Seodaemun Prison History Hall Funday Korea Network

Hello guys!!! This is a video about Seodaemun Prison History Hall that my friend Edi and I join for FunDay Network Video Contest as to celebrate this year the 100th anniversary of Independent Movement. Please enjoy it and don't forget to like it!!!!

Sincerely,

Nabeela Ami

Seodaemun Prison

Seodaemun Prison

Have you ever heard about the Seodaemun Prison? Foreign tourist or other people might be unfamiliar with the Seodaemun prison, but not the Korean themselves. For those who do not have any background of Korean history, might not know that South Korea has been invaded by the Japanese before. Believe or not, behind this advanced and successful country, South Korea has faced a dark era which is during the Japanese colonization. During this colonization, Korean citizen has been under strict control by the Japanese. Their country, people and land resources have been totally monopolized by the Japanese, not to mentioned the amount of tears and bloodshed during this era. It was beyond words to describe. Because of this, there were many nameless patriots that have sacrificed themselves to achieve independence for their beloved country, South Korea. On the 1st March 1919, the patriot started the independence movement in which they gather all the people for the demonstration act to fight against the dictatorship power of Japanese and to free South Korea from the miserable life under them. As a result of this action, all of the Patriots and people involved in this demonstration has been arrested and locked up in the Seodaemun prison. Seodaemun prison is the place that has been designed by the Japanese to place all of these protestors.

This prison has been a living hell for all of the Patriots, the Japanese got 1001 ways to tortured all of them in order to acquire the information about who is responsible to the strike and spread the independent spirit to all over the nation. They even execute the patriot that they believe will cause harm to them and the nation. They were scared that the Korean people will rise up and go against them. My most favorite patriot is Yu Gwan Sun (유관순), she has shown that age and gender is not a barrier when it comes to fighting for your own country right and independence. She is the one who distributes the handmade "Taegukgi" (태극기) a Korean flag and ignited the protest starting from Cheonan, her own hometown. Her parents have been killed in front of her eyes and she has been captured and sent away to Seodaemun prison. She organizes a demonstration with other inmates of Seodaemun prison to celebrate the anniversary of the movement by shouting "대한 독립 만세" which means "Long Live Korean Independence" or "Hooray for the Independence". As a consequence, she has been placed in solitary confinement at the solitude basement cell of Seodaemun. There she has been brutally tortured and after a few months she passed away as a result of the tortured. Nowadays, during the independence movement celebration, you will see her as an icon which symbolizes the true spirit of an independent.

When I entered the Seodaemun prison I felt the sorrow, coldness and grieve which faced by the Patriots. The emptiness of the cell hall gives a catastrophe feeling of the Patriots which we could imagine throughout walking in the corridors of the prison. The small room, surrounded by white wall and thick wooden with metals bar door has separated them not only from the freedom but also from their loved one; but they sacrificed all of that because of their sense of responsibilities towards the freedom of their beloved country and the future of the young generations. They are truly a hero that is really brave to make changes even though they know that their opponent is much more powerful; for those reasons, the Japanese felt intimidated and scared of the independent spirit that Korean people shows to them. That is why they capture and locked them up.

There is an execution building where in front of this building you can see a tree planted near to the building compound, they said patriot that been dragged to this building for execution will grab on to this tree and wailed with deep resentment; that is why this tree is called as "Wailing poplar", by only standing near the tree already gives me a chilled feeling and cold shiver. The basement jail cell will lead you to all the torturing method which were used by the Japanese towards the patriot and you can even try out some of the torturing devices that they have replicated such as narrow room torture and spiked box. In the narrow room torture, you will feel how stuffy and hard it is to even stand up properly and usually the patriot or protestor will be kept in this room up to 24hour. I just can not imagine how brutally they been treated, this unthinkable torture that been strike by Japanese toward Korean patriot is really cruel including the cutting of body part, skin peeling and rupturing of the internal organs. What can I say is they are really sadistic as they can enjoy inflicting the pain of other people.

