American Spring Break Horror Book

Chapter 15

Amber Ray's Narrative

We believe that each of us has a beautiful spot in our minds. However, we all agree that visiting South Korea is our best decision. Years ago, we had a fantastic place that brought us great joy. However, the experience is incomparable to what we are feeling now. Is it because we have matured? We asked ourselves and appreciated how far we had come along. Suppose I remember well the last time we never wanted to stay away from our parents. It is different now; we have come to embrace distance away from home. At first, I thought I was the only one enjoying my time in South Korea, but I was surprised by my friend’s response. They, too, enjoy the location. I hope we shall find other places better than this one next time we plan to travel again.This location is significant to me since it is part of the county I grew up in, the county I loved, and where my ancestral lineage begins. My mother told me that soon after I was born, they relocated to the USA for greener pastures and never had the chance to return. It is funny that our invitation was well received by my maternal uncles, aunties, and cousins whom I had never met. The most influential person, Uncle Chan Yeol, makes the visit worth our choice.

My mother was excited when I told her I had visited her relatives in Yongin Village. She was over the moon and loved my desire to learn about my culture, traditions, and customs. It has been a long since she was in Yongin Village; her only request is that I purchase for her some costumes in memory of her culture. I hadn’t saved much, but I dared to borrow some money from Uncle Chan Yeol. Sometimes, I feel guilty for imposing many demands on him, yet he has his personal needs to meet. Strangely, Uncle Chan Yeol never had such thoughts; he was ready to provide for us whatever we needed.I was anticipating a great time. In the morning, Uncle Chan Yeol requested us to be faster as we headed to the village by bus. He wanted us to catch the first one as so many people visit it due to the various customs that attract tourists. “Aren’t we having breakfast here?” Bridget Vergara asked as everyone laughed at her. “No, we shall have the best meals in Yongin village.” Uncle Chan Yeol said. “I might die of hunger, though.” Bridget Vergara tells her friends, who give her an evil look. “You, foodie!” Jun Suravi slams her as John Paul goes after him. “What did you call her?” John Paul roars in anger. “What is it?” Jun Suravi cries as he avoids picking a fight with John Paul. “Peace, let there be peace.” Sandra Roberts orders the rest. They obey her orders, and everyone takes their place. It was windy; they dressed in warm clothes and headed to the bus station before the time agreed with Uncle Chan Yeol.

“You are right on time!” Uncle Chan Yeol comments as the bus arrives almost immediately. People scramble to get into the bus, and luckily the troop finds a way to get in. they leave for Yongin village. Bridget Vergara keeps yawning as she can’t stand traveling on an empty stomach. Within fifty minutes, they were alighting from the bus. The view of Yongin village is spectacular.The Korean Folk Village in Yongin, Gyeonggi-do, is an open-air folk museum and a popular tourist destination. Everyone who dares to visit South Korea must look at Yongin village as a global icon. In the beginning, we almost dismissed plans to visit Yongin village. We thought it was one of the remote places in South Korea, and none of us wanted to explore such areas. We were shocked by the vast crowds of people and their attire when we alighted from the bus. For a moment, we imagined Uncle Chan Yeol had taken us to a famous marketplace; we were surprised it wasn’t the case. “Uncle!” Amber Ray calls out his name and remains standing. “YES!” he responds. “Are we at the marketplace?” Amber Ray questions looking around at the large crowd. “Ha-ha,” laughing hysterically, Uncle Chan Yeol fails to answer her. “WELCOME TO YONGIN VILLAGE” is a board hanging with the writing; John Paul quickly notices and shows his friends. They are shocked by the type of village in South Korea. It is a whole new world.

The Yongin Village attracts domestic and international visitors: it serves as a showcase for traditional Korean culture. It is nestled in a picturesque setting, "facing the ocean and backed by mountains." The Korean Folk Village in Yongin, not far from Seoul, is still one of Korea's most famous attractions. Visitors learn about shamanism, seasonal traditions, and more. As they walk in, Uncle Chan Yeol leads the troop to visit the Shaman. There is an older man dressed in a long blue dress seated by the corner with a tray and a spear in his hand. It is strange as almost everyone stops by the Shaman as they refer to him. The troop has no choice but to follow. Although scared, they stand next to him. He greets them and informs them about Shamanism. There was nothing scary as they had earlier thought. “Shamanism is a religious discipline in which a practitioner (shaman) uses altered states of consciousness, such as trance, to engage with what they believe to be a spirit world.” The Shaman tells the troop. “What is the purpose of Shamanism?” Hailey Robert dares and questions. “Typically, the objective is to channel spirits or spiritual energy into the physical world for healing, divination, or another human benefit.” The Shaman responds.

“I have an ailing father back in the USA. Can he cure him?” Amber Ray is disturbed and decides to question the Shaman. “There is nothing impossible with our goddess.” The Shaman responds by telling Amber Ray to bring forth his dad for a traditional healing process. “There is a problem, Shaman.” Amber Ray cries out. “Say it, the goddess is hearing you.” The Shaman informs Amber Ray, who breaks down and cries bitterly. Uncle Chan Yeol moves with speed to console Amber Ray. They leave the Shaman’s shed and begin to look for a place to have breakfast, as Bridget wouldn’t stop complaining of hunger.

