Hwaseong Fortress was constructed by Jeongjo, the 22nd king of the Joseon Dynasty (1392~1910). King Jeongjo built the Hwaseong palace, and Hwaseong Fortress in memory of his father, Sadoseja, who had died at the hands of Yeongjo, the 21st king of the Joseon Dynasty and King Jeongjo's grandfather.
Red line: Path we went
Green line: Path of King Jeongjo's procession to his father's tomb
We walk around the Hwaseong Fortress starting from Dongbuk Gangnu and Hwahongmun where we can see beautiful pond called Yongyeon(Banghwasuryujeong). But when we went the pond was under construction.
Banghwasuryujeong and Dongbuk Gangnu
In front of Hwahongmun
Then we walk to Janganmun-Hwaseomun-Seojangdea-Paldalmun. Janganmun is the north gate and the largest of the exisiting main gates. Hwaseomun is the west gate. Seojangdea is loacted on top of Mt. paldal therefore is used as a command post. Paldalmun is the south gate and the name means 'open roads in every direction'.
After having lunch we went to see Hwaseong Haenggung. Hwaseong Haenggung is the temporary palace for King Jeongjo when he was away from his palace in Seoul.
There are also many events at Hwaseong Haenggung at saterdays and sundays. at sundays you can see King jeongjo's procession to the tomb of his fater, Muye24ki and jangyougyoung guarding ceremony. Also if you reserve a week befor the king's parade, you can participate in the parade too.
Muye24ki performance
with the king in Hwaseong Haenggung
After watching the king's parade, we went into Hwaseong Haenggung and luckily met the king and took a picture with him. Then we wnet outside to see muye24ki's performances.
Becuase we walked around the fortress, it took us 1-2hours to see only the fortress. But I think it is better to walk than riding the train therefore we can see the facillities of the fortress better and see beatiful views. Also watchig the king's parade and other performances was interesting too. Infront of the Haenggung, there were many things to experieneces so you can experienece many things wating for the parade to arrive.
If you need any more informantions visit the homepage of hwaseong.(korean http://hs.suwon.ne.kr/ english http://ehs.suwon.ne.kr/)
It is first time for me to visit Hwaseong. When I was high school or middle school student, I learned Hwaseong many times. I really want to visit Hwaseong but the chance is not given. I thought Hwaseong is only one castle but it is not. Hwaseong is bing fortress and surround the village. We walk around village and saw beautiful scenery. There was a parade which repeat the Joseon Dynasty King ์ ์กฐ. It is a good experience and traditional castle was impressive for me.
ReplyDeleteHwaseong was the first fortress I have heard about and I have seen in Korea. Some other exchange students were talking about it but never actually went there. This was a great opportunity to see something I have never seen before. We climbed the hill. At first it seemed, it was a long way to the top. Later, I found out that it really was a long long way to the top. But it was worth it.
ReplyDeleteAs mentioned before, we also saw a parade with Joseon Dynasty King. Of course, the queen was there as well.
There were quite many performances at the parade. I think I enjoyed some music performances and a martial performance the most. All of those things were so different compared to what I'm used to in Europe.