I know what you’re thinking – a postal museum? – and have this to say: I love getting off the beaten path. Since people seem to cover the same places over and over again, I’ve made it a point to try seeing the places where most foreigners don’t venture.

The 우정박물관 (u-jeong bak-mul-gwan) was originally on the fourth floor of Seoul’s main post office. After the building was torn down, the postal museum moved here in February 2004, and is part of the Ministry of Information and Communication Officials Training Institute in Cheonan. The museum covers the entire history of the postal system, but covers it in a fairly swift fashion that doesn’t take long to see.

Modern art seems to be found in front of virtually every major commercial building, and this one is no exception. Don’t be too intimidated by the size of the building – the postal museum only takes up part of the first floor.

Pose with the Kart Rider! The popular computer game has been around for years.

A 우체사 일부인 (u-che-sa il-bu-in) – a date stamp used during the early 20th century.

One nice thing about museums – even the seemingly normal stuff is saved and preserved.  While Korea was getting its postal system together, one Min Sang Ho attended the 5th congress of the Universal Postal Union in 1897. These are just a couple of the dozens of business cards he received – on left, Manuel Benitez Vitar, and on right, Dr. Horace N. (Newton) Allen – “Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary of the United States of America”.

As the Joseon Dynasty was winding down and Western influences began to creep in, Hong Yeong-sik traveled to Japan and the US to learn about their postal services. After he returned, he reported the need for Korea to create its own postal service. King Gojong saw fit to issue this royal decree in 1884, which opened the 우정총국 (u-jeong-chong-guk) and put Hong Yeong-sik in as the first president.

An interesting timeline of Korean postal uniforms – note the change from traditional Korean to more Japanese-looking uniforms to more Western-looking uniforms. Although no dates are visible, you can make a reasonable guess at when they were worn based on appearance..

Some old-school post boxes – the one on the left dates from the Japanese colonial era (early-to-mid 20th century), and the one on the right dates from the early 1950′s.

A number of panels display the stamps released, one panel per decade. There aren’t as many offerings as you might think, so putting together your own collection might not be too hard.

Behind a glass wall is some postal equipment and the oh-so-fashionable styles of postal workers.

Hey, look – actual stamps! I’m glad the stamps have been brought to life by explaining the history and so on, but it’s also nice to see the actual stamps on display.

One of the first Korean stamps issued in 1884 – note ‘Corea’ – as seen through a magnifying lens.

The tour almost over, we stopped by the information desk, where the attendant motioned  to stamp our own brochure, complete with today’s date. There was no souvenir shop or stamp store – no big deal, since the typical Korean post office has plenty to offer already.

But wait! – the show isn’t quite over yet. Outside the building and off to the side is an old-school postal train used to carry mail across the country. The inside has been refurbished nicely:

Not pictured on the other end of the train is a basic setup of a postal worker sorting mail along the way.

Behold – the world largest mailbox. At 1.8 meters wide, 1.4 meters deep, and 4 meters tall, , you;ll need the stairs to drop in your postcard. It’s functional as well – mail is picked up at 4pm.

For a stamp collector’s take on Korean stamps, check out the appropriately-named blog, Korea Stamp Collector. The museum’s official website is only in Korean. If you’re ready for a day trip from Seoul, or just want to get off the beaten path, this is a pretty cool place to see.

Ratings (out of 5 taeguks): How do I rate destinations?
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Foreigner-friendly:

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Directions to Cheonan Postal Museum: Take line 1 of the Seoul subway system to Cheonan station. This is about as far south as you can get on the subway system, so grab a snack and drink before jumping on. Once at the station, take exit 1 and turn left to street level. At the bottom of the stairs, look right – you’re looking for stairs to an underground market. Cross the road via this underground market, or jaywalk across if that’s your thing. Find the bus stop on the other side, and jump on bus 15 or 51. These come somewhat infrequently – one or the other comes every half hour or so. Pay 1,200 won in cash (Seoul’s T-money cards do NOT work as of April 2011), then ride for about 20 minutes to the 양담말 (yang-dam-mal) bus stop. Walk along the road and follow the signs for the postal museum – it’s about a kilometer to the entrance from the main road. Free admission, but obtain a visitor’s pass from the security guard at the front gate. Open 9am-7pm Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm Saturday.

© Chris Backe – 2011
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

This post was originally published on my blog, Chris in South Korea. If you are reading this on another website and there is no linkback or credit given, you are reading an UNAUTHORIZED FEED.

Today is Teacher’s Day! Also known as Seu-seungwehnal (스승의 날).

History

Teacher Day has been celebrated on May 15th since 1963. The day began when a group of Red Cross youth members visited their former teachers who were either hospitalized or had retired and since then Teacher’s Day has become a chance for students to once again remember their teachers.

Culture

Under Confucianism there is a saying which goes ‘Do not even step on the shadows of your teachers.’  Whether you are Buddhist or Christian, the Confusiast ideas permeate Korean culture. This saying implies how much respect Koreans showed to their teachers in the past.

Even President Obama praised Korea for the strong respect it has for its teachers. President Obama said in his speech on March 14, 2011 that “We need to help every child get ahead. In South Korea, teachers are known as nation builders and I think it’s time we treat our teachers with the same level of respect right here in the United States of America”.  

Just like Parent’s Day, carnations are a traditional gift given to teachers as a sign of appreciation. Students also give them “love cards” as a way to tell teachers about their appreciation. These are usually student-made. Parties are thrown by universities and schools, awarding the best educators for their hard work.

A student giving a teacher a carnation, 1965

Foreign teachers recieving carnations from students in Korea.

