A Trip to War Memorial of Korea

War Memorial of Korea, Seoul, South Korea

     This was my first time visiting Seoul, South Korea. Apart from the palace (Gyeongbokgung) and Namsan Tower, I had limited knowledge about Seoul and places that I should visit. One day, I had some time in the morning to look up for places that I wanted to go. I found this war museum, and I immediately knew that I had to go to this place. I was really excited to learn more about the history of Korea.  

     I just learned from the museum that the Korean War started almost right after the end of World War II, beginning with the separation of Korea into North Korea and South Korea. It literally divided the country according to the imaginary latitude line. And this had a huge impact on many family in both Koreas. Many stories about families that would not see each other again after the separation were told through different media, but I did not really realize how scary those stories were until I came here. 

Statue of Brothers,  In front of War Memorial of Korea, Seoul, South Korea

      For example, the story of Statue of Brothers is about the unification of two brothers in the battle field. A part of its English text read as follow:

a scene where a family's older brother, an ROK officer, and his younger brother, a North Korean soldier, meet in a battlefield and express reconciliation, love, and forgiveness.

This story made me understand how unpleasant and terrible this war was, and how unnecessary to have such a war. In addition before I came here, I had a question that why not South Korea just destroyed and took over North Korea since South Korea had the United States as a supporter. However, I forgot to take into account that China and the Soviet Union were behind North Korea at that time, making it impossible for South Korea to win the war. As the result, these two countries are still divided even today with no sign of unification anytime soon.

A great host from University of Chicago during the visit

      But the most powerful story of this museum is not about the war itself, but about how quickly South Korea becomes a developed country after the end of the war. The war was officially ended on Monday, July 27, 1953 and South Korea had almost nothing left at that time. But now South Korea had the world-largest smartphone company, Samsung, and many huge automobile companies like Hyundai. The rise of this country is incredible and is proper for us to study in order to understand how they can rise so quickly even though they still have many obstacles such as frequent fights with North Korea.

ps. Another great place to visit in Seoul is Bangpo Bridge. The show, light, music and the atmosphere at night are perfect for anyone who want some romantic time with their couples.