To be quite honest I am not happy about the news of a new high school in this area. In very close proximity are two nostalgic landmarks; The Korean Bell of Friendship and Sunken City. If a high school is built in that area there will be a great amount of auto and foot traffic and the quiet, calm area will be overpopulated.
From what I've heard through the grapevine, there are many other folks who are not happy about this either.
Here are some photos of the Korean Bell of Friendship or as us folks from Pedro call it, "The Korean Bell."
It is bronze bell that resides in a stone pavilion in Angel's Gate Park. The section of the park is alternatively called the "Korean-American Peace Park."
The bell was presented by the Republic of Korea to the American people to celebrate the bicentennial of the United States of America. It is meant to honor American veterans of the Korean War and to symbolize friendship between the two nations. The effort was coordinated by a Korean American actor named Philip Ahn. The bell was declared a Los Angeles historic cultural monument in 1978.
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The bell weighs 17 tons and is 12 feet high. The bell is made of copper, tin, gold, nickel, lead and phosphorous. The bell, funded by the Korean people cost $500,000.
Engraved on the bell are four Korean spirits. One spirit holds a Korean flag, another holds a branch of the rose of Sharon which is Korea's national flower, another holds a laurel branch which is a symbol of victory and the last holds a dove of peace.
The bell is housed in a structure that took ten months to build and cost $569, 680.
Here's some interesting trivia..well, I think it is.
The Korean Bell of Friendship was featured in the 1995 film The Usual Suspects.
The Usual Suspects features
Gabriel Byrne, Kevin Spacey, Benicio Del Toro and Stephen Baldwin.
In fact many films and tv shows film in San Pedro (Ghost World, Crash, Part of Five, 24, The Big Lebowski and more).
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....Now on to Sunken City...
Sunken City is definitely old stomping grounds for me.
First some history...
In 1929 a sizeable section of land in the southern tip of San Pedro began to unexplainably slip into the sea. The 600 block of Paseo Del Mar began moving towards the sea and continued until the mid 1930s. Movement was measured as high as 11 inches a day. Due to quick action, all but two of the houses on the seaward side of the street were moved before toppling into the sea. The eastern section of Point Fermin Park was lost and the entire area is very unstable although it is no longer moving. Geologists have termed this phenomenon as a "slump" and this area has been featured in many geological studies and books. This geological mystery also occurs about 4 or 5 miles up the coast from this spot at Portuguese Bend in Rancho Palos Verdes. The Portuguese Bend Slide Area is still moving and slipping into the sea. Palos Verdes Drive South, the main road through the area, has to be refurbished continuously and frequently as it is constantly being displaced by the movement. This area is closed by chain link fencing, but may still be viewed at the south end of Pacific Avenue or the east end of Pt. Fermin Park at Paso Del Mar and Gaffey Street.
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In high school Sunken City was a favorite spot. Although I don't venture there as often now it is still very special and nostalgic for me. I often trekked out there at night with friends so that cops wouldn't spot us. People of all ages were known to sit out there drinking and doing who knows what else.
Even though the spot was gated off it was quite easy to get to it. But now officials have made it a bit harder.
The chain linked fence is now made of bars and cannot be climbed over. As shown in the photo above the bars have extended farther out which makes it more difficult and dangerous to maneuver around.
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Tresspassing signs have increased warning curious on lookers. Even so many will make their way over to the area.
The reason the area has been blocked off is because it is potentially very dangerous. The cliffs are high up and steep and it is possible to fall over onto jagged rocks and into the ocean.
Many individuals have committed suicide over those cliffs. In fact when I was in high school some were renaming the school "suicide high".
The losses were tragic and since my years in high school I have not forgotten those who have died. Even now at the age of 29 I read in the local papers of individuals who choose to jump off the cliffs.
I understand why officials want to block off the area. But for those of us who love Sunken City and want to play it safe in that area it is tough to see it blocked off.
I have taken photos of Sunken City myself, and have fond memories of sitting on slabs of rock, overlooking the ocean and moon and chatting with dear friends.
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Another great sight that can be seen from Point Fermin Park which is right next to Sunken City, is the "Angels Gate light" or the Los Angeles Harbor Lighthouse. The lighthouse is in San Pedro yet it welcomes ships into the harbor of Los Angeles.
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Lastly, I must say that I hope that when the new high school arrives at Angel's Gate that they won't paint over the Three Eyed Fish.
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The Three Eyed fish has been a part of San Pedro since 1991 and was placed there by former cartoonist Dave Butkus. The fish has been repainted whenever it is damaged and I hope it never leaves.
So, although this new high school appears to be on it's way, I can only hope that it will not heavily inflict upon the peaceful atmosphere that the area encompasses!
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