[One Day Walk] Enjoying Nature in Bucheon, the City of Comics and Movies... Bucheon City Hall Station

Editor's NoteThe subway is not only a transportation method that anyone can easily access and travel safely with, but also an important point for daily walking. We introduce walkable places around subway stations.

The starting point of today's course is Bucheon City Hall Station on Seoul Subway Line 7. As the name suggests, Bucheon City Hall, the center of Bucheon City in Gyeonggi Province, is nearby, and it is the central area of Jung-dong New Town, where about 30% of Bucheon's population lives. The city hall building was also constructed in the late 1990s when the new town development was in full swing. The station is close to a bustling area with department stores and cinemas, attracting many Bucheon citizens.

This area is especially lively every July when the Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival, considered one of Korea's "Big 3" film festivals, is held starting with the opening ceremony at Bucheon City Hall Plaza. The festival takes place at cinemas and public facilities around Bucheon City Hall, gathering filmmakers from Korea and around the world.

The opening ceremony of the 26th Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival (BIFAN) is being held on the lawn of Bucheon City Hall in Bucheon-si, Gyeonggi-do.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

The next place to visit is Bucheon Central Park. It is a large neighborhood park with a total area of 146,060㎡ located directly opposite Bucheon City Hall and the plaza. The pine forest creates a magnificent view and is a beloved resting place for Bucheon citizens. Centered around the central plaza of the park, the east side offers various water features such as a pond and jumping fountains, providing visual attractions, while the west side features a peach commemorative hill and landscapes of trees and grass. This space was created inspired by the fact that before industrialization, Bucheon was called "Boksagol" due to its many peach orchards. Peaches donated from Okayama City, a famous peach-producing area in Japan, are also planted here.

Next is Sangdong Lake Park, a park established in 2003 with an area of 180,130㎡. It aims to be a "citizen participation park" where citizens can enjoy various experiential facilities such as fountains, botanical gardens, and vegetable gardens, as well as sports facilities including badminton courts, gateball courts, and basketball courts. Especially, a 23,000㎡ artificial lake is at the center, surrounded by various walking trails, allowing visitors to enjoy diverse scenery while strolling within the park.

Korean Manhwa Museum Exhibition Hall

The last place to visit is the Korea Manhwa Museum. This area was once the site of "Bucheon Fantastic Studio," a set built for filming the popular drama "Yainshidae" (The Rustic Period), which is still talked about today. The set recreated modern Seoul from the 1930s to the 1970s and was used for various popular film productions besides Yainshidae. However, due to aging facilities and other issues, the set was eventually dismantled, and a project to develop the Bucheon Video Culture Complex was launched.

The Korea Manhwa Museum was established in its current location in 2009 as part of this project. It is the only manhwa museum in Korea, housing over 20,000 ancient manhwa materials and more than 310,000 manhwa books. It features permanent and special exhibition halls where visitors can view the past and present of Korean manhwa, as well as a manhwa library and a manhwa video screening room where various manhwa can be enjoyed. As the center of Korean manhwa, the Bucheon International Comics Festival and Bucheon International Animation Festival, held annually, are centered here.