A "favela" in Busan - Gamcheon Culture Village and its secret viewpoint

 


Gamcheon Culture Village, perhaps the most visually striking symbol of Busan, resembles a favela or slum in Latin America (see Comuna 13, Ciudad Bolívar, El Alto, Santa Teresa, Valparaíso). While it may have once been a poor area, it’s hard to imagine it was ever a crime-ridden slum like some of its Latin American counterparts. Similar to those neighborhoods, however, this urban development project was designed to uplift the area’s esteem and bring business and development to the locals. Today, it stands as one of Busan's main tourist attractions, drawing hordes of visitors. Yet, virtually none of them know about the best viewpoint, from which you can see not only the colorful Gamcheon Village but also the Jung-gu district of Busan, complete with its port and the iconic Busan Tower. 

Map of the Gamcheon Culture Village area


1. Toseong subway station; 2. Lower bus stop; 3. Upper bus stop; 4. Park; 5. Viewpoint in cemetery; 6. Viewpoint with mannequins. Note: the walks in the village are not marked, only the route to/from the cemetery, with the dotted red line where there is no proper path. The light blue line marks the bus route, while the yellow stars some of the viewpoints.

Getting to Gamcheon Culture Village: take bus 1-1 or 2 from Toseong subway station. You could also walk there from the station, but it's all uphill, so it's better to do it the other way around. But it is worth to do it on foot at least one way, as there are some great viewpoints along the way.



Entering Gamcheon Culture Village from the bus stop. 




















There are several references to Antoine de Saint-Exupéry's "The Little Prince", and people queue to take a photo with a statue of him and the fox. They will have the exact same picture as half a million other visitors.





More views of the village.















The highest street in the village offers more far reaching views. 










The best viewpoint that nobody visits, however, is in a cemetery on the top of the hill. I reached it from a little park but there is no path to the ridge, I had to cut through a forest. But on the top running along the ridge there is a path which is marked in Maps.me. It connects the far end of the hill and the village. The cemetery with the views of Jung-gu district is just above the village.

























Back in the village.
















Leaving the village, it's worth to walk down to Jung-gu district. There are some great viewpoints and colourful neighbourhoods on this side of the hill as well.



























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