Gamcheon Culture Village

Gamcheon Culture Village is really interesting historically as well as artistically. Gamcheon used to be a slum where only the poorest people in Busan would live. Very few people actually lived there until the Korean War began. The War forced many people in other parts of the country out of their homes. The refugees then fled to the safety of Busan, the only area that remained free from fighting. Busan's population grew immensely during the Korean War. The homeless refugees needed a place to live quickly, so many built makeshift shacks of scrap metal and wood in the Gamcheon area. The slum that was Gamcheon during that time changed quite dramatically thanks to a man name Cho Chol Je. He founded a religion called Taegukdo, which believes that the Taeguk (the symbol on the Korean flag) represents the true meaning of life and the universe. Using gifts of rice and candy, he converted the majority of Gamcheon refugees to his religion. Cho helped the residents rebuild their homes in brick and concrete, and the village was renamed Taeguk Village in 1955. Even during the 1990's as the rest of Busan erected skyscrapers, Gamcheon remained poor. In 2009, the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism began the Dreaming of Machu Picchu in Busan project. The government put money into the village and hired artists to paint murals and install art pieces, some created with the assistance of residents. In 2010, the Miro Miro (Maze Maze) project added 12 more works, alley paintings, and path markers. The Village still has about 10,000 residents as well as many tourists and photographers who visit each day. 

There were four different houses in the village, each housing it's own small art exhibit or installation. There were murals depicting scenes of traditional Korea, book cases and books painted along a stairway in a small alleyway, colorful fish done graffiti-style in a parking area, planters made from pants (panters), little bird statues with human faces, and any other number of beautiful oddity. Visitors to the village enjoyed posing with a Little Prince statue overlooking the hillside. Adorable little cafes cover the top of the hill, along the main road, while the small alleyways below are primarily private residences. Gianni and I ate a delicious and authentic plate of fish and chips from a restaurant called The Plate. The owners spoke really good English. The Plate is built into an old house, so the staircase to the second floor sitting area was really narrow. The food was delicious, and we got to sit and people watch while eating it. The hill was steeper than you'd think. At one point, we bought a map with stamps to collect throughout the village. I had seen people walking around with maps but, apparently, we went in the back entrance and didn't see the tourists information booths where you could buy them. Two of the stamp locations offered free postcards of the village if you went there to get the stamp; one was the highest viewing point in the village and the other was the Community Center, nearly at the base of the hill. It was a super hot day in Busan, so going up those hills was definitely a workout, especially with a cold that doesn't allow me to breath properly. We spent about three hours in the village, and I collected all the stamps as well as my two postcards. By that time, we were so sweaty and tired that all we wanted to do was go home. Gamcheon Culture Village is a really excellent place to visit, but we needed a break. 

More than any of the art installations, I just loved how quaint this little village was. All the colorful houses were gorgeous and so different from the typical Korean urban architecture. There was only one tall apartment building on the whole hill, and it really looked out of place given all that surrounded it. The hill had the village to the right and some terraced fields growing crops to the left. The view was further enhanced by the ocean and a few small islands peaking out in the distance.  

On Sunday, we spent the day in Maria and Matthew's area. We chatted and played cards at a cafe nearby, and Maria made us dinner. We watched Tarzan, which I hadn't seen in a long time. A relaxing afternoon and night before going into our last week of school/camp week. Gianni has camp at his school Monday to Wednesday and high school camp Monday to Friday this week. I have my last three days of school, and I will do my three days of camp next week.