Gangneung


Gangneung is a municipal city in the province of Gangwon-do, on the east coast of South Korea. It has a population of 213,658. Gangneung is the economic centre of the Yeongdong region of Gangwon-do. Gangneung has many tourist attractions, such as Jeongdongjin, a very popular area for watching the sun rise, and Gyeongpo Beach. There is an ROKAF airbase south of downtown Gangneung that formerly doubled as a civil airport.
The city hosted all the ice events for the 2018 Winter Olympics.

History

Gangneung was the place where Yemaek people lived from ancient times and was the land of Wiman Joseon in 129 BC. In 128 BC, Nam Ryeo, the army officer of Yaekam, punished Wujang of Wiman Korea and became the territory of the Han dynasty. In the 14th year of Goguryeo Muchheon, it entered Goguryeo territory.
In 639, Silla occupied this place and ruled it as a 'Seogyeong'. In 658, King Moo-yeong abolished the Seogyeong and made an arsenal to send the todok, because it was adjacent to Malgal. In 757, it was renamed Sungju and restored it in 776.
It was renamed Myungju again during the Goryeo period, and it was under the jurisdiction the north of Chuncheon in the 14th year of Sungjong. It separated the Hamgyeong-do from the Gangeung and called it Gangneung-do, but it has always been the center of administration and military. At the beginning of the Joseon Dynasty, it called to Hwadangdo and Wonchundo and rename Gangneung by the name of Gangwon Province in the 5th year of King Sejong.
Some areas have been incorporated into Yangyang since 1945, and Gangneung City was established in 1995 as a Gangneung and Myeongju merged.
On 18 September 1996 a North Korean submarine ran aground near Gangneung in an attempted infiltration mission, spurring a 49-day manhunt for the escaped passengers. For more details, refer to the 1996 Gangneung submarine infiltration incident.

Symbols of Gangneung

The flag of the city shows a red sun in the centre and blue wave in front, on a white background. The sun represents the sunrise, the wave the sea. The flower of the city is the crepe myrtle, the tree of the city is the pine tree, its bird the swan. The animal of Gangneung is the tiger.

Geography

Gangneung is located in the eastern center of the Taebaek Mountains, which is the waist of the Korean peninsula. The east side is the Sea of Japan, the west side is the inner side of Hongcheon County, the Pyeongchang County's Jinbu-myeon and the Daegwallyeong-myeon respectively. The southern side is in contact with Donghae City and the Jeongseon County's critical side. The north side is adjacent to Yangyang County Hyunbuk-myeon and Hyunnam-myeon.
The total area of Gangneung City is about as of the end of 2015, which accounts for 6.2% of Gangwon Province's. 80.4% of the area of Gangneung,, is forestland.

Climate

Gangneung experiences a humid subtropical climate with cool to cold winters and hot, humid summers. Since Gangneung is a coastal city, it has generally milder winters and relatively cooler summers than the rest of Korea. It is bordered by mountains to the west and the sea to the east.

Administrative divisions

The district includes one town, seven townships, 13 neighborhoods.
NameKorean nameAreaPopulationHouseholdsMap
Jumunjin-eup주문진읍60.5219,2999,098
Seongsan-myeon성산면80.283,3051,488
Wangsan-myeon왕산면245.281,682881
Gujeong-myeon구정면42.723,9901,661
Gangdong-myeon강동면112.485,0902,435
Okgye-myeon옥계면148.834,4522,039
Sacheon-myeon사천면70.894,2551,971
Yeongok-myeon연곡면202.456,9203,090
Hongjae-dong홍제동3.768,6783,601
jungang-dong중앙동0.996,4473,281
Okcheon-dong옥천동0.584,2462,162
first Kyo-dong교1동2.7329,99511,122
Second Kyo-dong교2동2.579,7234,078
first Ponam-dong포남1동1.312,0575,213
Second Ponam-dong포남2동2.5816,6946,727
chodang-dong초당동2.895,9212,413
Songjeong-dong송정동3.457,5612,838
Naegok-dong내곡동4.9611,9705,066
Gangnam-dong강남동16.0921,5158,450
Seongdeok-dong성덕동11.4129,35711,043
Gyeongpo-dong경포동23.024,8292,234
Gangneung-si강릉시1,040217,98690,891

Tour

Sunrise

Sunrises, especially the first in the New Year, are important in traditional Korean culture. The Jeongdongjin and Gyeongpo beaches in Gangneung are popular places to enjoy a sunrise.

