"I feel....weird"

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The prison wasn't what I thought it would be. I think that is probably what the majority of tourists think as they walk slowly through the halls, and cells, and torture chambers of what was once, not so very long ago, the Japanese prison used during the occupation. Many Korean suffered and died in these halls. So to walk though it all, to be right there, right in the middle of such place, is rather unsettling.

However, it is not the idea of what once was that really shakes you to the bone. Oh no, it is what is happening right in front of your eyes that really throws you. It is the bordering on ridiculous voice overs to the tour that makes you feel so uncomfortable. Apparently it isn't enough for you to move quietly through hallways not painted over...not renovated or altered in any way....where people were tortured and raped and beaten and starved in the name of power. What must have been missing in order for it to be a successful tourist site was a tape of Japanese screaming orders and Korean voices screaming in agony in the background. That's what the prison really needed. Add to that some horrific manequins in purely nightmarish and garrish positions, smeared with red paint and torn clothing. Also, and this is really vital, there needs to be some demonstration rooms where you can really get a hands on experience. What was definietly needed was some little boxes full of nails that you can climb right on in and watch a little video while you're in there of the box in its actual context, doing its dirty work on some poor sod while you skin starts crawling from claustrophobia. Or how about a hall where you sit on a bench and let a noose dangle arounf your throat while some Japanese dummies bark your "sentence" at you from some hidden speakers and the chair you are sitting on suddenly drops a fear inches making you suddenly stop breathing and realize you need to find a washroom immediately.

This is what a tour of a once-was prison should be. The icing on the cake is the video of a drammatization of events acted out by the guy that washed the floors at night and a little cartoon angel that flied around during the video to remind you that the souls of the people that went through such attrocities are now, obviously, in heaven. Without that little cartoon angel I don't know what I would have thought about the whole experience.

OK, beyond the sarcasm, it was an experience I will never forget. I felt faint the majority of the tour...claustrophobic, and partial shock I am sure. It was haunting to be in the halls of ghosts, and the pain that was suffered here. But the worst part of it all was the offense you felt that the presentation was horrbly over the top- mocking even. And as I snapped my pictures of the actual bench and noose used only decades before me and my flash came to visit, I couldn't help thinking of the offences we do without even knowing it- of the souls that may look down on us and think, "if only they understood the reality of it all"....if only I did

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Photos

Cell block exhibit A
The cells are not tall enough for a person to stand in when once upon a time they were enclosed

Looking down the hall
One hall of cell blocks

Erin
Taking a shot

Angele
Taking a peek- she and I spent the day behind the tour guide group...feeling a little weirded out by it all

The "experience" chair
I refused to get on that thing

Wailing Tree
The last thing the victims saw before the entered the execution chamber. This is where they said their prayers. I single flower was on the tree

Vine and Brick
Within the walls that enclose the execution hall building

The brick
The "logo" prnted on the walkway from the execution hall