Haeundae District

"Haeundae" redirects here. For the 2009 film, see Haeundae (film).
Haeundae
해운대구
Autonomous District
Korean transcription(s)
 • Hanja 海雲臺區
 • Revised Romanization Haeundae-gu
 • McCune-Reischauer Haeundae-gu

Logo
Country South Korea
Region Yeongnam
Provincial level Busan
Administrative divisions 18 administrative dong
Area
 • Total 51.44 km2 (19.86 sq mi)
Population (2007[1])
 • Total 423,167
 • Density 8,226/km2 (21,310/sq mi)
 • Dialect Gyeongsang
Website Haeundae District Office

Haeundae District is a gu in eastern Busan, South Korea. It has an area of 51.44 km², and a population of about 423,000. This represents about 11.6% of the population in Busan.[2] It became a division of Busan in 1976 and attained the status of gu in 1980.

Haeundae is an affluent beach front community that attracts tens of thousands of tourists during summer. It has been subject to considerable commercial development in recent decades.

The beach is linked to Busan Subway Line 2 and train stations on the Donghae Nambu railway line.

History

APEC House and Guangan Bridge

Haeundae takes its name from the ninth century Silla scholar and poet Choi Chi-won (literary name Haeun, or "Sea and Clouds"), who, according to a historical account, admired the view from the beach and built a pavilion nearby. A piece of Choi's calligraphy, which he engraved on a rock at Haeundae, still exists.[3]

Haeundae used to be isolated from the large communities in Busan and Busanjin. It remained undeveloped until the late 1970s and early 1980s. A small number of luxury hotels were constructed after the 1988 Seoul Olympics. More hotels and other tourist facilities have been constructed on the beach-front area since the mid-1990s, and shopping malls and movie theatre complexes have been built in the 'centre' of Haeundae: an area between Haeundae Station and the beach. The area has continued to grow, apart from during the Asian financial crisis of 1997.

Haeundae has been a regular host of the annual Busan International Film Festival (BIFF). Haeundae's Dongbaek Island was the location for the 2005 APEC Conference.

Haeundae New Town (해운대 신시가지-Haeundae Sinsigaji), a major commercial and residential redevelopment project begun in 1990, is located in the Jwa-dong area. This area lies in the southern shadow of Jangsan mountain to the north, and is bounded in the south by Haeundae Station on the Dalmaji Gogae line of the Korean National Railroad. Another development project, Centum City, has been ongoing since early 2000 and is now a major feature of Busan. Its BEXCO (Busan Exhibition and Convention Center) has become a popular venue for international conventions and exhibitions. Marine City, located nearby, is constructed on land reclaimed from the sea, and has several huge, high-rise apartment blocks. Additional apartment blocks are under construction, with water resorts and related facilities, for use by the public, also planned for Marine City.

Geography

Haeundae Beach

Haeundae Dalmaji Hill

Haeundae’s Dalmaji Hill is touted as Korea’s best area to greet the moon. Busan’s citizens and tourists visiting the place bask in moonlight-drenched scenery while praying for their wishes to come true. Also, Haeundae’s Dalmaji (greet the Moon) Hill is touted as one of the eight attractions of Busan. Dynamic Busan introduces you to the best locale in the city where you can catch a view of the moon as Korea’s traditional Lunar New Year’s Day and Full Moon Day (Daeboreum) holidays are just around the corner. Dalmaji Hill in Haeundae boasts spectacular scenery. It is one of Korea’s most scenic areas and has been loved by our ancestors for generations. For example, Choe Chi-won (857-10th century), an official and poet from the late Unified Silla Dynasty (668-935), was so struck by its beauty that he decided to extend his stay there. The hill’s winding trail that juxtaposes with the ocean is truly awe-inspiring. Some even say that Dalmaji Hill is Busan’s answer to Montmartre. The hill, lined with old cherry blossom trees and flanked by the alluring ocean, boasts an enduring beauty regardless of the season.

