Busan is good

From old port to new center: Busan's bright future

Contents

By Jennifer Fletcher
Teacher at Pusan Foreign Language High School

As I look out the window of my taxi on the way to Busan Station to catch the KTX train to Seoul, I gaze out at the seemingly endless containers that line the left side of the main road. I know I've almost arrived at the station because traffic is heavy and I can count down the numbers on the signs for the piers, 5th pier, 4th pier, 3rd pier. Other than those signs there is little to distinguish one section of this vast port from another. I know that somewhere beyond the stacks and stacks of rusty brown, red and gray containers is the sea. I saw it from the Gwangan bridge, I know it's there somewhere.

I find it unfortunate that as we enter a central area of town that includes the main train station, ferry terminal, hotels and visitor attractions that Busan's most alluring asset – the sea - is invisible and inaccessible. Not only is it invisible, the view is further marred by incessant traffic and older non-descript businesses that service the port, not people.

Busan is the second largest city in Korea. People call it provincial. Some even call it a small town. By Canadian standards it's really very large, however, we can see what people are talking about if one spends some time here. It's rather nondescript and unless one searches carefully, it's hard to find it's unique spots. Most people come to Busan and head to the beach either at Gwangalli or Haeundae – a half an hour away from the central train station and even longer from the airport. Many conventions and meetings are held at BEXCO near the beach as well. Many years ago, this was the site of Busan's airport and the city is well served now by this popular convention center. The city's current set-up generally discourages people from staying in the city core. In-the-know tourists head for the aquarium or the fancy hotels that overlook the ocean, they don't go for the heavy industrial, rough-around-the-edges port flavor of the core.

Does Busan have green space? Well, it has mountains. Mountain hiking is a favorite past time here. Quiet Buddhist temples and outdoor exercise parks await you on these hikes and provide tranquility that is often hard to find in urban Busan. The green space is reserved for steep areas where buildings cannot be built – it's green only by default – and that shows.

If Busan wants to create something special in place of its old port, it should provide some space, in this normally congested central area – a view of something other than cookie-cutter apartment buildings. I believe that it is time for Korea to diversify its urban landscapes. Let the eyes fall on something different and unique – something that shows the world that Korea is well beyond basic industrialization, that it is now a post-industrial society where a healthy balanced lifestyle is important, where people share experiences and lives with people from all over the world, where self-expression and tradition are valued hand-in-hand. This post-modern outlook should not be simply left to Seoul to achieve.

As one of the world's busiest and most active port cities, Busan a lot to offer its citizens and visitors alike. Personally, if I were to redevelop the old port, I would create something for everyone. An appealing and innovative area akin to the Cheonggyecheon river project in Seoul, I see bike paths and green picnic areas where kids can fly kites. I see a maritime museum where people can learn about the history of the shipping industry in East Asia and discover the world of extreme engineering feats of modern shipbuilding. I see tourists staying in hotels downtown and taking a tour boat from the port area to Jagalchi fish market. The old port area is large - a space with a lot of potential to please a lot of people. Even a well-designed mall with restaurants, boutiques and galleries that overlook the water could be a huge asset; why not an outdoor sculpture park where Korean artists can realize their potential in larger than life sizes? Finally, I also see the ocean and a taxi ride with a view where I say, “I should come back to this area and explore”.

The one thing, however, that must be considered if anything is to be done about this project is access, both by car and by foot. The thoroughfare that currently runs alongside the port is too narrow for the traffic that uses it and is just plain ugly. If Busan could turn this main artery into a wide but attractive – dare I say it – parkway, the city would be well-served.

If there's one thing I have learned about Korean people, is that they take full advantage of what is out there for them to enjoy. Families are always out on the weekends enjoying what Busan has to offer. Weekdays see retirees and groups of friends dressed to the nines for a day of hiking, teens fill the malls and department stores – there is no lack of interest and people flock to enjoy the new and wonderful.

So as I exit my taxi and enter the train station from the back entrance, I don't look behind me for a view of the ocean, I look only forward – to what could become one Busan's best and most accessible spaces, where space itself is the main attraction.

The source of news : Korea.net  March 12, 2007