Just south of the southern Bangladeshi city of Mongla is a tiny town on the Pushur River, consisting of a number of houses and shops made of mud, straw, wood and tin. It’s called Banisanta, and it’s home to dozens of professional current and retired sex workers, mama-sans, barkeeps, shopkeepers, and their children. Its evolution […]
Read the rest of this entry »Archive for the 'Politics' Category
WoWasis book review: ‘The Dwarf,’ a Korean novel by Cho Se-hui
Originally written in 1978, Korean writer Cho Se-hui’s novel The Dwarf (2006, ISBN-10 0-8248-3101-2) isn’t an east grasp for westerners. The story represents characters in black and white, and the tale, of workers vs. management, is didactic. Two things helped us here at WoWasis through this otherwise well-crafted novel, translator Bruce Fulton’s afterword, and the […]
Read the rest of this entry »Historic Wat Preah Vihear mines to be cleared as Thai-Cambodian controversy continues
In a story reported in the Bangkok Post of December 21, 2012, Thailand and Cambodia have begun thawing relations related to skirmishes surrounding the historical Wat Preah Vihear temple. Although sitting in Cambodian territory, the temple has been claimed by both countries. At a meeting of the Thai-Cambodian Joint Working Group (JWG) held in Bangkok […]
Read the rest of this entry »WoWasis book review: Brenda Sunoo’s ‘Moon Tides: Jeju Island Grannies of the Sea’
One of the most compelling cultural elements of Korea are the haenyeo, women who free-dive in the sea to catch food and capture seaweed. There are two books currently available on the haenyeo. One of them, Mother of the Sea: the Jeju Haenyeo, is also the subject of a WoWasis book review. Brenda Paik Sunoo’s […]
Read the rest of this entry »WoWasis book review: ‘The Two Koreas: a Contemporary History,’ by Don Oberdorfer
Veteran journalist and Korea-watcher Don Oberdorfer’s revised edition of his classic The Two Koreas: a Contemporary History (2002, ISBN 0-465-05162-6) remains an essential text on 20th century Korean history. Revised shortly after Kim Jong Il took power, the book traces the histories of North and South Korea, focusing on the Korean War and post-war years. […]
Read the rest of this entry »WoWasis book review: ‘The Korean War: a History,’ by Bruce Cumings
There are an awful lot of books on the history of the Korean War. So many, in fact, that it’s confusing determining which one to pick. The best we here at WoWasis have read, as well the shortest (at 243 pages of text), is Bruce Cumings’ The Korean War: a History (2010, ISBN 978-0-679-64357-9). The […]
Read the rest of this entry »Visit Korea’s Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) for a Cold War historical experience that remains alive today
The DMZ (Demilitarized Zone) separating South Korea from North Korea remains open to visitors on security-enabled tours, despite continued action in the area
Read the rest of this entry »WoWasis book review: Hank Kim’s ‘Ask a Korean Dude’
Veteran Korean journalist Kim Hyung-geun, who goes by the name Hank Kim, has written an informative guide to Korean customs and culture that worth reading before the visitor makes his or her first trip to Korea, Ask a Korean Dude: An Authoritative and Irreverent Guide to the Korea Experience (2012, ISBN 978-89-97639-00-7 03040). The book […]
Read the rest of this entry »Korean Comfort Woman confronts Japan at her Korean embassy in Seoul, 24 x 7, 365 days a year
the placement of a sculpture of a Korean comfort woman outside Japan’s embassy in Seoul plays havoc with Japanese sensibilities
Read the rest of this entry »The worlds’ wackiest torture museum, in Seoul South Korea
Wacky Seodaemun Prison History Hall in Seoul, South Korea takes the blue ribbon has being the craziest torture museum in the world, a tribute to both its exhibits and its patrons. The truth is sobering. This prison, opened in 1908, was eventually used as a torture and execution venue by both the Japanese and by […]
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