king's father goes for a walk

It was the week of the HI SEOUL FESTIVAL. There were plenty of exciting events going on around town. The weather was great on my day off so I decided to explore and catch some of it. We went to a palace in Insadong called Woon Hyun Gung – The King’s Father’s House.




- hey! Check out those guys!
- Ha ha
- Does that mean the show is going to start?
- I think that WAS the show
- Oh. Cool !




As we were arriving, just outside the palace gates, we found maps and programs at a concessions stand and discovered we were just in time for the first show. It was called “The Kings Father Goes For A Walk”. And sure enough, we saw him, surrounded by security, going for a walk. We almost collided on the sidewalk. That’s why the guard pushed me.

We toured the grounds inside the palace walls. The home of the King’s father, his mother’s home (they didn’t live together), the servants’ quarters, meeting rooms, and performance area.

The king’s parents never had much real work to do. They sat around and ate all day long. (so you can see much has changed in Korean lifestyle). Life expectancy was very low for the royal family in Korea. They died young. Probably because all they did was sit around and eat all day.

The second show we caught was much more interesting than the first. MUNYEO – The Dancing Girls ! We saw quite a few dances. One was “yun hwa mu” – flower dance. This type of pink flower “yun hwa” is also used to decorate the streets of the city for Buddha’s birthday. “mu” means dance. We also saw “gum mu” – knife dance. Similar to the first but the girls whirled knives instead of flowers.

The dance is far from upbeat. It’s brilliance is more hypnotic than it is catchy. The movements are slow. Each step took about 20 seconds to complete – and she explained that it was sped up to double time for a 2007 audience (with presumably short attention spans and little appreciation for art). I was impressed. It seemed so graceful and well, hypnotic. The girl is on a small mat and she never steps off of it.

Today, I guess the MuNyeo wouldn’t sell out Madison Square Garden or give Christina Aguilera a run for her money. It’s not a show meant for the big time. And as I was watching, I noticed more people were in the crowd for cultural obligations and photographs than those who were there for a wild time. I think most people were thinking about food. But I can see how, in a more quiet and intimate setting, with some rice wine and fish, this dance would give you goosebumps. It would be a sight to behold – and thus, for royals only. All night I dreamed about being king.