Colorful fields, flower-speckled paths
JoongAng Daily
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| Mugwort fields covered with colorful dragnets dot Geomun Island. By Sohn Min-ho |
Each spring, the southern region of the country beckons me. This year, I decided to visit Geomun Island, which is about two hours off the coast of Yeosu, South Jeolla.
I had the luck of getting a tour of the island on the back of novelist Han Chang-hoon’s motorcycle. Born and raised on the island, Han still lives there today.
When I asked him about the scenery on the island this time of the year, Han offered up a mundane response.
“Let’s see,” he said. “There’s nothing different about the spring. It’s windy as usual and despite the strong waves, fishermen go out to sea. It’s the same as usual.”
Upon further inquiry, Han explained that all the women on the island spend their days this time of year tending to the mugwort plants that pervade the farms each spring.
“Mugwort harvested from Geomun Island is supposedly good. It fetches a high price. Recently, a processing factory was opened here,” Han explained.
However, it wasn’t exactly easy to find green-hued fields of mugwort - at least until the islander led me to a field blanketed by colorful nets.
“Look closer. Beneath the dragnet coverings are mugwort,” Han said.
Upon closer inspection, I discovered that my host was right: the field was indeed full of mugwort.
“The wind is so strong here that we cover the plants. Excessive exposure to the strong sea breeze can dry up the plant. The covering allows some of the wind and sunlight to carry through. It’s strange, but mugwort thrives under the dragnet yet weeds don’t,” he said.
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| A path leading to the Geomun Island lighthouse is covered with flowers from camellia trees. |
I looked around and saw many mugwort fields. Each dragnet was a different color, making it seem as though the island was covered by a large quilt.
It was an unusual and interesting sight.
Geomun Island actually consists of three separate populated islands: Dong Island, Seo Island and Go Island.
What is interesting about these three islands is that over 70 percent of the trees on them are dongbaek, or camellia trees. This is the reason that the place is sometimes referred to as Dongbaek Island.
Han led me down a path toward Geomun Island lighthouse. The path might as well have been called Dongbaek Road, because each side was lined with camellia trees taller than the average person, providing a shaded walkway.
“The flowers on the camellia trees on the island blossom during the winter season,” Han said.
Indeed, the path was littered with flower pedals that had fallen from the camellia trees.
The flowers drop from the branches before they begin to wither away. Hence, unlike other flowers that lay withered and dried on the ground, the beauty of the dongbaek flowers remains in tact. For this reason, the path should perhaps be closed off to the public during the spring months. It’s sad to see the beautiful flowers getting trampled by passersby.
As the last stop on the tour, Han took me to Go Island.
The highest point of Go Island is Geomun Elementary School. We strolled past the elementary school and into the well-kept British Navy Cemetery, which is covered by yellow rape flowers this time of year.
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On April 15, 1885, a British naval ship arrived on Geomun Island, and the British Royal Navy set up a naval station there.
It would take the Joseon government close to a month to find out about the incident. What is more surprising about all of this is that the sailors stayed isolated on the island for close to two years. During those years, three British sailors died. According to records from the time, the deaths were the result of an accidental explosion.
The natives of the island tell a different story, though.
According to the version of the story told by residents of Geomun Island for well over 100 years, the British sailors and the islanders got along quite well and even came in contact frequently.
The Brits stayed on Go Island while the natives largely dwelled on Seo Island. There was no bridge connecting the two islands at the time. Some of the sailors were said to have swam across out of curiosity, and some of them supposedly drowned.
The ferry to Geomun Island departs from Yeosu at 7:40 a.m. and 1 p.m. each day and returns at 10:40 a.m. and 3:40 p.m. The cost is 36,000 won ($31.75) for a round-trip ticket.
One of the most popular tours in the area involves cruising around Baek Island, which sits roughly 28 kilometers (17.4 miles) to the west. The cruise, which costs 29,000 won, rounds the uninhabited Baek Island for roughly two hours.
*For more information, visit www.geomundo.co.kr or call (061) 665-7788.
By Sohn Min-ho [jason@joongang.co.kr]