The Korea Times

Korean inns in the 19th century part 2: bedbugs

While travelers may have welcomed Korean country inns as a sanctuary from tigers, wolves and the elements, they were not a sanctuary from other predations. Scattered amongst the articles published in newspapers and magazines from the late 19th and early 20th centuries are accounts of robberies and murders that took place in lonely inns. Fortunately, foreigners were rarely victims of these violent attacks, but they, along with the other patrons of the inn, had to contend with the most notorious offenders: bedbugs.

Oct 22, 2023By Robert Neff

Opinion

Korean inns in the 19th century

For Westerners, traveling in the interior of the Korean Peninsula in the late 19th century was very uncomfortable and dangerous – especially as night fell. The Korean roads and desolate paths were the hunting grounds for the numerous highwaymen and brigands who preyed upon small parties of travelers. Tigers stalked invisibly in the underbrush, waiting for the opportunity to gorge upon the flesh of the unwary.

Oct 14, 2023By Robert Neff

Opinion

Joseon-era foreign cemeteries whisper still

Cemeteries are windows into the past. The two primary foreign cemeteries of the 1392-1910 Joseon era are Jemulpo’s Foreign Cemetery located within Incheon Family Park Cemetery and Yanghwajin Foreigners’ Cemetery in Hapjeong-dong in Seoul. Each of these cemeteries provides a different view of Korea’s past.

Oct 8, 2023By Robert Neff

Joseon-era foreign cemeteries whisper still

Opinion

19th-century Jemulpo's Japanese cemetery

It is often said that a picture is worth a thousand words. This may be true in many cases ― but more often than not, without a narrative and context, the picture was more distractive than attractive.

Oct 7, 2023By Robert Neff

19th-century Jemulpo's Japanese cemetery

Opinion

Bears of Joseon part 2: Behind bars

In the past, wild animals, including bears, were occasionally raised for entertainment and sport within the Korean palace grounds. In 1394, King Taejo received a small bear cub and raised it in the palace garden ― whether it lived a long and happy life is unknown but surely it fared better than the bears brought to the palace under King (later demoted to Prince) Yeonsangun in the early 1500s. He was infamous for his “maddening debauchery” and willingness to kill both people and animals. He had tigers, leopards, bears, deer, boars and other wildlife brought live to the palace where they were placed in cages or, if they were somewhat docile, allowed to roam free. Then, whenever the craving to kill something was upon him, he was able to go out onto the palace grounds and hunt comfortably.

Sep 24, 2023By Robert Neff

Bears of Joseon part 1: Fanciful tales and deadly claws

Opinion

Bears of Joseon part 1: Fanciful tales and deadly claws

In the late 19th century, Korea was a land filled with danger. Banditry was common, disease was prevalent, demons and ghosts haunted people’s imaginations and beliefs (Korean and foreigners alike), and fierce wild beasts roamed the desolate mountains and forests. Tigers (and their smaller cousins, the leopards) were probably the most feared but they were not the only dangers to the Korean population and, by the first part of the 20th century, they became more legend than reality.

Sep 23, 2023By Robert Neff

Bears of Joseon part 1: Fanciful tales and deadly claws

Bears of Joseon part 2: Behind bars

Opinion

Gangmae Village: Bridging the past with the present

With the shifting of Changneung Stream waterway and the construction of larger bridges, Gangmae Bridge in May 2023 is now merely a picturesque relic of the past. Robert Neff CollectionBy Robert NeffIf you are a bicyclist in Seoul and enjoy riding on the northern bank of the Han River near Haengju Mountain Fortress, you are probably aware of Gangmae Village and its surrounding fields of rapeseed flowers and rice paddies ― but if not, you are truly missing a wonderful opportunity to temporarily step back in time.One of the highlights of the area is a rather simple old building with a blue-tiled roof that doubles as a small roadside restaurant and supermarket. It is very reminiscent of the mom-and-pop supermarkets that were ubiquitous in the small towns and villages throughout the peninsula in the 1980s. The shop's offering of goods ― mainly candy, chips and drinks ― are kept behind the proprietor ― much like the small shops in the late 19th century. In addition to the snacks, the establishment also offers a limited menu of simple foods such as dumplings, instant noodles, Korean pancake

