Tour Korea: Chung-Ge-Chun
About time I got back to livejournaling again!
I dug out some pictures I took this summer in Korea.
I'll start off with ChungGeChun, a small stream in Seoul that was flowing, buried, dug out, and made flowing again.
Elementary lesson on Chung-Ge-Chun:
Chung-Ge-Chun is a small stream ("Chun") that runs in Seoul. It used to be a beautiful little stream, but after the war, it became a place of poverty and sickness, where the homeless lived. In President Park Jung-Hee's time, a highway was built over it, covering the stream with asphalt and turning the stream into sewer. It seems drastic and illogical now, but back then, it was an efficient, effective, and sensible way to get rid of slums and illnesses and encourage economic growth at the same time.
Decades later, a project to revive Chung-Ge-Chun started. The highway was torn down (even though it had few more decades of "life" left), stream was cleaned, and bridges were built again. With fresh water pouring in, (though not from the same source as the olden days,) the stream was revived. Chung-Ge-Chun is, though man-made, now a piece of "nature in the city." (Another perk is that maintenance cost of the stream is less than 1/10 of that of the highway).
End lesson.
The place where the stream begins...
...and starts to flow.
This is the "source" of the new Chung-Ge-Chun. Quite a change from highways, heavy traffic, and crowded alleys previously associated with Chung-Ge-Chun! You can get to this place by bus or subway. Subway station is Gwang-Hwa-Moon station, line 5 (purple). Look for the 조선일보 (Chosun Ilbo) building.
There are walkways on lower and higher level, on both sides of the stream. The lower walkways are closed in case of flood, when the little stream turns into a big stream.
The streets running the length Chung-Ge-Chun right next to it become car-free on weekends and national holidays.
The view of "little piece of nature" surrounded by forest of buildings.
If you squint, you can see a sign on top of a building far, far away, saying "DOOSAN." Well...not really. But I could in real-life. It's the building that's got horizontal blue and white strips all over it. This is where the major, and my favorite, shopping malls are. (*squee*)
The walk from the beginning of the stream to DOOSAN is very, very long, and should not be attempted on high heels.
Kids crossing a bridge. Don't you love them?
Close-up of the bridge. Makes you want to cross them.
Wild(?) ducks.
Fishes. No, they're really there!
A ramp for wheel chair and baby strollers.
I was disappointed with how few and far between these ramps were placed. I walked more than 1/3 the length of the stream, and I saw only one of these! Moreover, parts of the walkway was paved in very rough stone, and a person on a wheel chair probably couldn't get very far before they got cramps in his/her arms or broke a supporting wheel.
Anyway, I went shopping, which wasn't very fruitful. I bought a pair of sneakers, though.
A couple of days later, I had a chance to go to Chung-Ge-Chun again, at night.
Fountains lighted up.
Rushing water. The rock on the left is not that big; I just held my camera very close to the water.
It's not really this bright. It was taken on forced exposure.
Blue lights.
Under a bridge.
Reflection on a polished stone wall.
I'll try to dig out some more photos pretty soon and tell the whole world what I've been up to. ^_^
I dug out some pictures I took this summer in Korea.
I'll start off with ChungGeChun, a small stream in Seoul that was flowing, buried, dug out, and made flowing again.
Elementary lesson on Chung-Ge-Chun:
Chung-Ge-Chun is a small stream ("Chun") that runs in Seoul. It used to be a beautiful little stream, but after the war, it became a place of poverty and sickness, where the homeless lived. In President Park Jung-Hee's time, a highway was built over it, covering the stream with asphalt and turning the stream into sewer. It seems drastic and illogical now, but back then, it was an efficient, effective, and sensible way to get rid of slums and illnesses and encourage economic growth at the same time.
Decades later, a project to revive Chung-Ge-Chun started. The highway was torn down (even though it had few more decades of "life" left), stream was cleaned, and bridges were built again. With fresh water pouring in, (though not from the same source as the olden days,) the stream was revived. Chung-Ge-Chun is, though man-made, now a piece of "nature in the city." (Another perk is that maintenance cost of the stream is less than 1/10 of that of the highway).
End lesson.
The place where the stream begins...
...and starts to flow.
This is the "source" of the new Chung-Ge-Chun. Quite a change from highways, heavy traffic, and crowded alleys previously associated with Chung-Ge-Chun! You can get to this place by bus or subway. Subway station is Gwang-Hwa-Moon station, line 5 (purple). Look for the 조선일보 (Chosun Ilbo) building.
There are walkways on lower and higher level, on both sides of the stream. The lower walkways are closed in case of flood, when the little stream turns into a big stream.
The streets running the length Chung-Ge-Chun right next to it become car-free on weekends and national holidays.
The view of "little piece of nature" surrounded by forest of buildings.
If you squint, you can see a sign on top of a building far, far away, saying "DOOSAN." Well...not really. But I could in real-life. It's the building that's got horizontal blue and white strips all over it. This is where the major, and my favorite, shopping malls are. (*squee*)
The walk from the beginning of the stream to DOOSAN is very, very long, and should not be attempted on high heels.
Kids crossing a bridge. Don't you love them?
Close-up of the bridge. Makes you want to cross them.
Wild(?) ducks.
Fishes. No, they're really there!
A ramp for wheel chair and baby strollers.
I was disappointed with how few and far between these ramps were placed. I walked more than 1/3 the length of the stream, and I saw only one of these! Moreover, parts of the walkway was paved in very rough stone, and a person on a wheel chair probably couldn't get very far before they got cramps in his/her arms or broke a supporting wheel.
Anyway, I went shopping, which wasn't very fruitful. I bought a pair of sneakers, though.
A couple of days later, I had a chance to go to Chung-Ge-Chun again, at night.
Fountains lighted up.
Rushing water. The rock on the left is not that big; I just held my camera very close to the water.
It's not really this bright. It was taken on forced exposure.
Blue lights.
Under a bridge.
Reflection on a polished stone wall.
I'll try to dig out some more photos pretty soon and tell the whole world what I've been up to. ^_^