So, what’s Korea’s prettiest university campus? Personally, I dig Keimyung University’s very American-style main hall. Very distinctive.
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Korea’s prettiest universities
This entry was written by Robert Koehler, posted on April 12, 2007 at 11:15 pm, filed under Asides, South Korea. Bookmark the permalink. Follow any comments here with the RSS feed for this post.
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26 Comments
I favor the Seould campus of Kyung Hee University (offical site) (pic). It’s not far from Wae Dae, but that campus is probably below average and a bit run down. Also, KHU has some fine doctors.
The main hall of Gyedae is nice—kind of neo-Georgian or something—but it’s at the old campus downtown. The main campus is out in the western suburbs of Daegu, and nothing terribly special or distinctive (not even anywhere pleasant to go for a walk around there either, unless you go further west to the Geumho river).
I tried to post something about Kyung Hee U, but included three links and my comment was, I assume, automatically moderated.
Certainly not SNU with that hideous front gate. A number of TV dramas shoot scenes at Yonsei University, for its main quadrangle of ivy-covered brick and mortar halls are an idealized image of a college campus.
My vote goes to KyungHee University in Seoul.
http://www.kyunghee.edu/
What’s that ceremonial hall at Kyung Hee that looks like a cathedral (photo here)? Pretty impressive.
Sorry, it’s the photo in the lower right-hand corner (same site as Robert linked to). Don’t know if it’s a “ceremonial hall,” but I was just translating 의전당 in the photo caption.
Ansn College has a very nice lawn (more open space than you see at most schools) and is set, like many colleges, in a wooded valley.
http://www.ansan.ac.kr/
I agree with Richardson about Kyung Hee’s Seoul campus. Even though it has its share of run down buildings they’re doing a lot of renovation and the landscaping is quite nicely done. My favorite (not for any architectural reasons) is the sciences building and its KWP-esque propaganda mural. They just need to write something like 위대하신 김정일 동지위하여 and it would be complete.
The KyungHee campus is especially nice when compared to HUFS right down the street, which looks like it was built in 1945 and hasn’t seen a paintbrush since. Concrete buildings are literally decomposing where they stand. Very third world-esque and something HUFS students I know are universally ashamed of. They’ve also started a very big renovation project but last time I saw it was all still shrouded in those green nets that cover construction sites in Korea.
Sewing, as far as I know that is a cathedral which they also use for the occasional retirement ceremony etc.
About the “Peace Hall” of Kyung Hee University—in point of fact, it is NOT a cathedral, although it’s essentially a replica of a cathedral in Belgium. It’s a performing arts center.
I did graduate work at KHU (Namyangju campus), and let me tell you, you don’t know the half of it.
The KHU Seoul campus (or, for that matter, the Suwon and Namyangju campuses) are, in fact, very pretty, but at the same time, they’re of relatively modern construction and, frankly, they have a certain amount of Pyongyang-esque fakeness about them—the Peace Hall being a case in point.
Harvard or Stanford?
I’m partial to Ewha.
Have yourselves a good and thorough walk through the campus there. Or maybe you have, and were looking at a different kind of scenery?
BTW, Yonsei used to own all the property down through Sinchon to Sinchon “Rotary,” where the subway station is. In the 1930’s, the trustees figured they’d never need that land and sold it. Ooops.
{gasp} — i agree with Richardson on something!
and with JiMong, sewing, Carly & Marmot — KyungHee’s Seoul Campus is simply beautiful — no wonder it’s crowded like a public park every good-weather Sunday. It’s a pleasure for me to walk around on my way to the office every day… My photos of it are on this page: http://www.san-shin.org/David-KHU-2.html
That cathedral-ish building is called the “Grand Peace Palace”, and is entirely secular — i had my introduction-ceremony in there. It’s a shrine to “Western Ideals” in a hillariously-twisted way — all around it is found faux-Greek/Roman almost-Christian-Renaissance artworks, some quite orgiastic-sexual, loads of bare breasts and muscular torsos — quite the R-rated “church”
It compliments the Grecco-Roman super-pillars Admin Building and Tudor-Brit Library for a trifecta-display of Euro-architecture just-a-bit-off-kilter-Korean-style… i dig it all.
Well there you go. I’m not too religious so I never actually bothered to check out the ‘cathedral’. Thanks for the info Marmot and Sanshinseon. As for the Pyongyang-esque fakeness of many of the buildings, I agree. The adminstration bulding’s “Greco-Roman super pillars” while impressive from a distance are actually made from concrete, not stone. So, from a distance, beautiful. Up close, chintzy. Regardless, compared to SNU and its brick boxes, Kyunghee’s gorgeous.
Sanshinseon,
We probably agree on a good bit, but for sure not on a few Romanization points.
Corpy,
When I mentioned “Wae Dae,” I believe that’s what you’re calling “HUFS.” One of the places I stayed at for a few months was a ha-suk-chip between KHU and Wae Dae.
Things are a lot cheaper towards Wae Dae. Back in the day, I could go to “Ssang-dung-i-nae” and get pi-bim-bap for W1,900, but at the same chain near KHU it was W3,500.
BTW What is the ‘half of it’ about the Kyunghee student body’s politics? Inquiring minds
Where did you live Richardson? I was in a place for the last few months of 2006 called Canaan Gositel (가나안 고시텔) which was just out Kyunghee’s back gate between the two campuses. I had looked at a few Hasuk but I was willing to trade a little space to avoid having a middle aged woman barge in on me at all hours. I thought it was a great area, though the price differential wasn’t so favorable by the time I got there. I tended to end up at the 2500 won Samgyupsal places just out Wae Dae’s back gate, which I could certainly go for right about now. Were you a student at Kyunghee’s IIE?
Actually, it wasn’t the student body’s politics I found a bit wacky. I would prefer not to go into it—inquiring minds or not—but if you take a look at the front gate of KHU’s Suwon campus (see here, here and here), you might get a sense of what I’m talking about.
NOTE: Things may have changed a lot since 2001.
I like Kyung Hee’s landscaping—a lot—and it’s certainly a much more pleasant environment than Hanguk University of Foreign Studies, but as for its architecture, I find it obscene. Grotesque, really.
I’m going to say my first Hagwon, Yale. Granted it’s not as pretty as the original US institution of the same name, but it had a mean balloon archway at the entrance.
Korea University, Anam-dong. The groundsmen’s skills there are commensurate with those of the best plastic surgeon in Gangnam.
Thanks for the link, Sanshinseon. Those are beautiful shots. For me, spring was the best time to visit the KHU Campus even if it is Grotesque.
Most of the 386 generation student body leaders used college campuses as a fortress against riot police which also ruined many part of campus . As a result, most of paved siwalk turned to asphalt-paved ones.
Do you guys ever get out of Seoul? I’m voting Cheongju Dae Hakyo.
“I’m partial to Ewha.
Have yourselves a good and thorough walk through the campus there. Or maybe you have, and were looking at a different kind of scenery?”
Both varieties of scenery there tend to be very appealing. Lots of great old buildings and trees, especially as one ventures further into the campus. The construction project around the front gate is a bit of a blight. Hope the final product is worth it.
“I’m partial to Ewha”
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No credits to Ewha W Univ. campus
I couldn’t take my eyes off beautiful Ewha girls..
#24, Poji Hall is on of my favorite spots at Wewha University. It is the freshest place on cam_pus