I was just in Seoul to see the new Samsung Children's Museum (actually an
elaborate "try-out" for a bigger children's museum in a proposed cultural
complex).  The head educator, Taesu Chong, is a terrific person.  (I can
give you his fax no. if you contact me directly.)  The museum itself is
lavishly funded but is still searching for its own voice--at this point it
is still a hodgepodge of ideas heavily influenced by American children's
museums.

The National Museum is still open.  It's very old fashioned and seems to be
mostly ceramics, though I didn't have time to see much of it.  The building
is the old Japanese occupation headquarters, and you can see why they want
to tear it down--it sits right between the main gate and the central
buildings of the ancient royal palace, ruining what must be a magnificent
view.  The palace grounds were much more appealing than the museum.  And
for interesting objects and lively presentation, the two huge marketplaces
near the city center beat everything.

Jeff Kupperman
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Jeff Kupperman & Susanna Hapgood, Tokyo, Japan
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