On the Road in South Korea

Just prior to the flight of Mark Dake’s parents from Toronto to visit him in Seoul - where he was teaching English - his mother phoned to ask if they needed to get inoculated for disease. Realizing how little North Americans know about South Korea, Dake decided to write a travel book, to introduce the country to foreigners. He purchased an old car, and, with his best friend, Kim Heju as translator, spent an intensive, exhaustive four months driving 5,000 miles through the nation’s villages, towns, mountains, plains and islands.

Along the way, he discovered some strange things: an island of lepers; a Shangril-La where locals live past 100; a seaside village where everyone is a diver. He kidnapped a dog destined to be stew, and he swam in waters where a 2,500-pound great white shark had been hauled aboard a fishing trawler. He interviewed a would-be king and an elderly woman imprisoned during the Japanese occupation. Citing overwork, Heju temporarily quit the journey after six weeks. Two other translators bailed prematurely. Dake had a million places to explore and needed answers. If fellow travelers couldn’t keep up, tough luck, it was full-steam ahead! Dake, a former reporter, has spent about twenty years between 1995 and 2022 living and working in South Korea. He leaves no stones unturned on this fascinating journey through an ancient and modern land.