[Opinion] Things That Disappear Are the Things That Are Precious

A morning walk in Kyongju begins in the eastern historical sites. On this day, the early morning fog rolls across the grass, looking like a valley of dreams on whose streams floats ancient mounds. Morning walkers in sport gear appear to be moving toward the Crescent Moon Palace but then take the path next to the Astronomical Observatory. I will find a path where I can walk alone. Passing along the observatory railing, I cross a small street and find a `Shilla Gift Shop` on the corner. I walk by the `Observatory Inn` whose walls are covered with violets, the `Kyongju Funeral Home` and see a large sign in front of the `Royal Hall` that says in large letters, ``Please Come In. Thank You.``

A small path between the parking lot and a house fence leads me through houses whose gardens host ripe persimmons and figs, red pomegranates next to fields of wheat.

Many homes have cropped up on both sides of the street while new alleys hide more houses. In front of their gates lie scallions, peppers, and sun plants in Styrofoam pots. Although they are rare today, sun plants would spring up at every flowerbed when I was young. I pass by a wall on which cotton roses grow and in front of another home, I can see an open yard and the roof through its open door. White gourd flowers have not bloomed on the tiled roof and stands there as if still sleeping. A gourd flower is like a squash flower yet has its own personality. May be it is the introverted character. . . . I wonder why there are so many handkerchiefs on the clothes line. There are two pairs of jeans and by its side hangs a row of yellow, pink, and orange towels. May be it is a hostel. I hear someone – I better go.

`Space for rent. Inquire inside. Phone: 742-xxxx` I am looking at a messily written sign on a steel gate. Beyond it I see a sign that says, `Sea God`s Palace Fairy` A long bamboo stick stands in front of the door. A religious lives there. There are many such people in Kyongju and you can see many signs like `Monk General` or `Bodhisattva`

A piece of paper on a wall comes into view. There are two flyers with a picture on each one. One is a color photo of a dog with tied up hair: `Looking For Dog. Name: Ellie, White Maltese, Female` The other one has a black and white photo: `Please Find Us Our Dog. We raised it like a family member. We miss him everyday. . . .` The dog owner desperately wrote three phone number while Ellie`s owner put up flyers on every street. I am a heartless dog owner. I lost my dog two years ago. I looked for it for one day and forgot about after uttering a small prayer, `Just live well`

I move forward and avoid the side alleys. A graffiti on the wall reads, `Shin Chung-Hoon is a pervert` I sense that the path will lead me back to the city so I turn back and take the left turn. The small road swerves and turns like a snake and another graffiti is written on the wall: `Kwon Do-Yeon is an idiot` At least he`s better than Shin Chung-Hoon.

I enjoy walking through Hwang-odong in Kyongju. It is a residential neighborhood in the city but its many side streets hide a real Korean feeling that was felt before all the recent development. The apartment culture has made our hearts cold but when you climb an old burial mound and look at the Sundo mountain, a lost feeling comes back to life in me like a plant sprouting from dry ground. Here and there stand open grounds where weeds grow freely. As land protected for cultural preservation, you can`t develop it and so it continues to stay dilapidated.

The city has made long-term plans to develop this land. Ten years from now all that I see here will be gone. So it feels all the more precious. One architect who admires the labyrinth of Hwang-odong also wants to preserve the land. But the people who need to make money to survive complain. A while back, I was walking around here with a friend and was saying ``this is fun`` when an old grandfather on a bench curtly scolded ``What`s so fun about it!`` I guess what a person living there sees and what a walker sees is different like this.