SUWON


'Suwon' (''Suwon-si'') is the provincial capital of Gyeonggi-do, South Korea. Suwon is approximately 30 kilometres (20 miles) south of Seoul. It is sometimes called the capital of Korean football because the popularity of the Suwon Samsung Bluewings, and is traditionally known as "The City of Filial Piety".
Suwon is the only remaining walled city in South Korea, not including those which retain remnants. As such, the city walls are one of the more popular tourist destinations in Gyeonggi Province. As an industrial centre, Suwon houses a large Samsung Electronics factory. Suwon is served by two motorways, the national railway network and the Seoul Metropolitan Subway, facilitating transport of commuters, tourists and goods alike.

Contents
History
Geography
Administrative divisions
Demographics
Education
Culture
Recreation
Professional sport
Entertainment
Other facilities
Transport
Food
Famous people
Sister Cities
See also
References
External links

History


North Korean T-34-85 which was caught on a bridge south of Suwon by U.S. attack aircraft during the Korean War.

King Jeongjo made an ultimately unsuccessful attempt to make Suwon the nation's capital in 1796 with the construction of Hwaseong Fortress, a fortified wall running around the entire city intended to guard the tomb of his father which he had located there. The fortress was constructed under the guidance of philosopher Jeong Yag-yong, and still exists today. It is a designated UNESCO World Heritage site. The walls once encircled the entire city, but recent urban growth has seen the city spread out far beyond the fortress.


Geography


Flags on Hwaseong.

Suwon lies in the north of the Gyeonggi plain, just south of South Korea's capital, Seoul. It is bordered by Uiwang to the north-west, Yongin to the east, the city of Hwaseong to the south-west, and also shares a short border with Ansan to the west.
There are a few hills around Suwon. The highest of these is Gwanggyosan to the north, on the border with Yongin, though those to the east are more numerous. Gwanggyosan is 582 metres above sea level.[1]
Most of the streams passing through Suwon originate on Gwanggyosan or other nearby peaks. Since Suwon is bounded to the east by other hills, the streams, chiefly the Suwoncheon, flow southwards through the city, eventually emptying into the Yellow Sea at Asan Bay. The entirity of Suwon is drained in this manner.
At the closest point, being the Chilbosan ridge (239m)[2] to the west on the border with Ansan, Suwon lies 6km from the Yellow Sea coast.

Administrative divisions


Districts of Suwon

The city is divided into 4 ''gu'' (major districts):
Romanization Hangul Hanja Pop. (2007)
★		 Area (m²)
1. Gwonseon Gu권선구勸善區314,03547,355,349.2
2. Jangan Gu장안구長安區292,11633,119,867.5
3. Paldal Gu팔달구八達區223,42713,077,959.4
4. Yeongtong Gu영통구靈通區257,31827,500,143.7




★ Figures from resident registration figures made available by Suwon City Council.
The newest of these is Yeongtong Gu, which was separated from Paldal Gu on November 24, 2003. [3] These districts are in turn divided into 42 ''dong''.

Demographics


Suwon is 50.2% male and 49.8% female. Indeed, it is only in Paldal Gu that the number of female residents is greater than the number of male. 1.4% of the population is foreign, the highest concentration (2.3%) being in Paldal Gu. Further information regarding the residents of each district is shown below.
Total people Korean males Korean females Korean (total) Foreign males Foreign females Foreign (total)
Suwon (total)1,086,896538,643533,2921,071,9357,3897,57214,961
Gwonseon Gu314,035156,614153,968310,5821,6191,8343,453
Jangan Gu292,116145,067144,237289,3041,3081,5042,812
Paldal Gu223,427108,556109,630218,1862,5592,6825,241
Yeongtong Gu257,318128,406125,457253,8631,9031,5523,455



All figures from resident registration figures made available by Suwon City Council.
The only "gu" currently showing an increase in population is Paldal Gu, while all others have falling number of residents, especially Jangan Gu.[4]
Suwon saw a 13% increase in the number of registered foreigners residing in the city in the first half of 2007.[4]

Education


Institutions of higher education in Suwon include Ajou University, Dongnam Health College, Gukje Digital University, Hapdong Theological Seminary, Kyonggi University, Kyunghee University, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon Catholic University, Suwon Science College, Suwon Women's College, and the University of Suwon. In addition, the agricultural campus of Seoul National University is located in the city.
Gyeonggi Suwon International School, an IB World School with a boarding program for foreign students, is also located in Suwon.