Curiosity seekers looking to learn more about Korean culture and history love visiting this location. Yongin Village is a popular destination for both Koreans and foreigners. Most tourists love spending time in the village as they learn a lot about Korean culture and experience different things that keep them abreast in life. The troop couldn’t stop asking questions as they moved around the village. As usual, they are positioned to take the best photos and share them instantly on their w******p groups, f*******:, and i********: pages. They were enjoying their time, and the images provided the best evidence. “It is important to have an open-air museum like this to showcase traditional Korean culture.” Della Roberts tells his friends. The village was full of activities; it looked more like a marketplace. “Spending a day in the Yongin village will not be enough unless we spend the night here.” Dhruv Khan jokingly tells his friends. “You must be kidding!” Henry Sayo tells Jun. The two laugh at the joke and continue feeding their eyes with curiosity.

Uncle Chan Yeol takes the troop to a place where they observe how pottery and bamboo weaving are done. Sandra Roberts had to purchase some for her parents; she couldn’t stop admiring the skill of professional handcrafters. That day, the troop visited the Yongan village street with an enormous agricultural community showcasing various products. Giant fish from the Han River has been displayed, and the fishermen claim to have captured them after appeasing the Mul Gwishin(water ghost). “That is strange,” Della Roberts complains after hearing the news. They couldn’t have missed visiting the Confucian school. In Korean culture, Confucianism teaches learners Confucianism as an ancient Chinese belief system that focuses on the importance of personal ethics and morality. Most parents preferred enrolling their children in Confucianism as they believed their children would have good morals. Majorly, the girls were trained to remain pure(virgins) until their time to get married. To instill fear in them, they were told about the virgin ghost who killed the young girls who failed to abide by the demands of Confucianism. Strangely, most men preferred marrying Yongan Village as they believed the girls from that village were virgins and well-behaved. The main idea of Confucianism is the importance of having a good moral character, which can then affect the world around that person through the concept of "cosmic harmony." If the emperor has moral perfection, his rule will be peaceful and benevolent. The Koreans believed in their customs and traditions, and anyone who went against it was punishable by the gods of the land. The troop also visited the Seodang (village school). Seodang were private village schools providing elementary education during Korea's Goryeo and Joseon dynasties. They were surprised the building was still intact despite serving the Koreans during ancient times. Seodang building was structured with wood and concrete. It looked pale but firm. Many tourists entered the classrooms in the company of the twelve friends and Uncle Chan Yeol. In addition, the troop was privileged to find the mansion of an aristocracy and authentic workshops. At the seminar, they viewed sculptures of the Korean nobility, from the first to the last, until the Japanese took over Korea. Just before leaving, they moved to the Performing Arena can also be found in the Park within the Yongan Village. There were ongoing musical performances and concerts. The dancers were beautifully dressed in Korean national costumes with necklaces on their necks, legs, and wrists. While singing and dancing, they attracted a large crowd of tourists that gave out a token by putting money on a basket in front of them.Small coffeehouses for folk music performances, outdoor bandshells or bandstands, concert halls, and even indoor sports stadiums serve as music venues. The dancers in different spots in Yongma village are uniformly dressed and sing in traditional languages that only a few would understand. However, the bits were attractive, making many tourists join the dances. It was an excellent adventure for the twelve friends. With only a few days remaining, they were happy that the previous days had fewer ghostly stories. They were excited by the events of the day. Consequently, the Chinese and Mongol influences can be heard in the rich indigenous tradition of Korean music, which combines vocal and instrumental sounds for beauty of form or emotional expression in Korea. Korean music has been inspired by cultures from across Asia for centuries. Even though China was Korea's neighbor, numerous foreign musical traditions were aggressively cultivated in Korea during the first millennium of the Christian era.

The Yongin Village is a small village where most occupants are conservative as they practice the majority of the folklore in South Korea. The main one being observed religiously is the Cheonyo, where virgin girls are asked to protect themselves against the ghosts that attack them. Mothers enroll their daughters in Confucianism during the early stages of a child’s growth and development, where they are taught Korean folklore. It is believed that cheonyeo Gwishin, or virgin ghosts, are the souls of women who died as virgins. According to legend, they originated in Yongin Village and continue to roam the earth. Cheonyeo Gwishin is typically depicted as having long, black hair and donning the traditional white mourning attire known as sobok. This legend is frequently told to young children by their parents, and it was often used as a scare tactic to encourage women to marry. Even though the practice is less prevalent in today’s highly urbanized Korean society, this spooky apparition is still famous among Koreans.

Amber Ray was already complaining that they had spent the entire day at the village park but failed to taste the best Korean cuisines. Bridget Vergara supports her by forcing Uncle Chan Yeol to take them to a shade where various meals are offered. There were plenty of rice cakes such as jeungpyeon (a steamed and fermented rice cake), injeolmi (rice cake coated with bean powder), Pajeon (a green onion pancake), bukeo-GUI (grilled dried pollock), as well as dongdongju.By seven sharp, the troop was leaving Yongin Village. To their surprise, many people were streaming into the village. They yearned to spend more time in the town, but some complained of feeling exhausted. “Not every day is a good day, but there is something good every day.” Sandra Robert tells her friends, who agree. “The day has been a success.” Amber Ray confirms. The twelve friends were happy about the day’s activity. They were so full that they didn’t prepare dinner. Instead, they stayed until late in the living room, making stories and reminding themselves about their stay in South Korea.