Some saw the past and its unique architecture. Me? I saw the people.
I remember making a list of must-see places in Korea back in January. I remember vividly, as I was scrolling through Pinterest, that Bukchon Hanok Village is in the top ten places to visit while in Seoul. So I did what every other tourist would do: include Bukchon Hanok Village in my list.
Bukchon Hanok Village is a traditional village sitting in the middle of the tech-savvy and ultra-modernized capital of South Korea—Seoul. It is preserved for people to see and experience what Korea was like 600 years ago. Now I’m not a huge history buff but stepping in a 600-year-old environment where people of the past have walked in, laughed in, cried in, fell in love in, etc., I was absolutely stunned.
"Now I’m not a huge history buff but stepping in a 600-year-old environment where people of the past have walked in, laughed in, cried in, fell in love in, etc., I was absolutely stunned."
It was nothing short of amazing. Everywhere you look, you see all houses with intricately-designed wooden architectures that bind all of them together, making them look unique yet one. It doesn’t end there, however. What ultimately rendered me speechless was the fact that it’s a fully-functioning village. There are actual people living in those houses. Every single day, especially during the summer, tourists and maybe even locals, flock the area just so they could be transported back to the old Korea. I remember just standing in one corner to observe. People around me were laughing, talking, and taking billions of pictures despite the “Please be silent” signs visible everywhere.
I can’t begin to imagine how the people who live there must feel living somewhere spectacular and historical yet without the promise of privacy. This was something I couldn’t stop thinking about even days after we visited the village. I wonder if the people who live there ever just wanted to have peace and privacy. You know, to just get out of their house to get some fresh air and not be ambushed or bombarded with visitors taking pictures of their houses and maybe even of them.
I wonder what it’s like to be in their shoes and have to deal with something like this every day and possibly for the rest of their lives. I may not know exactly how they feel, but I do know that it takes a lot of patience to be able to stand all the ruckus. It takes a lot of self-control not to just come out and yell at people to shut up. For this very reason, I salute the inhabitants of Bukchon Hanok Village. Yes, there’s a lot to learn about the village itself, but I think there’s also a lot to learn from the people living in the houses. Yes, the houses look majestic and awe-inspiring, but what about the people? I don’t want to further intrude into their privacy, but who knows what kind of stories they have?
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