Used my day off to head up Namsan. Crappy weather, so not much in the way of photos. This is about as good as it gets, which, admittedly, is not very:
That being said, the tower is looking a lot nicer these days thanks to last year’s renovation. A number of observation points have also been built along the hiking path, and it appears some new paths through the mountain’s forests will open later this month.
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I occasionally walk from my apartment to the top of Namsan for exercise, about an hour round-trip if I’m not pushing it. It’s always been a pleasant “nature walk” of sorts, but the renovations do make it even better.
Yeah, they are making good progress on making that a pleasant and useful part in the center of Seoul.
I can see Namsan’s peak and tower from my office’s window — it’s always a comforting landmark, seen from most areas of Seoul, letting you know where you relatively are.
Its actual name is Myeon-mok-san, and it was believed to have a male spirit; every year in the Joseon Dynasty it was “mated” with the female spirit of Bugak-san to insure the national fertility and prosperity. The way South Korea’s birth rate is going, perhaps that custom should be revived….
some new paths through the mountain’s forests will open later this month.
Could you please tell me a bit more about this? I go there all the time but information about planned development of the trails is difficult to get in English.
Well, according to the Chosun Ilbo (Korean), the city is planning to conduct a “forest trip” program starting from this month in which guides will take a limited numbers of hikers for 2-hour hikes through the forests of 17 Seoul-area mountains, including Namsan. The hikes would take place on the weekend: 50~60 hikers would be allowed per day, broken up into groups of 15-20. The guides would explain the mountain’s ecology and cultural properties. The program has a homepage that includes information on the forest courses, but it’s in Korean. You’re probably best off giving the guys a call at 3707-9611 and asking for an English speaker.
Thank you. That is most illuminating. You made my day.
This is a better link, actually:
http://san.seoul.go.kr/index.jsp