The epitaph plaque of Madam Jo (1841-92), wife of Park Chung-yang (1841-1905), Korea s first minister to the United States in 1887, has found its way back to her descendants in Korea.
On my recent trip to Korea, I visited, for the first time, the grave of Jeong Mong-ju, the famous Goryeo official who chose to die rather than support the upstart Joseon Kingdom in 1392. It s always good to visit the site of important events like the homes or graves of important historical figures. I learned a lot from the visit.
I just returned to the States from a trip to Korea - my first trip in exactly three years because of the COVID-19 pandemic. It was an eventful and busy trip. I worked on a documentary film about the “miracle battalion” from Utah during the Korean War. I had meet-ups with my YouTube followers and made more videos with them. I attended two conferences on “Sijo” (a Korean traditional poetic form) and the spread of Sijo in America. But the events that kept me busiest were about the publication of my new book on Korean history - “Views of Korean History by a Frog Outside the Well.”