[Namsan Ddalggakbari] Seoul Neighborhood, Every Corner, Step by Step

Walking in Seoul / Written by Jeong Yeon-seok / Jaeseung Publishing / 15,000 KRW

Dongdaemun Stadium Disappeared into History

Yeonhui-dong, the 'Alley Rich' Neighborhood Next to Yeonnam-dong

The Decline of Yongsan Electronics Market in Hangangno-dong...

Built in 1925 to commemorate the marriage of Hirohito (裕仁), the Japanese Crown Prince, Dongdaemun Stadium in Jung-gu, Seoul, was the second largest in East Asia after Japan's Koshien. The 10th All Joseon Sports Festival, the first comprehensive sports event in Korea, was held here in 1929. From the Gyeongpyeong Soccer Tournament during the Japanese colonial period to the golden age of high school baseball, professional baseball, and professional soccer in the 1970s, the starting point of amateur and professional sports that we remember or have heard about was all 'Dongdaemun.' The state funeral of Emperor Sunjong, the last emperor of the Korean Empire, as well as pro- and anti-trust rallies and the funerals of Yo Un-hyung and Kim Gu during the chaotic post-liberation period, were also held here.

Dongdaemun Stadium, born at the dawn of modern history, witnessed the ups and downs of Korea's compressed growth for 85 years before being demolished in May 2008 after the 'Goodbye Dongdaemun Stadium' event. The Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP), which seems to have landed there like an emergency landing, presents an overwhelmingly unfamiliar image as grand as its scale. The 45,000 aluminum panels shine flawlessly like silver scales covering 85 years of history. For those who remember even the faintest scenes of that era, the presence of DDP might feel like a push to 'forget it now.'

The author says, "(To Zaha Hadid, who designed the DDP) Dongdaemun Stadium might have been an object of no interest from the start." "Sitting on the stairs leading to Igansu Gate, I see the stone walls of Hanyang Fortress layered like strata beneath the silver aluminum panels and gray concrete walls. It felt like an overlap of different times." Only two lighting towers installed in 1968 remain at the site of Dongdaemun Stadium and baseball field.

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If DDP and the Dongdaemun Stadium area symbolize a clear break for the author, Yeonhui-dong in Seodaemun-gu remains enigmatic and hard to define in a single word. Passing through the underpass that stands like a gatekeeper at the border with Yeonnam-dong, casting a dark shadow, there are numerous unique and charming cafes, old restaurants, Chinese eateries, bars, clothing stores, and workshops. Beyond Gungdong Neighborhood Park lies another part of Yeonhui-dong, where old houses densely line the foothills of Gungdong Mountain, and narrow, steep alleys stretch like a maze.

When people think of Yeonhui-dong, many still imagine a neighborhood where two former presidents lived, a place where wealthy people built mansions even before the Gangnam era. However, the neighborhood has now expanded, with various types of apartment complexes radiating out from the mansion area, bustling with young people drawn by relatively affordable monthly rent and lease houses in good locations.

As the Hongdae commercial district expanded and Yeonnam-dong gained fame, many perceive Yeonhui-dong as 'the neighborhood clinging to Yeonnam-dong.' Therefore, the underpass that stands like a gatekeeper is now more naturally called 'the underpass leading from Yeonhui-dong to Yeonnam-dong' rather than 'the underpass entering Yeonhui-dong from Yeonnam-dong.'

This area, where bakeries, fabric shops, hardware stores, photo studios, and jewelry stores have maintained their presence for decades, forming a unique neighborhood commercial district, has a charm like "an organism growing through cell division," "sometimes breaking down and sometimes being built up while maintaining the whole." To reach here by bus from Gwanghwamun, one must get off at the 'Yeonhui 104 Hill' stop. The 104 Hill was a fierce battleground during the Korean War. Contrary to the resolute name of the stop, there are many alleys in Yeonhui-dong where one can stroll in a relaxed atmosphere.

The Author as an Urban Traveler Sees

Stories of About 20 Neighborhoods in Seoul

Compiled Like 'Photographs Taken with Words'

The author's impressions of Hangangno-dong in Yongsan-gu are also intriguing. "Can Seoul Dragon City, a hotel complex with four hotel chains and 1,700 rooms, be the future of Yongsan? Below the hotel, which looks like a giant dragon writhing, the electronics market seems precarious like a candle that could go out at any moment." While many, especially younger people, remember 'Yongpal-i,' the unscrupulous merchants of Yongsan Electronics Market, and Terminal Market, their stronghold, they may not realize that Seoul Dragon City was built on the site where Terminal Market was demolished.

Yongsan Electronics Market was established in the early 1980s as part of the government's policy to foster the electronics industry. Once thriving with annual sales reaching 10 trillion won, the market's image is likely to be remembered along with the traffic congestion on Cheongpa-ro, the six-lane road running through the center of the market. The electronics market, where people bought large and heavy computers, got them repaired, and fiercely bargained over game cartridges, has now become a precarious market with a vacancy rate exceeding 20%.

To the author, a neighborhood is like "an oasis where the procession takes a brief rest." Having moved around a lot due to various circumstances and currently settled somewhere, the author thinks, "Someday, I will have to leave again like a nomad." Seoul has 467 legal neighborhoods (dong). As an urban traveler and writer, the author captured the stories of Seoul, first stepping foot in 1999, as seen and felt personally. From Daejo-dong in Eunpyeong-gu, where the author first settled, to Magok-dong in Gangseo-gu, where the author currently lives, stories of about 20 neighborhoods are summarized and compiled like 'photographs taken with words.'

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.