By Cho Jae-hyon
Staff Reporter
A civil servant will open today the nation's first magic school in the remote town of Jeongseon in Gangwon Province, aiming to make it the Korean version of Hogwarts School, that will groom future wizards.
The 42-year-old worker at Jeongseon County office, Baek Ho-min, nicknamed a "civil servant magician," believes magic will be a good promotion to attract tourists.
Since the late 1990s, he began to look for famous magicians across the nation from whom he could learn, travelling to a private magic institute in Incheon from Jeongseon every weekend during his early apprenticeship.
After years of training and practice, he made his debut as a magician at a traditional market in early 2008 in Jeongseon and since then has become a celebrity in the village.
"I came to open this magic school because I like it among other things," Baek said in a telephone interview with The Korea Times. "I want to give people more opportunities to learn magic."
Recalling his experiences, Baek said learning from professional magicians is very difficult as they never easily transfer their skills to their pupils.
"To learn four or five skills, you have to enroll in private magic institutes for months. As I'm well aware of this difficulty, I wanted to build a school where both children and adults can more easily enjoy and learn magic," Baek said.
He said his institute will be a good tourist attraction for Jeongseon, the home of the casino Kangwon Land, as magic shows are popular in Las Vegas.
At the school, named "Magic Village" (www.magicvillage.co.kr), four other magicians he recruited will perform shows and hold classes for visitors.
"It's like a boarding school where visitors can sleep and learn magic. We can accommodate up to 120 people at the pension-style school," he said. "For a short trip, they can stay one or two nights."
He said a growing number of people are inquiring about the programs.
"I'm positive that a lot of people will visit our school. We may have to expand our facilities going forward given the increasing inquiries about the school."
Baek, principal of the school, said the four magicians and villagers have joined together to operate the village.
"Magic is very educational. We can teach math, science and English via the shows and classes," he said.
He also said office workers are welcome at the school. "If you learn a few magic skills, it will become a great asset for success in business."
Baek said he plans to link English education to magic. "I know several foreigners who can do magic. Maybe we can hold camps where children can learn both magic and English in the future."