Dokdo

Dokdo is in the eastern reaches of Korea territory. It is apart 87.4km from Ulleung do Island, and you can go to Dokdo by ship departing from Ulleung do. Dokdo consists of Dong(east) do, Seo(west) do, and small rocky islands around them. The island keeps its natural beauty and the summit of it is 98.6 meters high. We can see Ulleung do Island from Dokdo on a clear day.

Buchaebawi Rock means fan like rock in Korean. Fishermen named like this because it looks like opened fan when they look it from south sea. Visitors can see this rock when they arrive at the dock of Dokdo.

Dear My Friends,
It was not an easy course. e departed for Dokdo from Ulleungdo early in the morning and sailed 87.4 km. I got seasickness until I felt drowsy. The lovely call of the black tailed gulls woke me up, and finally our destination came into sight.

We arrived at Dong do where the Dokdo guards stay, and were caught our eyes on the black tailed gulls flying freely up in the sky. They exchanged their words and I guessed that they were talking about the good weather and the lots of visitors. The black tailed gull is the sedentary birds of Dokdo and every May, they come to stay all over the island.

Not that many people know that Dokdo consists of two islands, Dong(east) do and Seo(west) do. The two islands are about 150 meters away from each other and the average depth of water between them is 10 meters. We were allowed to go only to Dong do and just watched Seo do from the vicinity of the dock.

The appearance of Dokdo surrounding the dark blue sea is rather mysterious. Dokdo keeps its beauty of the primitive state of nature. People suddenly gathered around somebody. It was Jikimi, a Sapsalgae (a Korean shaggy dog) living with the Dokdo guards. His mate, Dokdo, was not there then, for she was moved to the land to give a birth. Jikimi was meek and skillful to pose for his picture.

A building like a small condo was on the cliff of Seo do. It is the living quarters of fishers in Seo do. It was re built in 1997 after the first resident of Dokdo, Jongdeok Choi, was dead, and now, the only resident Seongdo Kim is living there.

I met him and we talked a while. I: You are the only resident in Dokdo. Aren’t you lonely?
Kim: (pointing at his house) I am with my wife. Why am I lonely?
I: Is there any reason for you to live here in Dokdo?
Kim: I’ve been sailing for 40 years and I like here. Here is a good place to fish. Haesam(a sea slug), Jeonbok(an abalone), Muneo(an octopus) I can get all of them. Do I need any other reasons to live here as a fisher man? Ha Ha.. (laughing)
I: What do you usually eat for your meal? I think it is hard to have the land food here.
Kim: Ha Ha (laughing).. Hey, what are you worried about? Instead, I can eat every sea food if only I have Gochujang(Korean hot pepper paste), Ganjang(soy sauce), and Doenjang(soybean paste).
I: You are the only Korean resident in Dokdo. You may love Dokdo with love unlike others. Please tell me about some source of pride of Dokdo.
Kim: Pride? Ha ha.. I’m not good at showing off. I told you. I just like here.

* Source: Korea Tourism Organization  http://www.visitkorea.or.kr/

* More information: http://www.dokdo.go.kr