- This article is about the area in Gunpo city called Sanbon. For the subway station on line four of the same name, see Sanbon Station.
Downtown Sanbon, across from Sanbon station.
Another image from a different angle.
Surisan itself, and the neighbouring mountains.
Sanbon (산본동, 山本洞) is the name of the community centered around Sanbon Station, in the city of Gunpo in Gyeonggi-do, just south of Seoul. The city is minutes away from Anyang and Suwon by subway. The name in Korean roughly translates as "the mountain's root."
Sanbon is a new city, also called a satellite city, and was little more than farmland a decade or two ago. Sanbon is somewhat similar to Bundang in its distance from Seoul (about 30 to 40 minutes by subway), air quality, mountainous location, and culture. However, Bundang has many more shops, bars, and coffee shops than Sanbon.
[edit] History
The administrative entity of Sanbon was formed in 1914, as part of a general nationwide consolidation of local government under the Japanese occupation. At that time it was Sanbon-ri, a rural precinct of Siheung County. When it became part of the new Gunpo City in 1989, its status was changed from ri to dong. The current name "Sanbon" may have derived from "Sanjeo," meaning "low on the mountain," which was first used to describe the region in 1789.
[edit] Geography, Population, and Administration
The total area of Sanbon is 2.05km². Sanbon has a population of just over 50,000. The area is divided into two dongs, Sanbon 1-dong and Sanbon 2-dong.
[edit] Entertainment
[edit] Movie theatres
Sanbon has two movie theatres: CNI and Sanbon Cinema. The former was constructed more recently and is located just out the front of the station across the first bridge. Sanbon Cinema is somewhat further back and can be located by heading straight forward, then making a left turn at the fountain in the centre of the plaza (about five minutes from the station). Sanbon Cinema is run by a local man who will turn off the movie as soon as it finishes before the credits begin to roll.
Unfortunately Sanbon Cinema is no longer in business (05/11/2009)
The most popular bar for expats in Sanbon is King of Pirates (Pirate Bar). It's located next to Shinhan Bank. Pirate Bar is famous for its Ice Beer that you throw at a target for prizes. Prizes range from free beer to free whiskey.
The second most popular bar for expats located in Sanbon is Bar 10 near the centre of the plaza. To reach there, leave the subway station, go out front and walk straight up to the central plaza. Turn left there, cross the tiny roadway and a GS25 will be seen on the corner of the building on the left before reaching the bridge. Bar 10 is on the 7th floor of the building.
[edit] Coffee Shops
There's Starbucks behind Emart and Hollys across from Sanbon Station. Ediya Coffee is located furthest away from the station. Go straight out the station and walk down the plaza, turn left before the E-mart. Rococo and Rosebud are next to each other. When you go out the station and across the bridge they will be in the building to the immediate right, where CNI is located.
[edit] Transportation
A limo bus leaves for Inchon roughly every thirty minutes. The stop is near the park, just up the hill from the library. Look for a bus stop that isn't a Gunpo bus stop. [1]
