Freeman East Asia Scholarship | Experience Abroad Aaron Rule

Escaping the City: Hiking Culture in

Author: Aaron Rule Date: 10-26-2015

Since Seoul is such a densely populated, the people only have to find refuge from the city life in a much more open space. Hangang Park located on the is this space. It is the best example of a park dedicated to it’s people. It is one of the few green areas in all of Seoul.

Summary:

With Seoul being the second largest Since Koreans work incredibly pressure- metropolitan city by population coming in filled lives consisting 60 hour workweeks at roughly 26 million people, it becomes and some of the most stressful schooling in increasingly difficult to find public space the world, many Koreans want to get out of within the city. Since it is difficult finding the concrete jungle from which they live in spaces within the city, people in Seoul and escape to find nature and experience leave the bustle and stress of urban life and the great outdoors. head to the outskirts of the city. We have found the weekends to be a Seoul is known as a city completely perfect time to get out of the city and hike. Figure 1. Seoul City Skyline surrounded by mountains. These It is a great way to experience a part of mountains have been a significant Korean tradition and current trends to part of Korean tradition and folklore. enjoy nature outside the urban metropolis. The mountains have been referred the Along with a great form of exercise, hiking “Guardians of Seoul” since they provide in holds a great sense of community. a natural defensive perimeter. In the Clusters of hiking groups full of family and 15th century, the Seoul Fortress Wall was friends get together over the weekend to constructed atop the mountains to keep enjoy a fun bonding experience. Overall, enemies out of the city. Today, these paths hiking the mountains of Seoul has not only along the wall create great trails for hikers. been healthy for the body, but for the soul. Korean hiking brings upon producing The amount of peace in nature and fresh its own type of culture. These weekend air is the reason why I enjoy the hiking Figure 2. Hikers warriors dress head-to-toe in high-end culture in Seoul. hiking gear. Since most trails can easily be traveled within a day, hikers also fill their backpacks full of rice wine, soju (a popular alcoholic beverage), kimbap (Korean rice rolls), and of course: kimchi. Once reaching the top of the mountain, the groups of hikers will sit and enjoy all of these delicious items and have a picnic with family and friends. Hiking becomes a way to escape the complexities and busy workload Korea is known for. Figure 3. Top of Mt.

1 Freeman East Asia Scholarship | Experience Abroad Aaron Rule

Hangang Park | Han River

Author: Aaron Rule Date: 10-26-2015

Hangang Park located on the banks of the Han River is one of the best public spaces in Seoul. Located in the cen- ter of the city dividing the old Seoul from new, it provides a perfect area for a large space for recreation for the entire city population of over 25 million. Living in such a congested city, personal space is an issue, so this park is a wonderful solution for the citizens.

Summary:

The Han River is quite literally the center The Han in essence becomes one of the of Seoul dividing the north and south part best public spaces within the city. With of the city. The Han nowadays becomes the there being many miles of riverfront park center of athletic training and recreation. real estate, it becomes one of the few places There are many different scenes within the with expanses of grass and dedicated spots everyday use by the citizens of Seoul. There for sport and recreation with bike and is a constant flow of bike clubs zipping running paths located the entire distance. by on their decked-out carbon fiber Seoul has been working vigorously to get bikes blasting their favorite tunes from a the Han River cleaned up both for the Bluetooth speaker attached to the water environment purposes and for the people Figure 1. Biking down the Han bottle holder. Joggers and runners also to be able to use the river once again for share the same space as the cyclists. There sport. It has now become a very important will be both a steady amount of cyclist landmark in the middle of such an urban and joggers until 10 or 11PM at night on mecca to escape from the complexities average. Every time Austin and I go down of the work and school life and to also be there to run at night, there are always able to enjoy the little time you have with cyclists to avoid getting run over by. friends, families, and love ones.

