Other than that, I didn't really have any idea about what else might lie there. Architecture, apparently!!
I'll take you through a brief excursion I went on led by Dr. Robert Fouser with the RASKB.
In all honesty, I got there a few minutes late. I got out of the Hyewha subway station. No congregating foreigners to be found... In a moment of despair, I just followed my gut as to where they might be. Luckily they had not gotten far, and I found the group discussing the old Seoul National University campus which used to be located there. Since then, it has moved to Gangnam, but the SNU Hospital still runs across the street from the old plaza.
There's some interesting tidbits to be learned about the old SNU. There was a lot of political influence during the time under Park Chunghee. For example, there were actually no foreign professors. They weren't allowed. Interesting.
Dr. Fouser introduced a few famous buildings designed by an architect who had a lot of influence in Seoul's modern construction phases, Kim Swoo-geun (김수근). His buildings are actually quite unique. It's clear that he liked to use red brick. A nice characteristic is that the entrances to the buildings are often angled and disjointed so as to be more interesting than just a square block, yet still open like a breezeway. The main entrance is often slightly tucked away and not very prominent. Also, the use of textured stones for the walkways is a signature. I'm surprised I have no pictures. I was probably still trying to gather myself from the shock of being lost.
Dr. Fouser introduced a few famous buildings designed by an architect who had a lot of influence in Seoul's modern construction phases, Kim Swoo-geun (김수근). His buildings are actually quite unique. It's clear that he liked to use red brick. A nice characteristic is that the entrances to the buildings are often angled and disjointed so as to be more interesting than just a square block, yet still open like a breezeway. The main entrance is often slightly tucked away and not very prominent. Also, the use of textured stones for the walkways is a signature. I'm surprised I have no pictures. I was probably still trying to gather myself from the shock of being lost.
This is the foyer to the gallery, after you go upstairs to the third floor, passing an antiques collection on the second.
A model locksmith's workroom.
Chastity belts for men and women.
More pictures can be found on the same Flickr album. Beautiful craftsmanship. There were both indigenous Korean designs as well as locks from around the world. Keyless locks (puzzle locks) were particularly interesting.
Onward ho!
Dr. Fouser explained to us how the redevelopment model works in Korea (or at least Seoul). Gather 70% of the signatures of residents, and an area can be taken away (with compensation from the construction company's real estate value quote) to make room for new towns (giant apartment complexes). That is how all of the apartments you see today have been made. Initially there were small neighborhoods with hanoks and less "valuable" properties (houses). If you are in the 30% that do not agree, too bad.
This house is that of a prominent opposition member in the Hyewha neighborhood. Still his. Victory to you, sir.
Dr. Fouser showed us the appeal of these small, more traditional houses that are usually victims of redevelopment plans. They are not popular because there is nowhere to park. People also claim the neighborhoods are unsightly.
Next, we visited former Prime Minister Chang Myon's house (AKA John Myon Chang, in Korean the house is called 장면가옥). Here is a good history of the home in Korean, and this government funded culture site is the best I could find in English. It was actually a very admirable property. It was hanok style with a Western-style attachment for entertaining dignitaries. Sadly I don't have a proper shot of the yard... I guess the space was too confined for me to find an appropriate shot. But here is a photo from Robert Koehler's feed:
Inside there were some nice Korean-Western fusions. Catholic figurine with Asian wallpaper and furniture.
This top hat was quite popular. Velvety...
I wish I had this chair and window at my own place.
Retro fan. Subtle reminder that this place was a home up through the 1960s.
I can see that I now began to experience the fatigue of a warm day walking around a hilly neighborhood with a camera. Why? Not as many pictures in between. But alas, we found ourselves at the former official mayor's residence (서울시 장공관). This was the housing provided to the current Seoul city mayor. But this tradition ended recently. It's a nice property. It has a large yard, two stories, and sits right on the Seoul City Wall.
It has some nice open windows and gardens, but look at the kitchen. Blegh. The kitchen and bath were shockingly ordinary. But cool. Ordinary is better than extravagant for official housing, I suppose.
At the end of this part of the City Wall, there's a gate. Hyewha-mun. Again. I was tired by then. It's beautiful, I promise.
And this is where we put up our feet after the tour. There was a nice little cafe that sold handmade crafts and had its very own free range cat.
It was a good day with good people. There was lively discussion of city politics and culture. I highly recommend the excursions put on by the RASKB (Royal Asiatic Society Korea Branch) for anyone interested in getting to know deep and insightful details about the city or Korea.
And for those of you interested in the Seoul City Wall trail, this city website has some information about the landmarks along the way and the open hours (as well as which sections need ID). Click on the banners toward the bottom to find more details about each section of the wall.
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