Sep 11, 2023By Robert Neff

Gangmae Village: Bridging the past with the present

Opinion

Korean criminals make Americans grow more vigilant despite Joseon curfew in 1885

A large group of Koreans in the market became the prey of Lowell's camera and have forever been immortalized. Image by Percival Lowell in 1884.  Robert Neff CollectionBy Robert NeffWhen Percival Lowell, an American, wrote about his stay in Seoul in the winter of 1883-84, he frequently mentioned the curfew that was imposed at night and how it contributed to the safety of the city's residents. One night at midnight, while sitting alone in his room, he poetically described nocturnal Seoul:“Of a sudden, across the deathlike stillness comes the boom of the great bell. It cannot startle anything so dead; it only intensifies a silence it is powerless to dispel. There is something weird in it, as it finds me the only one to hearken to its sound. It marks, I know, the middle of the night; and then it is lost again in the universal hush. At intervals, as the hours come round, I can hear for a moment the tinkle of the watchman's bell, and the clank of his chains as he paces his beat within the courtyards; and then all is once more quiet, and the city seems its own vast tomb.”Al

Aug 26, 2023By Robert Neff

Korean criminals make Americans grow more vigilant despite Joseon curfew in 1885

Opinion

Gyeonghuigung - a palace of water and prayers

The modern view of Gyeonghui Palace 132 years after Landor's visit. Still searching for rain.  Robert Neff CollectionBy Robert NeffNot everyone who rode a donkey was able to influence the weather.  Robert Neff CollectionAlthough Henry Savage Landor found Gyeonghui Palace intriguing with its tales of ghosts and occasional sightings of leopards and tigers, he did not find it to be a Palace of Serene Harmony. In fact, he found it deafening as he and his hosts, the Greathouses, were subjected to the “most diabolical noises” made by “several men and numberless children” as they beat on huge drums and shouted as loud as they could whilst praying for rain.In his book, Landor wrote:“From sunrise until sunset this goes on, unless some stranded cloud happens to appear on the horizon, when the credit of such a phenomenon is awarded to their diabolical howls, and cash subtracted from landed proprietors as a reward for their having called the attention of the weather-clerk.” The weather clerk, or astrologer, was a “spectacled wise-man” who

Aug 20, 2023By Robert Neff

Gyeonghuigung - a palace of water and prayers

Opinion

Gyeonghuigung: a foreigner's account

The beauty and magic of Gyeonghui Palace in 2023.  Robert Neff CollectionBy Robert NeffArguably, one of the least known and appreciated palaces in Seoul is Gyeonghuigung ― the Palace of Serene Harmony. Despite being within walking distance of city hall and located right next door to the Seoul Museum of History, it is rare to see more than a handful of people ― especially tourists ― wandering through the serenity of the palace grounds.Even in the late 19th century, the palace ― for the most part ― was unappreciated and often overlooked. Of course, the Western residents of Seoul knew of the palace and often made it their destination for their daily walks, but few of them bothered to write much about the palace or its human inhabitants. When it was mentioned, it was generally referred to as the Mulberry Palace ― due to the extensive mulberry orchard that had been planted in a bid to develop a Korean silk industry ― and invariably described as being haunted by vengeful spirits or the hunting ground for tigers and leopards.The palace grounds, once the playground for evil spirits and

Aug 19, 2023By Robert Neff

Robert Neff

Read more

Korean inns in the 19th century part 2: bedbugs

Korean inns in the 19th century

Joseon-era foreign cemeteries whisper still

19th-century Jemulpo's Japanese cemetery

Bears of Joseon part 2: Behind bars

Bears of Joseon part 1: Fanciful tales and deadly claws

Gangmae Village: Bridging the past with the present

Korean criminals make Americans grow more vigilant despite Joseon curfew in 1885

Gyeonghuigung - a palace of water and prayers

Gyeonghuigung: a foreigner's account

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