DAY 15
(Reading time: 5 minutes)
At the end of January 2024, a mega-shopping center called Starfield opened in Suwon. It’s the fifth building of this popular chain in South Korea, and specifically this one in Suwon covers the area of 46 soccer fields! We were hardly fascinated by its mere existence; our main goal was to see the pride of the entire complex—a public library.
We visited its older sister, the Starfield Library in COEX Mall in Seoul, during our first trip to South Korea (see the article Oppa Gangnam Style). While the Seoul version takes up two floors, the Suwon library spans four. Its shelves are almost 10 meters taller, it includes a children’s section, and, for a small fee, you can enter a vinyl record listening room. Comfortable chairs, small tables, and quiet reading spots are all part of the experience.
On the first floor of the shopping center, we came across a limited Pokémon Pop-up Store, and because we were foreigners without the mobile app required for a time-slot reservation, we brazenly edged our way to the staff and got a card with a stamp and a time on it: “Come back in an hour, and we’ll let you in.”
We spent that hour exploring the food court—well, mainly scouting the length of each line in front of the restaurants. We didn’t care much about what to eat, but we didn’t want to wait long. We just picked a line, and then came our usual stroke of luck – “don’t worry, it’ll end up somehow”.
The staff called us over for some reason, letting us skip several people ahead. They seated us at small counters and handed us a tablet to choose our meal. That’s how we discovered we’d lined up for a Korean version of the traditional Japanese “shabu shabu hot pot.”
“Shabu shabu” is a style of interactive dining where you cook thin slices of meat, mushrooms, and vegetables in a broth—its temperature controlled by you at the table—and fish them out once they’re done.
It’s another kind of meal, similar to Korean barbecue, which you finish preparing yourself at the restaurant, something we find very enjoyable. We stumbled upon yet another item on our “to-do” list and finally got to check it off.
After lunch, we returned to the Pokémon Pop-up Store.
The timed card worked; the staff recognized us, and we walked in smoothly—only to be met with the solid wall of a crowd. We had to elbow our way through. The store didn’t have anything we genuinely wanted, so we jostled our way out and quickly left the zone of unwanted friction.
The store was selling heaps of plushies, figurines, paperweights, and other dust-collecting trinkets—nothing truly practical. It was a disappointment for us, but at least we had an excellent lunch and saw a beautiful library, so I call that a 2:1 win.
We left the shopping center and headed back to Hwaseong Fortress, whose perimeter we’d walked the previous day. We still had one item on our Suwon bucket list—the Haenggung Palace, which King Jeongjo used as a temporary residence away from Seoul.
This palace also served as the venue for celebrating the king’s mother’s 60th birthday. In the past, when people generally had shorter lifespans, reaching the age of 60 was considered a notable milestone.
Seoul’s palaces are empty; visitors circle the buildings from the outside and peek into rooms that are mostly vacant. Haenggung in Suwon pleasantly surprised us with furniture and life-size figures dressed in period clothing. All the displays portrayed the ongoing birthday festivities for the king’s mother.
We saw the monarchs’ chambers…
…including a provisional throne hall…
…peeked into the parts of the palace intended for officials and servants…
…found a kitchen exhibit showing what the king ate and how the dishes were supposed to be arranged on the table…
…and also discovered copies of musical instruments used to accompany the birthday celebration.
One pavilion display featured dolls dressed in various costumes. Using the numbered labels, you could learn who wore which attire among members of the royal class, soldiers, officials, and servants (exclusively those who lived or worked at the palace).
In one corner of the main courtyard stands a rice chest. In 1762, the deranged Prince Sado—King Jeongjo’s father—was locked inside a similar chest. After eight days, Prince Sado died. Likely because of total exhaustion and dehydration.
A larger-than-life statue of King Jeongjo stands not far above the palace, below the fortress walls.
Our last cultural stop in Suwon was Hyowon Park. Even though we arrived after dark, its Chinese garden remained open and was beautifully illuminated. Admission is free, restricted only by opening hours of 9:00 AM – 10:00 PM.
We fell in love with Suwon for its effortless beauty and everyday, normal pace of life here. It’s a place to live, shop, do laundry, and commute to the nearby big city for work. It’s also a very pleasant city with a slice of history, lots of greenery, and pockets of tranquility. We live in a similar area, so in this regard, Suwon reminded us of home—perhaps that’s why it felt so close to our hearts.
-endy-
DONKEY’S SPECIAL:
-mj-