Korea: Modern Life

All photos on this page
© John Holstein

A mini-park in a corner of Myeongryundong 3ga

A house in one of the disappearing "moon towns" (dal dongnae) of Seoul. They are called moon town because, like the favela Ciudad de Deus in the movie City of God, they are high up on the hills (which used to make access difficult before most people could afford a car), affording the residents a better view of the moon.. See more photos of the neighborhood here. (This one is Seongbuk 2-dong.)

This is another moon town, Baeksa (Junggye Bon-dong). Here are some more views.

Association of Aunts and Mothers for Nurturing Narcissism. Hongdae-ap neighborhood.

Chair art, Daehakno.

Downtown Seoul and Namsan, from Mt. Inwang

Lovers' Leap, at the top of Namsan.

Sunggyungwan University is the row of buildings above the main gate of Changdeok Palace (left, center).

This restaurant's walls are made of old cheongjong (rice wine) bottles. On the road to Mangweon Temple.

Stationary store in Hyehwadong

Giving the finger to cleanliness. The garbage on the sidewalk is not an unfamiliar sight on many streets of Seoul.

Summer in the park. More photos of Maronnier Park here.

Free Market near HongIk University. See more photos here.

Rennovating a building owned by Seoul Women's College. In Myeongryundong.

Entering the eclipse of 2009.

No, the photo isn't touched up.

High school students use their notebooks in the Baekiljang, a poetry contest at Myoungryundang, Sungkyunkwan University, in a centuries-old Confucian tradition.

A well-secured wheel.

Looking over the Secret Gardens (Changdeok Palace) to downtown Seoul, from Sungkyunkwan Unversity.

The newly restored Gyeongbok Palace. From Mount Inwang.

A "billa apatu" canyon in Seoul.

A home repair shop in Jeongneung.

Old littered by the new. Myeongryundong.

The key and shoe repair shop in Myeoungryundong.

We get American blues and jazz from the 1930s and '40s at this semi-funky cafe in Daehakno.

Inside Mo' Better Blues.

A lower middle-class neighborhood in Seoul in back of Sungkyunkwan University, Myeoungryundong.

One section of Jeongneung.

Vendors clog the sidewalks of Cheonggyecheon 8-ga, Seoul.

Affluent Pyeongchangdong, northern Seoul

Another part of Pyeongchangdon. It's in the foothills of the Bukhansan range.

High-rise apartments loom in the future of Korean traditional homes. It's surprising that these houses have lasted this long.

Chonggak, which houses the old bell that is traditionally rung at New Year.

Downtown Seoul, with the mountain -- or is it a hill? -- Namsan in the background.

Daehakno, in central Seoul. By day... (Photo by Cunningham)

...and by night. Always hopping. (Photo by Cunningham)

This is a photo of a historical moment -- Seoul isn't known for great sunsets.

Skywires. In northern Seoul, less affluent than southern Seoul, they have yet to put the power and communication cables underground.

Moving into my apartment in Jeongneung.

A relatively comfortable "moon town" in Jeongneung, in the foothills of Mount Bukhan (and right in back of this photographer's apartment). A panorama view follows...

The moon still shines on the West Sea even as it did in 1980, when this photo was taken...

...and bamboo products have not yet given way to plastic.(2005)

In Samcheong-dong, near the center of Seoul: Are the plants growing from the mud base of the roof tiles a sign of neglect or of a refined aesthetic sense?

Old and new, ever-changing Seoul. (Donam-dong)

Korean clans of aristocratic lineage maintains their ancestral estates built when the clan was in its peak in social status. This is the women's quarters of a Yu clan house in Andong. (2006)

That door isn't superimposed. It's been there, wondering for years what on earth it's supposed to be doing there.

A city bus in Seoul. Note the card reader by the door. When you get on at the front door, you pass it over the reader; and when you get off, you do it again. This gives you a free transfer. (2005) No more bus girls, like we had in the good old days (below).

Getting away from the city crowds on the weekend; hiking in the mountains around Seoul. (Courtesy of the Korea Herald, circa 2005.)

"Night Train," a place for female companionship. Just a couple doors down is a similar bar, named "A Chorus of Solos."

Arirang Goge, Donam-dong

Korea: Modern Life

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Myeongryundong 3ga






A mini-park in a corner of Myeongryundong 3ga





















A house in one of the disappearing "moon towns" (dal dongnae) of Seoul. They are called moon town because, like the favela Ciudad de Deus in the movie City of God, they are high up on the hills (which used to make access difficult before most people could afford a car), affording the residents a better view of the moon.. See more photos of the neighborhood here. (This one is Seongbuk 2-dong.)






This is another moon town, Baeksa (Junggye Bon-dong). Here are some more views.






Association of Aunts and Mothers for Nurturing Narcissism. Hongdae-ap neighborhood.