Culture


Hwaseong Fortress.

Hwaseong Fortress is Suwon's most notable attraction. Built in 1796, the entire city used to be encircled by the walls, but now Suwon has expanded beyond this boundary. Hwaseong is also listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Haenggung Palace, within Hwaseong, is another noteworthy historical attraction. On completion of the Bundang Line extension, Suwon will also be only a few stops from Singal, the location of the Korean Folk Village, and the Everland theme park is nearby in Yongin.
Recreation

The path around the walls of Hwaseong Fortress is popular with locals and tourists for sightseeing and keeping fit. Manseok Park in northern Suwon has a 1200m track around a lake and is often crowded with walkers, cyclists and roller-bladers. Other facilities at Manseok Park include tennis (indoor & outdoor), soccer (dirt and artificial turf) and the Suwon X-Games skatepark. Various other parks are dotted around Suwon and several ski resorts and hiking trails are within easy reach of the city.
Professional sport

Suwon is home to the Suwon World Cup Stadium, a venue during the 2002 FIFA World Cup and home to K-League side Suwon Samsung Bluewings. The city is also home to Korean Baseball Organization team Hyundai Unicorns.
Entertainment

Suwon has three major cinemas: two in the city centre, namely Megabox, and CGV in Suwon Station complex, and one in Yeongtong Gu, namely Kinex.

Other facilities


Suwon City Council prides itself on the condition of its public lavatories. It has made efforts in recent years to make new lavatories clean and to improve existing facilities and now offers visitors guided bus tours of the municipal restrooms.[6]

Transport


Suwon is a regional transportation hub and Suwon Station is an important stop on the Gyeongbu railway line between Seoul and Busan. There is a bus service to the KTX high-speed train station at Gwangmyeong. Suwon is connected to Seoul and other nearby cities by city and express buses with departure points across the city. There are also two bus terminals in Suwon with inter-city and express bus connections to most cities in Korea. These are Suwon Bus Terminal and West Suwon Bus Terminal, which is located near Sungkyunkwan University.
Suwon has several stations on Seoul Subway Line 1, which runs North-South through the city, namely Sungkyunkwan University, Hwaseo, Suwon and Seryu. An extension of the Bundang Line to cross Suwon East-West, terminating at Suwon, is under construction, as is a further line connecting Suwon Station to Incheon.
The Yeongdong Expressway (Number 50) passes through Suwon and two exits on this motorway lie within the city limits, being North Suwon and East Suwon. Suwon is also served by the Suwon exit of the Gyeongbu Expressway (Number 1), though this lies a short distance east of the Suwon's limits, near Singal in the city of Yongin.
As with most Korean cities, taxis are plentiful.

Food


Suwon is famous for Suwon galbi, a variation on the original galbi theme enjoyed throughout Korea.

Famous people


Famous people from Suwon include:

★ Manchester United footballer Park Ji-Sung, after whom a street in the city was named in 2005.[7]

★ Former deputy prime minister Kim Byong-joon

★ Footballer Kim Jin-Woo

★ Pastor Billy Kim, Former President of the Baptist World Alliance and current President of the Far East Broadcasting Company

★ Cellist Han-Na Chang

★ Korean actress Hyun Young

Sister Cities



★ Asahikawa, Japan (1989)

★ Jinan, China (1993)

★ Townsville, Australia (1997)

★ Bandung, Indonesia (1997)

★ Cluj-Napoca, Romania (1999)

★ Toluca, Mexico (1999)

★ Yalova, Turkey (1999)

★ Fes, Morocco (2003)

★ Hai Duong, Vietnam (2004)

★ Siem Reap Province, Cambodia (2004)

★ Hyderabad,India

See also



★ List of cities in South Korea

★ Geography of South Korea

★ Seoul National Capital Area

References


1. 한국의 산하 - 광교산 (''Hangugui Sanha - Gwanggyosan'')
2. 사사동의 칠부산 (''Sasa-dongui Chilbusan'')
3. 영통구 연혁 (''Yeongtong-gu Yeonhyeok'')
4. 수원시 통계 (''Suwon-si Tonggye'')
5. 수원시 통계 (''Suwon-si Tonggye'')
6. Beautiful Restrooms
7.

External links



★ City government website

★ Open Directory category

★ ''Suwon Samsung Bluewings'' official site

★ Official site of Hwaseong fortress

★ Gyeonggi Suwon International School homepage

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