During the daytime, there are families and couples camped on the lawns before the rivers waters watching their favorite Korean dramas and enjoying a large Figure 2. Urban Campers picnic. Food and drink is such a big part of Korean culture and community. There are also teenagers running through the park playing Frisbee with their good friends (and maybe even some friends they just made). Down by the rivers water, there will be older Korean men relaxing on a Saturday afternoon out with their buddies drinking Soju and beer while fishing both hoping to catch the next big fish. Within the water and its calm nature, people will be kayaking, wind surfing, or jet skiing. Figure 3. Han River at Dusk

2 Seoul, SK

• Seoul is completely surrounded by mountains. Hiking culture is very important in Seoul as a means of recreation as well as getting out of the busy and congested city. It also had some of the best views on a clear day. Hiking was one of my favorite activities while living and working abroad.

Hiking Seoul UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS FREEMAN EAST ASIA SCHOLARSHIP | EXPERIENCE ABROAD 03.02.2016 • This was a view down the street we lived on. The congested nature of families living nearby and sheer amount of apartments was amazing. Every building on this block had parking underneath and living above.

View down our Residential Street. UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS FREEMAN EAST ASIA SCHOLARSHIP | EXPERIENCE ABROAD 03.02.2016 • Hangang Park running alongside the Han River was the main source of exercise and recreation while living abroad. Here there was a 25-mile bike path on both sides of the river with parks running the entire length. Here there was everything from urban camping, to Frisbee tossing, to jogger/ runners. It is the second best place of refuge from the congested city nature and a wonderful area to relax after a long day at work.

Hangang Park : Han River UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS FREEMAN EAST ASIA SCHOLARSHIP | EXPERIENCE ABROAD 03.02.2016 • Once the site of an unattractive elevated highway, this public park/ stream is one of the most active parts of the city where friends, families, and couples gather to enjoy each others company. The sound of rushing water calms the busy city noise creating a very peaceful space.

Cheonggyecheon Stream UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS FREEMAN EAST ASIA SCHOLARSHIP | EXPERIENCE ABROAD 03.02.2016 • The Palace is the oldest palace in Korea and the site of the oldest dynasty in Korea. It is a very important landmark of the country.

Gyeongbokgung Palace | Main Palace UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS FREEMAN EAST ASIA SCHOLARSHIP | EXPERIENCE ABROAD 03.02.2016 • The Bukchon Village is one of the best examples of traditional houses of the old dynasty. The interesting fact is that people still live in these ancient structures and are very expensive to live in. It is a very beautiful area filled with great examples of what the city use to be feel like.

Bukchon Hanok Village | Traditional Korean Village UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS FREEMAN EAST ASIA SCHOLARSHIP | EXPERIENCE ABROAD 03.02.2016 • /Plaza is the ‘stage for democracy’ for Seoul. Here is where they had many demonstrations and concerts. Every weekend there was something different going on. This picture was ’s Independence Day from Japan. Seoul City Plaza is in essence the center of Seoul.

Seoul Plaza | Seoul City Hall UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS FREEMAN EAST ASIA SCHOLARSHIP | EXPERIENCE ABROAD 03.02.2016 • From the N-Tower, one can have a 360 degree view of the city. The N-Tower is at the highest part of Seoul.

Nighttime View of Seoul from the N-Tower UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS FREEMAN EAST ASIA SCHOLARSHIP | EXPERIENCE ABROAD 03.02.2016 • Being abroad in Seoul means we where close to some of the largest cities in the world. I was able to go to Japan twice (one with my roommate and one with my mom). Going to Tokyo was an amazing change of place. After living in Seoul for three months, traveling to the largest city in the world was just as incredible.

Tokyo, Japan | Tokyo Skytree UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS FREEMAN EAST ASIA SCHOLARSHIP | EXPERIENCE ABROAD 03.02.2016 • Being able to travel was one of the most rewarding parts of this trip. I was able to travel to Tokyo, Kyoto, Hiroshima, Osaka, and Beijing. Without the help from the Freeman East Asia Scholarship, I would have never been able to fully embrace my academic potential in Asia. It came to be the most rewarding part of my educational career.

Kyoto, Japan | Fushimi Inari-taisha Shrine UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS FREEMAN EAST ASIA SCHOLARSHIP | EXPERIENCE ABROAD 03.02.2016