Chonji, Then and Now

A 2009 Anti-corruption and Civil Rights Commission survey found that among 1,660 parents surveyed, 39.8 percent said they give chonji to teachers on Teacher’s Day. When asked what kinds of chonji they give to teachers, 63.1 percent of respondents said they choose gifts, 26.4 percent said they give a gift voucher and 7.8 percent said they give cash gifts.

And what is chonji? In Korea, the practice of parents offering under-the-table bonuses is known as chonji (촌지). Chonji means “a token of goodwill” in Korean, and doesn’t connote anything illegal. The practice of giving teachers gifts is thought to date back to the Goryeo (918-1392) and Joseon (1392-1910) Dynasties. According to a recent article in the Korea Joongang Daily, due to a wave of corruption within teachers in the country, the government officially announced in 2008 that teachers who accept chonji should be fired. Investigators have surprised teachers heading home from school checking their bags or cars for chonji-related gifts. Now that is intense!

My experience

I got the wonderful surprise of walking into my first grade period to my girls screaming and the room filled with balloons. My desk had a piece of cardboard that had mini chocolate cakes (they know me so well!) placed in a circle with a cute heart candle decorating the center piece. AWWW! The school then gave us fruit and rice cakes as a treat.

One class later, the students remind me it’s also Friday the 13th. To which I reply, well since its Teachers Day then the day is nulled to me. Them on the other hand…..

Two classes later, I have them play Rock, Paper, Scissors (Kai-Bai-Bo 가위바위보) to determine who gets to read in class. One of my student gets so flustered she begins to cry after she finishes. Dangit! What a way to end Teachers Day.

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I like Chinese food. I like the stuff they make in America, I like the take-out places in Europe, and I like the real stuff in China. That being said, I’m also no purist when it comes to Chinese cuisine. If it tastes good, then I’m happy. If it’s bad, then I’m not.

I’ve had plenty of ‘bad’ Chinese food episodes throughout the world too, of course. Most of them have actually occurred in Korea. I find that the main culprit is usually too much sauce. I don’t want my sweet and sour pork to be bathing in it – I just want it dabbled a little. I guess I like the more understated flavor.

Up on the third floor above the 7-Eleven

Many of my ‘good’ Chinese experiences have happened at the Shanghai restaurant in Kyungsung. The sweet and sour pork (tang-soo-yook) is nicely done (not too much sauce!) and the spring rolls and dim-sum are fantastic. The menu is full of other dishes that seem a little more ‘Korean’, and I can’t really speak for those, but if you stick to the typical ‘western-Chinese’ dishes, you won’t be disappointed. That being said, if you’re looking for some authentic gourmet Chinese food that tastes like it does in China, this might not be your place.

Like other Chinese restaurants here, the orders are big enough to share with one or two other people. Main dishes cost around 13-15k, and smaller sides (spring rolls, dim-sum, soup, etc) are 6-9k.

The atmosphere is also a big reason why I like this place. It’s dimly lit and laid back, but there are always people around having fun. It’s a great place to just have some beer, eat some good food, and talk to your friends.

Directions: Kyungsung metro exit 5. Walk one block and turn left (just before the Outback). Shanghai is on the first corner on your right, on the 3rd floor above the 7-Eleven.

Author’s note: ‘Coming to Korea’ posts are written with tourists in mind. For the complete series, please check out the ‘coming to Korea’ category

Seoul is a huge place – beyond being one of the largest cities in the world, the surrounding metropolitan area is filled with plenty of other attractions. While you can spend weeks touring Seoul and not see it all, there are several places you can safely skip if you’re on a tight time schedule.

1. Unhyeongung - one of Seoul’s five palaces, albeit the smallest.
Why you should see it: it’s calm and peaceful – a nice break from the bustling streets..
Why you should skip it: You’ve already seen one of Korea’s other, larger palaces. While there are subtle differences, the untrained eye will have a hard time seeing them.

2. Itaewon – Korea’s largest selection of international cuisine
Why you should see it: You like to party it up with locals that speak English and are more familiar with Western customs
Why you should skip it: It’s a tourist trap with an earned (though fading) reputation of seediness. Go buy souvenirs somewhere else – Insa-dong or Jogyesa are downtown.

3. World Cup Stadium – Korea was co-host of the World Cup in 2002.
Why you should see it: there’s a game – Korea’s soccer leagues are quite good, and admission is cheap.
Why you should skip it: because it’s a freakin’ stadium – who goes to a stadium if there’s nothing going on? Keep walking to the World Cup Park instead.

4. Olympic Park – part of the 1988 Summer Olympic Festivities
Why you should see it: there’s plenty to see here – enough to keep you busy for a day. Sculptures galore, greenspace, some ancient Korean history to learn about, and the Olympics themselves.
Why you should skip it: there’s plenty to see here – enough to keep you busy for a day. Its size and diversity is either exactly what you might be seeking or a reason to go elsewhere.

5. Times Square - one of the largest, most modern malls around.
Why you should see it: you love shopping and have some money to spend.
Why you shoud skip it: because it’s basically a huge Western mall. You didn’t travel 7,000 miles (11,265 kilometers) to visit a mall, did you? If you’re looking to shop, check out Dapsimni’s antiques or the Seoul Folk Flea Market in a modern building.

Readers – where else in Seoul is worth passing on if you’re short on time?

© Chris Backe – 2011
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

This post was originally published on my blog, Chris in South Korea. If you are reading this on another website and there is no linkback or credit given, you are reading an UNAUTHORIZED FEED.