Haeundae Beach

Marine City on a Cloudy Day

Haeundae beach is one of the most famous and beautiful beaches in South Korea. Many events, such as religious events, BIFF movie talks, and company promotions, are held here throughout the year. Also, it is famous that the beach itself is very close to the residency place(for example, apartments and houses near the beach) and very near to a lot of commercial cites. Thus, Haeundae beach has to most developed nearby sites.

Main article: Haeundae Beach

Film and Television

The district was the setting of the movie Haeundae, a South Korean disaster movie based on the somewhat unlikely scenario of an immense tsunami hitting the city of Busan. However, considering the fact that Japan sometimes face severe earthquake more and more, it can happen.

The beach and Dongbaekseom Island was used as a filming location for Seoul Broadcasting System's 2008 drama Star's Lover. The island was the location for the scene where Lee Ma-ri, played by Choi Ji-woo confesses her love for Kim Chul Soo, played by Yoo Ji-tae; and the couple takes a walk on the beach.[4]

In 2012, KBS2 broadcast a drama, Haeundae Lovers, using Busan and the district as a backdrop. Much of the story takes place in Cheongsapo, a coastal community in the district east of Haeundae Beach.

As stated above, Haeundae beach helds a lot of movie-related events.

Food of Haeundae

Haeundae is also popular for delicious foods. Firstly, Haeundae marketplace is very famous for sea eel. It has many similar stores in one street. However, only few of them are crowded. Sea eel cuisine is something that likes and dislikes are distinct. Thus, tourists better bring at least one person with the sea eel experience. If you love try new things, I still recommend sea eel places. Secondly, there are many Puffer fish stew places. Gumsu-Bukkuk is the most popular Puffer fish stew restaurant in South Korea and the original place is located in Haeundae. Third, Pork rice soup is also popular. This food is famous in overall Busan area. However, since Haeundae is the one and only place to stay during the Busan trip for efficient tourism, it would not be a bad idea to try Pork rice soup in Haeundae as well. Third, many high-end cuisines are present in Haeundae area. Especially, in centum city area, Dal mat ee area, and marine city area have a lot of good places to go. Fourth, tourists often want to try raw fish which is something similar to sushi, but with rice, so it is called Sashimi. To be honest, there are not many good places in Haeundae to eat Sashimi, because many tourists often go to Gwananri to try Sashimi. However, tourists still can find an adequate Sashimi cuisine along the shore and near the beach. In addition, there is this place with a lot of Korean-style food trucks in front of the beach which is called Pojangmacha. These places are also popular for movie starts as well. These places mainly serve sea food, so for people who want to try Sashimi in particular may want to go to another place. Fifth, there are also many hotels along the shore and these hotels serve tasty foods as well. Each hotel has its own buffet restaurant and even though they are somehow expensive compared to the other normal cuisines, the quality and mood of the restaurants are worth trying. Sixth, there are also many foreign places in Haeundae as well. For example, there are some Mexican cuisine, Chinese, and American restaurants. So, if one wants to try this far from the original place, it would also be an exotic experience. Lastly, deserts are also good in Haeundae area. There are many cafes along the shore. In addition, there are many cafes in Dal mat ee area with beach views. Especially during the summer time, red-beans ice soup is popular.

Administrative divisions

Administrative divisions
Lighthouse at Haeundae Beach

Haeundae-gu is divided into 7 legal dong, which altogether comprise 18 administrative dong, as follows:

City Scape

See also

References

  1. ↑ 국제비지니스관광의 중심 "해운대"로 오세요!
  2. ↑ 매력있는 세계일류도시 "해운대"로 오세요!
  3. ↑ Haeundae-gu Office
  4. ↑ "A Star's Lover". Korean TV Drama. Korea Tourism Organization. Retrieved 30 May 2012.

External links

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Haeundae.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Haeundae-gu, Busan.

Coordinates: 35°09′43″N 129°09′50″E / 35.16194°N 129.16389°E / 35.16194; 129.16389

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Sunday, January 03, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.