Admittedly I'm quite the history buff, and so today again I'm going to write for a bit on the Korean history that I've learned so far. This is important, I think, because most Asian history courses in America focus so much on China and Japan that Korea is just lost in the mix. But there is a seperate and fascinating history to learn here, one with obvious parallels to what was happening in China and Japan at the time. Today's topic though is my current favorite Korean kingdom, the Silla kingdom.

After the collapse of ancient Gojoseon (Dangun's kingdom), a number of smaller kingdoms came into being on the Korean peninsula. Three of these became powerful enough to absorb the others, creating what's known as the Korean Three Kingdoms period. This period lasted from around 36 BCE to the unification in 676 CE, so a good near 700 years. During this time the kingdoms' power grew and waned, beginning with Goguryeo, which was beaten back by a Baekje-Silla alliance. Baekje also enjoyed some time as the most influential, before Silla managed to defeat them and take control of most of the peninsula themselves.

After unifying Korea, for the most part, Silla reigned with some prosperity thanks to trade routes they were a key part in. Trade with China was particularly beneficial for Silla. However, constant wars with its neighbors as well as invasions by China and Japan helped destabilize Unified Silla. Meanwhile, the Balhae kingdom was formed and gained control over a large territory that extended into Manchuria. From this kingdom eventually would spring the Goryeo dynasty, which at last would unify the peninsula and its people.

So what makes me like Silla so much? Firstly that they were the smallest of the major Three Kingdoms, and yet managed to defeat both bigger rivals. The two maps in this post attest to the impressiveness of this feat, showing pre-unification Silla and Unified Silla. Secondly, their dynasty lasted a thousand years, longer than can be said for any of China's dynasties I believe. That kind of longevity is very difficult to accomplish, and even more during a period of constant pressure and looming clouds of war.

Finally, and the least academic reason, I really like the look of the Silla crowns. Compared to what a European king would have worn at the time, I find the gold crowns of Silla very impressive. They just have a feel of authority to them that begs the viewer to obey their lord, maybe. This one in particular looks almost like something out of Lord of the Rings to me:

On one other note, I highly reccommend using the laundry service here at the Global Village. At first I was doing my own laundry and having to air dry it in the dorm suite. While there's certainly nothing wrong with this, and it's cheaper, I was curious about how the school's laundry service was. So last week I decided to stop in and give it a try to compare the results with the do it yourself option.

When you air dry clothes, they feel kind of stiff and sometimes don't dry as quickly as you might hope. There's always a chance here that the washing machines won't work correctly either, as I discovered a few weeks back. After I picked up my laundry from the service in the Global Village, all of my clothes were not only dried but very soft too. It costs 4,000 won, but you can take in as much as 10 pounds to be cleaned at that rate.

In addition, the woman who works in the laundry is incredibly welcoming and social. Since my first visit, she's decided that I speak Korean well enough to speak her native language exclusively. We even have small talk as I come in to drop off or pick up my clothes, which is something I never expected to be doing here. So this time, hats off to her for making life here both easier and more enjoyable through conversation!