[Been There Done That] Andong, the Combination of Masks and Tradition
[Been There Done That] Andong, the Combination of Masks and Tradition
  • Reporter Kim Jeong-in
  • 승인 2011.10.12 19:26
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At noon, a bus arrived in Andong Hahoe Folk Village. This trip was organized by the International Relations Office (IRO), and was also a collaborative program with the Dormitory for International Cultural Exchange. The members of this tour consisted of 40 foreign students and seven Korean students, including two reporters from The Postech times.

One of the groups, which include reporters, went to Hahoe marketplace first. There were many shops which sold various things about Hahoe Village, such as small masks and traditional necessaries. Some international students were interested in acupressure equipment, so two reporters explained how to use them. After that, we ate salted mackerel which is a regional product of Andong. I was proud of the international students, because they used chopsticks so well.

After lunch, we went around Hahoe Village. There were many tile-roofed houses and thatched houses. These houses made me feel time travel to era of the Chosun Dynasty. While I saw thatched houses, Reza, one of the participants from Iran, asked, “Why thatched house doesn’t drain water when it’s raining?” And other people each stated something about these traditional buildings.

Next, our group went to Chunghyodang, built by students of Yoo Seong-ryong, a noted premier in the Chosun Dynasty. This building’s name originated from usual sentence of him, ‘give one’s fealty to the nation and do one’s duty by one’s parents’.

After sightseeing at the Hahoe Village, we went to Maskdance Park. There were many booths for regional specialties, making masks experience and mask shops. They contained many attractions, such as charming small masks, various countries’ masks and unique masks which were made by various people. In addition, we could wear special clothes like military uniforms of the Chosun Dynasty and Roman clothes.

When we went through the contest stage which was located in the middle of the park, just then, a conventional wedding performance was taking place. Although we couldn’t see it closely because of TV cameras, we could know thoroughly that conventional wedding system is more complex than that of present weddings. According to this long procedure, conventional weddings require more time than present weddings.

A little later, we went to the mask making booth. I was worried we didn’t have much time to make masks, but we did because a clerk of this booth told us to select original form of masks. For decoration, one of the assistants gave us special colored clay. We could focus wholly wholly how to make a mask because the clay didn’t stain our hands. We made a mask so seriously that no one said anything when we were making them. For example, German student, Matt, decorated his mask with Taegeukgi, the national flag of Korea.

After making masks, we saw a Korean circle dance. This dance has a long history since the agricultural age and there are so many origins about this dance. When there is a full moon, women make a circle by holding hands. And they turn round and round with singing. The circle grows gradually when new people participate in this dance.

On the bus, returning to POSTECH, I asked what other people thought. They said today’s trip was so great with one voice. Also, they said to me this was an interesting experience and if there were new programs, it would have been more appropriate. I was happy to accompany this program organized by IRO. If there is another trip with international students, I would like to participate in.