I hope that other people would found this place to be interesting as much as I do, being here have changed me as I feel more patriotic even though South Korea is not my country. This visit has made me realized that we need to love and willing to sacrifice for our own country so that the new generations would cherish their life. History is important just like saying from Edmund Burke "Those who don't know history are doomed to repeat it", learning history starting from a young age is really encourageable, and South Korea have shown me this since I saw a lot of parents bring their kids to many historical places including Seodaemun Prison. Even the School in South Korea have made history subject more interesting by taking their student for a field trip that includes quizzes in which they can find the answer directly. This is how they educate the young one on showing them how their late grandparents sacrificed for their own sake.

Seodaemun prison may not be South Korea that you have imagined, but this place holds 1001 history and pain. By visiting here you will not only become more aware of the history of South Korea but also your own country history. Peace in the name of love 💕

Spiked Box- the Japanese army will kick this box so the person inside it will hit the spike and end up wounded.

"Wailing Poplar" the tree that located near to the Execution Hall

Interrogation room and types of torturing devices.

Prison registration cards of some of the independence activists who were imprisoned at the Seodaemun Prison

The famous Patriots Son Byong Hi and Yu Gwan Sun

The actual layout of Seodaemun Prison

Some of the patriot picture that been hanging on the Seodaemun Prison wall

Located at Dongnimmun Subway Station line 3 Exit 5. 

The entrance fee:

•  Adults (over 19) : 3000won
• Teenagers (13-18) : 1500won
• Children (7-12) : 1000won
• Free: Children under 6, Senior over 65 and people with disabilities.

Operating Hours

• Mar-Oct : 9:30-18:00
• Nov-Feb: 9:30-17:00
• the last admission is 30min before closing time.

 

Sincerely,
Nabeela Ami Mohd Yusof

Juknokwon Bamboo Forest

As we all know Japan has Arashiyama bamboo forest located in Kyoto, but we may not know that South Korea has a bamboo forest too. 

If you looking for a peaceful gateway, Juknokwon is a must place to visit. This bamboo forest will serve you with an amazing view and calm experience. It has 8 trails with different themes that you can discover and each trail will lead you the beautiful scenery that will rejuvenate your mind and boost up your energy since the bamboo tree can absorb 4 times more carbon dioxide and produce up to 35% of oxygen to compare to other trees. You can have a great photo session here since nature is the best background of all. This place also has been recognized by UNESCO.

Juknokwon Bamboo Forest is located at Damyang; Jeollanam-do province/Gwangju; from Seoul to Gwangju will take about 3 hours and 30 minutes. So, if you have more time to spare and wanted to enjoy nature, you should come here.

If you are traveling from Seoul, you could ride the Express Bus to Damyang and the main transportation to Juknokwom Bamboo Forest is the bus, so from the Bus Terminal to Damyang will take approximately 15-20minutes. 

Fee ticket :

Adults- 3000won (19-64 y.o)
Teenager- 1500 won (13-18 y.o)
KIds- 1000won (7-11 y.o)

*for those that age 65 years old and above, 5 years old below the ticket is free.

Express Bus to Damyang:
17,000- 23000won

Intercity Bus Damyang toJuknokwon
1,450won

with  my Wow Korea Squad

P/s: Juknokwon also is a filming location for various movies and drama. Nearby Juknokwon Forest there is also another interesting place to be visited such as Metasequoia-lined road.

Sincerely;

Nabeela Ami

K Style Hub!!! a must place to visit :)

Hello! 안녕하세요!!!! 

Did you guys know about K Style Hub? I didn't know about it before and I felt at loss on not going to this place first before exploring Seoul. This place is complete with all the tourist information that you need to discover not only for Seoul but for all the province in South Korea. Everything related to South Korea such as their culture, Health,  Hallyu (Korean waves), food and tourism you can get it all in here.

