Suwon — The Origin of Water in South Korea

Once outside of Seoul, the non-Korean-speaking tourists would be left to their own devices as to how they communicate with the Koreans and find their way around. That was Suwon to me.

In Hanja, Suwon means “the origin of water.” Suwon is the provincial capital of Gyeonggi-do, 48 km south of Seoul. There were really only two things to see there: the Korean Folk Village and a “faithfully restored fortress of Hwaseong” as described in the Lonely Planet.

The fortress of Hwaseong was built between 1794 and 1796 during the reign of King Jeongjo of the famous Joseon Dynasty that I kept hearing about in the palaces of Seoul. It was also an effort to make Suwon the second capital city. There are four main gates, of which the Paldalmun was the most famous and a designated national treasure. It almost felt like seeing the fortress of Xi’an, an ancient capital in China. The similarities notwithstanding, the fortress of Hwaseong was built with the best technology existing, “encompassing the strong points of both Asian and western elements.”




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#historicallandmarks#历史古迹

Post by Helen Yu (Chestnut Journal) | Feb 10, 2025