Chair art, Daehakno.











Wired Seoul






Downtown Seoul and Namsan, from Mt. Inwang











Lovers' Leap, at the top of Namsan.






Sunggyungwan University is the row of buildings above the main gate of Changdeok Palace (left, center).






This restaurant's walls are made of old cheongjong (rice wine) bottles. On the road to Mangweon Temple.












Stationary store in Hyehwadong






Giving the finger to cleanliness. The garbage on the sidewalk is not an unfamiliar sight on many streets of Seoul.






Daehakno











Summer in the park. More photos of Maronnier Park here.






Free Market near HongIk University. See more photos here.






Rennovating a building owned by Seoul Women's College. In Myeongryundong.






Entering the eclipse of 2009.






Vendor, Chongno






No, the photo isn't touched up.






High school students use their notebooks in the Baekiljang, a poetry contest at Myoungryundang, Sungkyunkwan University, in a centuries-old Confucian tradition.






A well-secured wheel.






Looking over the Secret Gardens (Changdeok Palace) to downtown Seoul, from Sungkyunkwan Unversity.






The newly restored Gyeongbok Palace. From Mount Inwang.






A "billa apatu" canyon in Seoul.






A home repair shop in Jeongneung.






Old littered by the new. Myeongryundong.






The key and shoe repair shop in Myeoungryundong.






We get American blues and jazz from the 1930s and '40s at this semi-funky cafe in Daehakno.






Inside Mo' Better Blues.






A lower middle-class neighborhood in Seoul in back of Sungkyunkwan University, Myeoungryundong.






One section of Jeongneung.






In Waryongdong






Vendors clog the sidewalks of Cheonggyecheon 8-ga, Seoul.






Donam-dong






Affluent Pyeongchangdong, northern Seoul






Another part of Pyeongchangdon. It's in the foothills of the Bukhansan range.






High-rise apartments loom in the future of Korean traditional homes. It's surprising that these houses have lasted this long.






Chonggak, which houses the old bell that is traditionally rung at New Year.






Downtown Seoul, with the mountain -- or is it a hill? -- Namsan in the background.






Daehakno, in central Seoul. By day... (Photo by Cunningham)






...and by night. Always hopping. (Photo by Cunningham)











This is a photo of a historical moment -- Seoul isn't known for great sunsets.






Skywires. In northern Seoul, less affluent than southern Seoul, they have yet to put the power and communication cables underground.






Wired Seoul.






Moving into my apartment in Jeongneung.






A relatively comfortable "moon town" in Jeongneung, in the foothills of Mount Bukhan (and right in back of this photographer's apartment). A panorama view follows...






Panoramic view of the moon village at the entrance to Mount Bukhan National Forest. This is unique, not only because it's one of the few remaining such villages but also because, with its trees and vegetable plots, it reminds one of a small village in the countryside. One day, when I was taking photos of this village with its nostalgic allure, a resident challenged me because she thought I was focusing on their poverty. For photos of other moon villages, click here and here.






The moon still shines on the West Sea even as it did in 1980, when this photo was taken...






...and bamboo products have not yet given way to plastic.(2005)






In Samcheong-dong, near the center of Seoul: Are the plants growing from the mud base of the roof tiles a sign of neglect or of a refined aesthetic sense?











Old and new, ever-changing Seoul. (Donam-dong)






Korean clans of aristocratic lineage maintains their ancestral estates built when the clan was in its peak in social status. This is the women's quarters of a Yu clan house in Andong. (2006)






In an apartment building's elevator. The graffiti for the sign on the left says "Jang-pung Prohibited." (Jang-pung is a magical martial arts move that knocks an opponent over by a wind emanating from the open palm.) The graffiti for the sign on the right says "Leg-crossing Prohibited." (Crossing ones legs is considered rude in Korea, because it's a casual posture, to be the sign of a brazen attitude if struck in the presence of one's "betters.")






That door isn't superimposed. It's been there, wondering for years what on earth it's supposed to be doing there.






A city bus in Seoul. Note the card reader by the door. When you get on at the front door, you pass it over the reader; and when you get off, you do it again. This gives you a free transfer. (2005) No more bus girls, like we had in the good old days (below).






The bus had one door, and the bus girl collected fares, watched the back for oncoming traffic (and signalled it by slapping the side of the bus loud enough for the driver to hear), and "helped" the passengers on and off. The bus girls disappeared in the 1980s. (The photo is from an exhibit held at the National War Museum.)






Getting away from the city crowds on the weekend; hiking in the mountains around Seoul. (Courtesy of the Korea Herald, circa 2005.)






"Night Train," a place for female companionship. Just a couple doors down is a similar bar, named "A Chorus of Solos."













Merry Christmas.




Arirang Goge, Donam-dong


1994	2006
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