Ghost Over the Water

I was walking my dog along a trail that runs beside the Han river here in Seoul South Korea. My dog froze in his steps when we were walking along the bank. I had just lit a cigarette so my eyes were not adjusted to the dark very (it's almost 6 a.m. now), but I could clearly see something got my dog's attention. I looked up and saw something over the water. I wrote it off as some reflection at first. The river runs though the city and there are many buildings and highrises in the area.

But then I saw it was actually over the water but not making any kind of ripple just two or three yards from the bank. At first I couldn't tell much about it; it looked like a small wisp of white dust, but it glowed just over the water. It started to materialize (for lack of a better word) and in disbelief I could see what it was. It was what looked like a Japanese soldier in a battlefield uniform. I could make out his boots and his very distinctive hat, and the buttons stick in my mind. He had a rifle slung around his back and seemed to walk toward the bank. I couldn't see much detail in his face, but he seemed to be looking for something.

I couldn't say a word. I was frozen, but my dog walked a little closer to him and he looked down at my dog and I think he smiled at him. My dog started to wag his tail and smell around the air. I tired to call my dog back to me, but I just couldn't make words. I was so scared I couldn't even run. He and my dog were about 15 or so feet away from me at this point. My dog looked back at me and then so did the soldier. He seemed to be life-size, about 5-1/2 feet in height.

As he looked up at me, he seemed to want to talk to me. He looked like he was stammering; I couldn't see much for detail, but I could tell by the face. But then he just vanished, much like he appeared. I am still trying to write this down while it is still very fresh in my mind. Normally, I'm the type of person that doesn't buy any of this kind of stuff, but now I don't know. I'm still scared out of my wits. Oh, and by the way, my dog is perfectly fine, he doesn't seem to know what he just saw and sniffed.

by Paul B.