You can start your exploration from the 2nd floor until the 5th floor of this building. Each floor serves you with the interesting and interactive information that you experience. Since they have VR experience zone in which you could try out the virtual tour to other part or provinces in South Korea; and if you a fan of Kpop/ Hallyu don't miss a chance to take pictures with your favorite idols at the picture booth that they provided. 

The tourist information center will provide you not only with the tourism consultation but other services as well such as storage services for goods, etc. By the way, did you know that tourist information hotline is operating 24/7 in case you have something or needed some help just call 1330; they will be there to help you. You can get the brochure of many tourist attraction spots just for free here. 

You can even get a medical consultation at the Medical Tourist Information center that they provided, they are professional in their field so don't worry about it guys! They can give or advice you even on which types of tea that will suit for your health and more interesting info related to your health. 

You can learn more about the types of food for each province and what kind of food that they will consume during a special holiday such as chuseok, lunar new years and others in more details explanation. You can buy the food and experience it yourself at the cafeteria, the price is affordable and delicious as well, so don't miss a chance to taste it, and if you love to learn how to cook Korean dishes, you can make reservations for your group for the classes but please remember that is not free classes since you will be taught by a professional chef.

Each of the wood partition contains information about the food and the description.

Korean cooking classes.

The cafeteria, where you can enjoy the food.

If you wanted to try out their traditional clothes; hanbok. You can try it for free here, and if you are traveling in a group of 10 or more people, you can make a reservation earlier. The reservations are made based on "First come, First serve" terms. They also provide a free craft section for those who crave for more cultural activity and the good news about it; you can bring it back as a souvenir for yourself.

Good news for Muslims tourist! they provide a Musolla/Prayer Room for male and female as well, how convenient is that; since not many places provided this kind of services.

Interesting info! Get the K Style Hub pamphlet and collect all the stamp for each floor and redeem a free gift after you complete everything!!!!

How to get there?

Location : Jonggak Station line 1 exit 5 near to cheonggyecheon stream.

Maps : https://goo.gl/maps/aqA5oDweZt8tZtHfA

For more information :

Operating Hours and Contact Information:

• 2F: 09:00 - 20:00 (Open all year round), +82-2-729-9496~9
• 3F: 09:00~19:00(Mon-Fri)/09:00~20:00(Sat-Sun) (Open all year round), +82-2-729-9457
• 4F: 10:00 - 20:00 (Open all year round), +82-2-6053-7177~7179
• 5F: 09:00~19:00(Mon-Fri)/09:00~20:00(Sat-Sun) (Open all year round), +82-2-729-9433
  (Hanbok, Traditional Craft experience: 09:00~18:00(Mon-Sun))

*Group reservations: ☎ +82-2-729-9457 (Reservation advised for guided tours) 

Sincerely,

Nabeela Ami

Halal Kitchen Seoul

Hello! 안녕하세요!!!

Welcome back, guys! previously on my post, I did share about renting hanbok nearby Gyeongbukgung palace; so for this post, I will share to you how to get halal food nearby this location. If you are wandering around Gyeongbukgung and Bukcheon hanok village; I suggest you stop by the 'Halal Kitchen' a Korean Muslim kitchen that provides halal Korean food menu such as Samgyetang (ginseng chicken soup) and Bulgogi (Korean grilled beef).

The place atmosphere is so nice since the restaurant is built in a hanok which Korean traditional house. You can enjoy the food with an amazing view that surrounding this restaurant. The best part of this restaurant is the owner himself will explain it to you about the dishes that you order. He will serve it to you after that; this is what we call great services!

The Halal Kitchen owner in front of his Restaurant.

p/s: Did you know during summer Korean really like to eat Samgyetang even though it is hot chicken soup, because for them; they fight hot day with hot dishes. They believe the hotness will give you more energy and makes your body feel a bit of relief from it.

For the location; just click the link below :

Halal Kitchen Location

Hope you enjoy your dining here like I do!


Sincerely,
Nabeela Ami