Final Days and Suwon Hwaseong Fortress

It was a decision that seemed to be made quickly, but not lightly. A week before my flight to America, Isaac received an email and we officially decided to come back home for good.

This decision bred excitement of course, but it also came with some hardship. In a short amount of time, we had to say goodbye to Isaac's father, our companions and the country where we made our newlywed nest. I went from packing for just a visit home to packing our lives away. In the end I had to leave most of the mess for Isaac to take care of by himself.

I tried to make that final week in Suwon, South Korea special. I narrowed down my sprawling list of "places to visit, things to do" to just one item: visit Suwon Hwaseong Fortress. For the past couple of months, out of our west facing windows, I've seen a mound of green rise up above the building tops. Looking on google maps, I found out that its name was Suwon Hwaseong Fortress. Built during the Joseon area, it's a UNESCO World Heritage site and is a little over 200 years old. In modern times, it's a beautiful park with scenic vistas, a lovely day date and a fitting farewell.

We took a long bus ride to the north end of the park and strolled our way along its outer wall, down well-trodden dirt paths and wide paved roads that meander through the fortress. What is most stunning is the mixture of old and new, of nature and city.

To the right is a peek through one of the many arrow slits in the outer wall of the fortress. When the land is pretty level the holes face out, other times they peer down the steep slope of a mountainside.

After walking through the park, we headed down this long chain of stairs to Paldalmun, one of the fortress' main entrances which is now the hub of an overwhelming array of markets and street vendors.

Paldalmun just looks like some traditional rooftops near the middle of the picture above, below you can see that it is the center of a busy roundabout.

The Paldalmun markets were just overwhelming. Small walkways, both sides cluttered with products, people all around pushing to get by and the occasional moped honking its way through it all. It didn't take long for the novelty to wear off. We considered ourselves lucky just to find our way clear of the market maze, blessed to gobble up a few desserts. Above Isaac is holding old fashioned hoddeok, which has a sweet filling with all sorts of seeds and nuts squished inside of fried dough.

At the base of all of those stairs, we found a calm, charming street to eat lunch on and rest our feet. Then we tromped up the stone stairmaster to explore the park some more. We were rewarded with an even wider view of Suwon.

I have to make the picture below huge so that you can enjoy it. If you look closely, you can trace the outer walls of the fortress amidst the rooftops. On the left side it's marked by a line of grass and trees breaking up the buildings. The far side traces along that dark clump of trees out near the horizon. Look for similar signs as your eyes scroll right and you can create its basic outline. This old fortress of kings is now home to a sprawling city that expands far beyond its stone walls.

Our house cannot be seen, but we did locate the other side of two tall buildings (near the right edge of this picture) which stand between us and the fortress.

I liked this place so much, I decided to return for a visit during the week by myself. It has a certain majesty about it that called me back. I retraced the path Isaac and I walked a few days before, but also explored other trails, like one that outlines the fortress walls.

I walked down that almost endless staircase again, and turned left onto the first street at the bottom. It's the same small road where we ate lunch before, an area known for its hip atmosphere and street art. Since Isaac and I had visited on Sunday, most of its shops had been closed.

This time the shops were open, each one the home and working place of artisans. I wandered along the street, into and out of the small stores usually containing just one person, shelves and walls covered with their creations.

I talked with a potter, two jewelry makers and a carpenter. Carrying on these conversations in Korean made me feel proud of my many solitary hours of studying over the past months.

Exploring this area and talking with friendly strangers who love to create was bittersweet. Just when I finally became confident and able, at last getting a grip on this foreign language and thinking of this place at home, it was all coming to an end.

The shop to the right was my last stop before heading home. It is called "namu ahjussi", which means something like Mr. Tree or wood man. Inside was a gentle man wearing a worn work apron, his fingers were stained and rough. He invited me to sit down and have a cup of tea while he finished something.

It was a gift. A simple wooden charm he painted with one wide stroke of wood stain for each side. With a black sharpie he wrote 잘 될거야, then using a thin leather strip he tied it onto my purse.

It was a small gesture, probably one that he's done for countless tourists like me. But it was so perfect, so serendipitous.

잘 될거야 means "it will go well" or "it's going to be okay". And during the half hour bus ride home, and the days that followed full of lasts and farewells, I held onto that little piece of wood, rereading its words and knowing that it was true. And it has proven outstandingly, wonderfully to be true.