Ichon: A Museum, a Park and a Garden

Wooden Figurines at the National Museum

Make the most of a spring day by catching the train to Ichon station (line 4) in Yongsan-gu. The National Museum of Korea is a short walk from Exit 2 in the direction of Yongsan Family Park.

Entrance to the museum is a mere 2,000 Won for adults and 1,000 for children. (It is closed on Mondays.) Although the enormous size of the building makes it look as if there isn’t a lot on display, there is too much to see in one visit.

Inside the National Museum

Don’t go there expecting dinosaur bones or models explaining photosynthesis, this institution is dedicated to the history of the Korean people. Except for the artefacts in the Asian Arts Gallery and some items in the Donation Gallery, everything on show is Korean.

For me the highlights of the collection are the maps and prints in rooms 116 and 113 of the Historical Gallery, plus the paintings in rooms 202 and 203 of Fine Arts Gallery I. There is much more to see than that, including intricate metal ornaments from the three kingdoms period in the Archaeological Gallery.

Three Kingdoms Period Crown

There are English signs throughout the museum and the history of Korea is outlined in one of the galleries. However, doing a bit of light background reading beforehand will undoubtedly enhance the visiting experience.

The 11 Thousand Plus Combinations of Hangul

There is a Food Court and a Korean restaurant, but we didn’t stop at either, preferring to buy ice creams from the convenience store in the museum grounds.

On a fine spring day it’s worth spending a couple of hours in the museum gardens and Yongsan Family Park just next door. Flowers, mostly fragrant pansies, have been planted in tubs all the way up the street from Exit 2 of Ichon station to the museum.

This makes a very pleasant change from the usual in a city like Seoul.

The gardens have been landscaped with skill but in 2007 the planting still looks immature. The trees need time to grow and some flower beds are a little bare. This doesn’t matter though because there is so much to enjoy. Paths have been laid with interesting materials like slate and stone. There are little walls built in a Korean style, and historical artefacts — including two 10th-century Buddha statues — set by the paths. There is also a large pond which, to my eyes at least, has as much grace in its contours as anything you might see in front of an old French chateau.

An Unusual Wall in the Museum Grounds  (I’ve just found out these are chimney stacks)

Yongsan Family Park is separated from the museum grounds by a green fence. If you can’t find the gate in the fence you will have to go out onto the street and walk a couple of minutes to get to the park’s main entrance.

Some parks in Seoul are a disappointment to Westerners because they have a lot of concrete paving and seem very artificial. When we go to city parks in countries like Britain, we expect to see a natural environment. If that’s the kind of park you like too, you will love the one at Yongsan.

Yongsan Family Park

There are trees everywhere and they are full of birds. The artificial surfaces are largely limited to the paths, and even some of those are simple bare earth. The park has flat parts but there are also hills and mounds, which divide the area up very nicely. Children of all ages will appreciate the duck pond. However, they might not like some of the sculptures that are scattered here and there. I thought a few were rather creepy and preferred to admire the tree blossoms instead.

I don’t know how long the tree blossoms last in Seoul. This weekend there were still a lot to see, so catch them while you can.

Replica of the Throne