The former presidential compound housed the official office and residence of the country's 12 heads of state, from the first Rhee Syngman through Moon Jae-in.
On May 10 last year, Cheong Wa Dae was opened to the public after President Yoon Suk Yeol assumed office. The exhibition "Stories of Our Presidents: The Presidents Were Here" at the compound displays not only the spaces where they lived but also the items they used and loved.
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism through Aug. 28 is hosting the exhibition to commemorate the first anniversary of Cheong Wa Dae's opening to the public.
Curious to see how the nation's presidents worked and lived, I accompanied a Korea.net team on a visit to Cheong Wa Dae on June 8.
Though I visited the residences of European monarchs, this was my first time to the official home of former Korean presidents.
Upon entering the main building, Cheong Wa Dae's largest that was used as the presidential office, I saw a red carpet, large central stairs and the painting "Geumsugangsando" (Beautiful Land of Korea) behind the stairs. The scene was something I had seen only on the news, and viewing this in person was amazing and wonderful.
The interior was more lavish and lofty than I expected and reminded me of palaces I visited in Europe. When I saw the high ceiling and wooden pillars, I suddenly wondered how many historical memories this building has.
I thought, "How many global leaders must have visited Cheong Wa Dae and stepped on this red carpet to meet the Korean president?" I found it amazing that at that moment, I was standing at the same venue they were.
Guides at every hall described to visitors the history of Cheong Wa Dae in Korean and English. They said the main building is undergoing restoration to its state when presidents greeted VIPs and worked there.
The building now very much resembles its former appearance, with covering to protect the carpet removed and artworks such as "Geumsugangsando" placed in their original positions.
On both sides of the central stairs are the rooms King Sejong and Inwang, where the personal goods and materials containing records of presidents are displayed. King Sejong houses items owned by Rhee Syngman, Yun Bo-seon, Park Chung-hee, Choi Kyu-hah, Chun Doo-hwan and Roh Tae-woo, while Inwang showcases those of Kim Young-sam, Kim Dae-jung, Roh Moo-hyun, Lee Myung-bak, Park Geun-hye and Moon Jae-in.
I saw Rhee's English-language typewriter, Park's sketch drawing of his pet dog, Roh Tae-woo's tungso (six-holed bamboo flute), Kim Young-sam's running shoes, Kim Dae-jung's horticultural scissors and Roh Moo-hyun's reading table. It was nice to see the plain and daily aspects of presidents by seeing the items they used.
I could see that they were just regular people who liked to jog, draw and read in their spare time. They governed the nation, appeared on the news, and held the grand and heavy title of president, but their everyday lives were not much different from that of ordinary people.
Kim Hyun-chul, the son of the late President Kim Young-sam and director of the Kim Young-sam Memorial Foundation, and Roh Jae-heon, director of the East Asia Culture Center whose father was the late former President Roh Tae-woo, from June 3-4 visited the exhibition to assume the role of docent.
Kim Hyun-chul stood in front of his father's running shoes and said, "My father's administration was a series of decisions and his early morning run was a time for him to prepare to make those decisions."
Roh Jae-heon said while looking at his father's tungso, "My father played the tungso and sang well, but I don't think he passed his DNA to me," eliciting laughter from visitors.
"For 74 years, Cheong Wa Dae was the stage of the highest level of leadership on which successive presidents wrote the Republic of Korea's tumultuous history," Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Park Bo Gyoon said. "We arranged this exhibition to show through these symbolic presidential props the presidents' moments of anguish and decision-making at the pinnacle of their power."
"This exhibition deviates from the traditional approach of dealing with the pros and cons of presidents, and instead offers an opportunity through storytelling to learn about our presidents in ways never before experienced."
Reservations either online (https://opencheongwadae.kr) or on-site are required to visit Cheong Wa Dae.
The media briefing room on the second floor of the former presidential media center of Chunchugwan displays daily items used at the compound such as furniture and dishes.
