to say about Seoul. Seoul is the big complex made up of lots of modern and traditional components. It also has many self-contradictions as other big cities in the world. I don't know how much and how exactly I can describe them. As time passes and I grow older, I will post the pictures and write about them one by one. Though they are only fractions, each of them will say its truth. Sometimes others may not agree with me but I have to look through my own window as there is no absolute window of view.  At first, I would like to show the views of Seoul. These pictures were taken from Namsan tower which stands on Nam mountain at the center of this city.  

 

    Views of Seoul  December. 2002.

  

 

 

   Seoul is the capital of Korea. There live about ten million peoples. It is 1/4 of all south koreans. Almost economic activities, cultures, political workings  of Korea  is concentrated in Seoul. Then if you know Seoul, you can know Korea not a little. But Seoul is not everything of Korea.  Did you look around? Well, why don't you walk into this city along the small streets in it with me? 

 

        

 

               

 

   At first, you can see the streets crowded by many cars and people. Recently lots of peoples have their own cars and comute using them. It results in traffic jams. It always makes me annoyed. Then I prefer to use subway. The area which shows high buildings on 'views of Seoul' is CBD and shopping malls. It has features like many cities in other countries. That's not my concern. It is essential to this huge city but I don't like it. Cultures of unknown nationality, 'money is the best.'  We have to walk more......

   

  

Story 1 - Subway Story

 

 

       

   Subway and Bus are the most common transpotation method used by peoples in Seoul. Moving along the lines of subway and bus can show lots of lives of ordinary peoples in Korea. You can find many traditional markects here and there. They are the places which keep  much more traditional atmosphere than modern markects in CBD. I really love shopping in 'si-jang', korean name of traditional markect, 'si' means city and 'jang' means markect. I will make a gallery about 'si-jang' later. I am sure your going to sijang will make you a great pleasure. You can feel the korea.  .......

 

  

Story 2 - Traditional Markects

 

     

 

      

   Pictures above is the traditional markects which you can see everywhere in Korea. Recently the number of huge departments and other modern shopping malls is increasing rapidly in big and small cities. But traditional markects are still the place to which most of koreans love to go. There are lots of traditional foods and traditional goods, which are very cheap and show characteristic of Korea. Especially one in countryside which is held per 5 days is the most beautiful and interesting. Sorry, I don't have good pictures about 'sijang' now. I have a plan to take lots of pictures of traditional markects in Seoul and countrysides in Korea. I will post more.

 

 

Story  3 - Mothers in korea

   A mother waiting for her son at a bus terminal in Seoul. It's common scenes at bus terminus or train stations conecting urban areas with countries. What are in her bundles? I can say with confidence they must be things, foods she cooked or vegetables she grew, which she brought for her son or daughter from country. But these scenes are gradually being lessened as time goes by.

   In the past days, mother in korea meant sacrifice for her family, endurance, passive being, and obedience to her husband though it was not always. But it has been changing. Today mother in korea are active and sometimes means a over-enthusiastic about her children's ebucation. Nobody doubts that is a source of higher standard of education in korea than any other asian countries, may be except japan. But sometimes husbands in korea feel the weight of their wives' hips on them much more than the past and children are afraid of their mothers more than their fathers. But mothers' sacrifice for family is constant though not same as the past. Mothers in korea are still beautiful. But I am happy to be born in the past.

 

 

Story  4 - A report of the dogs in korea

  

 * I will post more pictures and add descriptions on them whenever I have time to do.  

 

 

Story  5 - Two genuine doctors who I met in Korea

 

Welcome to www.leica-gallery.co.kr

 

This is for my family  and  my friend, Patrick L. Groleau. But I welcome everyone to my homepage.

 

 By  Hwayong, Kim     khy906@yahoo.co.kr

Since 11. 2001.

Page View 20 / 2428493