Soedal Oreum

This was a Japanese bunker next to an airfield. Sort of reminds me of Star Wars.

I posted this on Instagram and got a lot of responses. On the left is Sanbangsan and on the right is where we're going.

There was a memorial shrine here. Apparently the people being brought here knew they were about to be executed, so they would drop personal items such as shoes so their families could find them.

It is sort of a beautiful spot now, but a lot of dark things happened here.

During the Japanese occupation apparently there was some sort of storehouse here that collapsed at one point. This wreckage is apparently to symbolise that.

In 1950, after the Korean War broke out, people would be brought here, up to the ridge, and executed so their bodies would fall down into these two holes.

It oddly reminds me of Attack on Titan where the Marleyans would **spoiler alert**

I went on a walk around the walkway up top for a lot of pictures.

Every angle was compelling.

As my coworker remarked later, people were brought up here to see this view, with the ocean, before being executed.

This picture is a composite of two others, one focused on the sign in the foreground and the other focused on everything below. I'd always wanted to do this but this was my first attempt and I think it looks very good.

Another group shows up.

A couple keywords in English stand out: "red hunt" which is basically anti-communist McCarthyism, and "preventive detention" which is basically the practice of murdering people before they can become enemy combatants. And I want to emphasise, in many cases long before, before they're radicalised, before they have a beef with you, just murdering them because one day communists might seek able-bodied young men here. Oh and also there are women to rape and children to use as target practice.

Fortunately I didn't have to go down as everyone came up to me.

There is Sanbangsan, my favourite Jeju landmark.

Brenda followed me while I got those last shots, and a few others did, so I had to run back and find the others. I still turned back to take this shot of her as she emerged from the wilderness.

This view shows many Japanese hangars or whatever they were.

Andrew Salmon shot a quick video up here in which he said some powerful things. I think he's sitting on the video until April 3 but it is good.

Around here was...something. A Japanese kamikaze airfield? I was having too much fun climbing around.

This is where there used to be Japanese artillery.

There's our group.

Pretty sure this is artillery.

Andy wanted a picture of a tourist taking a picture of this view, so I obliged. I even took the picture.

I had to dodge these guys. Video guys always trump picture guys.

An entrance to this thing.

Horsey!

The walk downhill was pleasant.

I made sure to stay back to shoot this.

Andy wanted this picture of us together.

Horsey!

We kept going further down. At this point I was worried we would have to head all the way back up to where the bus dropped us off.

Apparently there were caves down here built by the Japanese but we never got to really see them.

Commentary.