An Educational Trip

The Korean War Memorial and Museum has been on my to-do list since I came to Korea and never got around to visiting until today. The outside of the building is surrounded by sculptures, reflection ponds, planes, tanks, and weaponry. The inside is a collection of information, artifacts, photographs, and videos from Korea's history through warfare. The part about the Korean War was particularly interesting to me. I was not alive when the Korean War went down and the dividing line was made, but it is something that did not happen that long ago and still affects Korea to this day. The American troops are still stationed here in Korea for some extra assistance and assurance that North Korea will more than likely not attack any time soon. I was surprised to learn that so many different nations and the U.N. had such a big hand in the war. The names of all the soldiers who fought and lost their lives are there on plaques as you walk into the main entrance. There was even a "war simulation" room where we listened to some Korean soldiers 'during' battle and heard and saw explosions and smoke as if we were there in the action. It was quite cheesy, but an interesting way to learn more about the war. The display cases inside the museum were all very well done and some were even interactive with animated models, lights, and sounds. The 60th anniversary of the Korean War was June 25, 2010 and so there was a special exhibit going on inside the museum to commemorate it. All in all, it was a very educational trip and I will definitely be watching some documentaries about the Korean War in the future to learn more about it.

war memorial and museum

Korean War museum

names on the wall

student art work, united Korea

U.N. members who were involved in the war

tanks outside

Namaste