Suwon (Suwon-si, 수원시, 水原市, water.source.city) is the largest city in Gyeonggi-do, and the provincial capital. Suwon is approximately 30 kilometres (20 miles) south of Seoul, and shares the same subway line. Though Suwon is technically a separate city from Seoul, a commute to Seoul generally takes only an hour and many people live there and commute to the capital. For those that are used to the atmosphere of Seoul, generally a position in Suwon is fine as long as the subway is close enough; having to take a bus afterwards may cause one to have to leave gatherings early, or to take the taxi more often than planned.
[edit] General
- Number of households: 368,432 (2005)
- Administrative divisions: 4 gu, 42 dong
- Location of city hall: 1111 Ingye-dong, Paldal-gu, Suwon-shi, Gyeonggi-do (경기 수원시 팔달구 인계동 1111)
- City flower: 진달래
- City tree: Pine (소나무)
- City bird: 백로
To the east of Suwon is the city of Yongin, to the west is the city of Ansan, to the south is Hwaseong, and to the north is Uiwang.
Suwon has almost the same climate as Seoul, and being located only 40 km to the south any differences are minor and more a result of the elevation and presence or lack of mountains than latitude. The average yearly temperature is 12.3℃, the average in January is -2.0℃, and the average temperature in August is 25.9℃. The average yearly precipitation is 1,328.8mm.
[edit] Administrative divisions
A quiet street in the suburbs of Suwon.
[edit] Education
Universities include:
Foreign Schools:
Suwon is famous for Suwon galbi.
[edit] Sister cities
- Asahigawa, Japan (北海道旭川市)
- Fukui, Japan (福井県福井市)
- Jinan, China (山东省济南市)
[edit] Entertainment
[edit] Movie Theatres
There is a Megabox in Migliore and a CGV in Suwon Station. In yongtong-dong there is kinex theater next to the KFC.
[edit] Restaurants and Bars
[edit] Coffee shops
Being located close to the capital and also being a sizable city itself, Suwon has a selection of coffee shops one would expect from a city of its size. There is a Starbucks in Suwon Station and numerous other coffee shops elsewhere.
[edit] Restaurants
As the average Korean, Japanese, and Chinese restaurants are in abundance throughout Korea and are easy for foreigners to find, the following restaurants reflect a sampling of restaurants considered to be either popular or are western-friendly choices and other ethnic foods.
Major nightlife seems to revolve around three areas: Ingyedong, Yeongtong, and Nammun (Paldamun). In Ingyedong you will find an amazing number of hofs, bars, restaurants, hostess bars etc. There's also several Korean nightclubs such as Juliana, Boss etc. Recently a franchise of Club NB, perhaps the most famous of the hiphop clubs in Seoul, opened in this area. It is an impressive western style hip-hop/dance club: very new, very big, very nice, and foreigner friendly. It easily rivals anything that you will find in Seoul.
Nammun is big among the university students of Suwon. It has a fashion street and the majority of nightlife is centered on "Rodeo Street," which is behind the main street to the left of Nammun Gate. Rodeo nightclub can be found here as well as 911 Club. 911 club is famous for "drunken" tequila parties that it holds on Friday and Saturday night. It's a relaxed hip hop club with a bit of skate style.
Other areas that offer some nightlife options include Ajou University area and Suwon Station area, where you will find Team bar (which does bar shows) and S bar (whose owner speaks English). However, be aware that the Suwon Station area is seedy.
[edit] Sports
The city is also home to K-League soccer side Suwon Samsung Bluewings, and Korean professional baseball league team Hyundai Unicorns.
[edit] Tourism
The main tourist attraction in Suwon is Hwaseong, a fortress wall built in 1796 that at the time encircled the entire city. Another historical attraction is the recently-renovated Hwaseong Haenggung palace. The city is also a convenient subway stop for travelling to the Korean Folk Village near Singal and the huge Samsung-owned Everland theme park complex in nearby Yongin.
[edit] Transportation
Suwon is located just to the south of Seoul and the line 1 of the Seoul Subway passes through the city. Suwon was the last station on the line 1 until 2003, when it was extended to Byeongjeom Station and later on to Cheonan Station in 2005.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
