Back To The Leeum Museum In Seoul

There was a visit to the Leeum Museum of Art way back in 2012 and a look at the fine architecture of the place. Thirteen years later and the museum still dazzles.

Funky ship airshafts, Trippy interior staircases. Who needs art when you're walking inside a giant sculpture?

Art exists and is in contrast to the modern building. The collection is mainly artifacts from old dynasties.

Fantastic porcelain and paintings of Really Powerful People.

Back outside, a lovely, bright stabile by Alexander Calder.

Life At Seodaemun Prison

Nothing like dioramas to bring one into an experience. At Seodaemun Prison, there are plenty of re-created moments that illustrate the hard reality of being imprisoned there.

Hauled in, interrogated and a demand for a forced, signed confession.

Waiting for processing. Implements of torture, no shortage of options.

Sitting in solitary.

Prison communication. "Knock twice if you want my green beans."

Life in hell, hot water torture.

Seeing Seoul's Seodaemun Prison

Seodaemun Prison in Seoul was established by the Japanese in 1908 during their colonial period, occupation in Korea. Its main purpose was the imprisonment of Korean independence activists. The complex was converted to a regular prison by Korea after 1945 independence. It was finally closed in 1987 and turned into a museum park in 1992.

The complex is a group of mean looking brick buildings. Straight up Shawshank style.

Inside, the iconic double floor layout with catwalk. Wood doors for solitary cells.

End of the line. The hanging booth in the small execution building.

Gone, never forgotten. Mug shots of activists.

The exercise yards with solitary spaces for prisoners in solitary. Divide and conquer them.

A Rice Museum In Seoul

How does rice grow? Go to the Rice Museum in Seoul to find out all about it.

The place is bright and fun, definitely geared to kids and giving them an agricultural experience.

Some history, a display of old, wood tools for harvesting, processing rice. Variety is the rice of life. Different regions, styles, games, and iconic rice-based dishes.

More kids stuff, an interactive panel full of fun artwork cubes that spin. Good parent time killer.

Fantastic plastic food on display, no dish too humble to preserve forever.

A cool area of the museum is a high tech greenhouse where veggies of the future are being grown.

Gyeonggyojang, Activist Kim Ku's Residence In Seoul

Kim Ku is a giant figure in the history of Korean politics, liberation and independence. He led a movement of independence against the empire of Japan and was a leader of the Korean provisional government, later becoming an activist after 1945.

After 1945, Ku lived at a house he named Gyeonggyojang. In 1949, Ku was assassinated in his home office there. The residence is now a museum.

Nice digs. The house is now surrounded by a hospital.

The interior, a mix of western, clubby style and traditional tatami mat Asian.

A diorama, showing how a bunch of stately men met way back when. "What's for lunch?"

Assassination location, Ku's table by a window. He was writing poetry when he was shot. Ku's bloody clothes.

Death mask.

The National Museum of Korean Contemporary History, Part Two

What is a better exhibit for the Museum of Korean Contemporary History than a show with a pop media theme? Bring on the recreational fun junk of movies, TV shows and K-Pop, K-Pop, K-Pop!

Ooooh, the funky entrance is a good warm up.

Look, mom, a wall of your old, stale records from all those singers wearing polyester and vinyl. Sad import, American TV shows. Until South Korea got wise and produced their own bad TV shows.

Pick your musical theme and dive in.

Better American imports, old, big Hollywood movies and weird, obscure things to stock the 1980s video store.

K-Pop must-have: a plastic, microphone-looking light stick. Collect all 10 billion.

The National Museum of Korean Contemporary History, Part One

A history museum can be fun. A contemporary history museum can be funky. Who doesn't want to see something you threw out a decade ago is now under glass? Seoul's Contemporary History Museum has a nice mix of significant and silly. Time to soak it all in.

The triumph of consumer electronics goods production!

Korean war objects. Leatherneck magazine. Kind of like Mad magazine for the Marines? C-Rations, opened for your viewing displeasure.

The triumph of consumer automobile production! All hail the 1982 baby blue Hyundai Pony 1.

Textile manufacturing was big in the contemporary history of Korea. All you need is a sewing machine and a pattern. And hope the pattern is for Nike shoes that will be exported around the world.

Moving from contemporary to yesterday. A nice display on recent gay, LQBT progress.

Getting The Royal Treatment At Unhyeongung Residence

Unhyeongung is a fancy complex, a good example of traditional, royal architecture during the Joseon Dynasty period of the 19th century. It was primarily used by the Heungseon Daewongun.

Understated and dwarfed. The place has an iconic, classic Asian look and now seems a bit out of place (and scale) next to modern Seoul.

 A peek at a corridor and guard quarters. Straight up Marie Kondo style.

The complex is a series of wood and whitewashed structures, halls and quarters.

It takes a tough hammer to make a tender meal. Royal tea. Pinky.

There's a section full of mannequins in period dress. The best in old Korean Uniqlo.