Let me introduce Namisum's mascots, ostriches brothers and sisters!!!

[Name] Tata, Tami, Tara

[Origin] Canada (2009.12) // 2 half-grown and 1 baby ostriches.

[Habits] like to eat snacks.
               like to walk all around Nami Island.
               like to stay crouched in water during summer time.
               like to look at themselves reflected on the mirror and tap on it.

It was exceptionally warm in the winter of 2001. The daily temperature range was extreme and this caused the frozen ground to melt in the afternoon and become muddy. It was very inconvenient for visitors to walk around.  Moreover, during the off season on Nami Island, there were nothing but horrible old houses and the closed facilities of the summer amusement park. It all just looked ugly.

At the end of December nine ostriches were donated by one publishing company. The ostriches were about two meters tall and visitors seemed to enjoy watching them running and prowling around the island, full of curiosity. People took photographs of the ostriches’ heads. In these photos viewers saw only an ostrich head along with the clear blue sky—not the uninspiring landscape.

“What a beautiful island!”

Visitors were impressed by the natural setting of Nami Island and so busy taking photographs of it that they forgot their muddy shoes.  That’s how the ostrich became one of the symbols of Nami Island. Visitors were also curious to know how African animals survived the winter. Well, the Nami ostriches were from Canada and were known to live comfortably in a temperature range of 40 degrees. Later, Nami Island released its other caged animals back to nature. Since then all animals -- squirrels, ducks, geese, rabbits, deer and peafowl – have become good friends with visitors.

   The ostriches signaled a turning point. Nami Island had been transformed: weeds became flowers and garbage was recycled, a rundown amusement park became a scenic sightseeing spot and what was once noise turned to rhythm. In some ways, if the ostriches had not been able to survive winter in Korea, the fairy-tale island of Nami would not be in existence now.