Beneath this maeul at the end of Seongnam-daero, the ground is frozen. Flowers were supposed to sprout with the spring here in this village; Now, however, its inhabitants work cleaning jobs in the city...

Given its name, one might expect the Hwa-hwe Maeul, known as “Flower Village” in Korean, to be a rich and fertile area, covered in blossoms. However, upon visiting the area, one sees that this is a...