Anne Sophie Schroeder (left) from Germany and Sarah Shalaby from France, two volunteers at this year’s spring K-Royal Culture Festival, take a photo on May 10 with Gyeongbokgung Palace in the background in Seoul’s Jongno-gu District. (Jeon Han)
By Lee Kyoung Mi
The five royal palaces in Seoul — Gyeongbokgung, Changdeokgung, Deoksugung, Changgyeonggung and Gyeonghuigung — are tranquil landmarks in the bustling capital that always give visitors peace of mind no matter when they go.
Two Europeans, however, are more captivated by such structures than most: Anne Sophie Schroeder from Germany and Sarah Shalaby from France. Both worked as “goong-ee doong-ee,” or “people closely related to the palace,” at the spring edition of this year’s K-Royal Culture Festival from April 27 to May 5 hosted at the palaces by the Korea Heritage Agency.
Goong-ee doong-ee is the nickname for volunteers who assist visitors at all festival venues. Schroeder helped out with norigae (traditional tassel) programs and Shalaby with traditional games both at Changgyeonggung.
In an interview with Korea.net at the latter’s office in Seoul on May 10, the two Europeans recounted in fluent Korean their volunteer activities at and affection for the palaces.
Volunteer Anne Sophie Schroeder (left) from Germany explains to visitors to the spring edition of this year’s of the K-Royal Culture Festival how to make norigae (traditional tassel). “The palace during the festival period felt like time travel to that era as many people wore Hanbok (traditional clothes) at the palace and you could see traditional performances from the past,” she said. (Anne Sophie Schroeder)
Until recently, Korea was the least familiar East Asian nation to Schroeder. She first came to Korea two years ago with no expectations because she wanted to go to an unknown place, and ended up falling in love with the country.
She said she was particularly impressed by Gyeongbokgung, even asking a Korea.net staff writer if feeling a sense of tranquility at a palace in the middle of a bustling city filled with people and cars was not surprising. She added that she developed an interest in Korean palaces and learned of the festival.
Until two years ago, Schroeder could say only basic sentences in Korean like “I met friends last weekend.” But she thoroughly enjoyed the festival thanks to festival volunteers who kindly approached her and offered explanations in English.
“I decided to apply to become a festival volunteer after becoming fluent in Korean,” she added.
Festival volunteer Sarah Shalaby from France on May 1 explains how to play a traditional game to a child at Gyeongchunjeon Hall of Changgyeonggung Palace at the spring edition of this year’s K-Royal Culture Festival. “Unlike in France, it’s easy to get to palaces or museums in Korea by just using the subways,” she said. “Historical places in Korea are open, and so learning deeply about the nation’s history and culture is truly appealing.”
A fan of history, Shalaby said she felt like she was “falling in love” when she happened to see the historical K-drama “Deep Rooted Tree.” Despite the guarantee of a fairly good job in France, she ultimately chose to come to Korea in the belief that following her heart was more important than pursuing a comfortable life.
Before the staff writer could finish saying rejecting such a job offer must have been tough, Shalaby interrupted to say, “It was too easy!”
“I really, really liked Korea and wanted to quickly learn Korean and more about Korean culture and history.”
To both volunteers, Korean palaces are not simply tourist attractions but venues containing precious memories.
The spring edition of this year’s K-Royal Culture Festival was a great opportunity for Shalaby to show her younger sister, who flew in from France, how much she loved the palaces. As a volunteer, Shalaby added good times with her sibling to her memories of the festival.
Inspecting every inch of Changgyeonggung daily at her job, she learned of the best spots in the palace for alone time. “I remember all the times I spent with the other volunteers and all of my communication with visitors,” she said.
Schroeder and Shalaby said they were slightly disappointed over Changgyeonggung attracting fewer visitors than the larger and more famous Gyeongbokgung. They added that they hope to reprise their roles in the festival’s fall edition and enjoy the palaces with more people.
km137426@korea.kr