Gyeongpodae and Area

Gangneung is considered special in that it has access to both a lake and the sea. Gyeongpodae is a pavilion overlooking a Gyeongpo lake. It is said that one can see the moon five times when at Gyeongpodae. One sees the moon once in the sky, once reflected in the lake, once reflected in the sea, once reflected in the drinking glass, and once more in the eyes of a lover. The site of Gyeongpodae is known for its location east of the centre of the city.
Inside the Gyeongpodae pavilion, built with 28 pillars, is the Gyeongpodaebu, a poem by Yul Gok. Gyeongpodaebu describes the movement of the heavens and the moon. The best view of the moon is on the 15th of the lunar month.
The nearby Gyeongpo Beach has a sandy beach and a line of fresh seafood restaurants, with its proximity to Seoul making it a popular summer destination.

Beach

In addition to the Jungdongjin beach where Sandglass, a TV series was taken, there are 18 beaches such as Anmok beach, Gyeongpo beach, Gangmun beach.

Culture

Heritage

There are a total of 128 cultural properties in Gangneung. Among them, there are 34 State-designated heritage and 58 Province-designated heritage.
National Treasure in Gangneung is Gate to an official inn in Gangneung. This gate is the front gate of the Gangneung official inn built in the Goryeo Dynasty. It is the oldest gate in the Goryeo Dynasty. It is the only cultural property designated as a national treasure among the buildings in Gangwon-do.
Ojukheon is the birthplace of Shin Saimdang and Yulgok Lee. It was designated as Treasure No.165 by being recognized as one of the oldest architecture in the Korea and being a rare example of preserving the shape of the house of the Joseon Dynasty.
Gangneung Guseongsa site, which was founded by Burma in the 13th year of King Munsung of Silla, has been designated as Korea's Historic Site No.448. Inside the temple, treasures are designated as Treasures No. 85, Treasures No. 86, There is a stone Buddhist image designated as No. 38.

Festivals

Gangneung has numerous festivals. The biggest and most famous is the Gangneung Dano Festival at the Dano fairground near the Namdae River. In 1967, the Gangneung Dano Festival was designated Korean National Immaterial Cultural Heritage No. 13. On November 11, 2005, it was designated by UNESCO as one of the "Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity". Nowadays, it is a combination of several commemoration rites and traditional plays. A highlight is the traditional Gwanno Mask Dance, which is only performed at this festival.
In addition to well established festivals like the Dano, there are several newer festivals in Gangneung, such as the IJAF enjoys great popularity. The IJAF is a cultural festival for youth from all over the world. The festival includes both performances of the participating groups and a diversified cultural program demonstrating the essence of Korean culture. Since 2002, the IJAF takes place at Gyeongpo Beach in the end of July. Also, the Gyeongpo Rock Festival was established in 2006. This festival, mostly attracting young people, offers young Korean bands from the Gangneung area a stage for their performances.

Museum

There are a number of historical remains and museums in Gangneung. The most prominent being the Ojukheon Museum, which is named after a special black bamboo growing in this area. It was the birthplace of the famous artist, calligrapher and poet Shin Saimdang , and her son, the scholar Yulgok . In 1963, the Ojukheon Museum was designated as National Cultural Heritage No. 165. It includes one of the oldest wooden buildings in Korea.
Several shrines and old residential buildings deliver insight into the lives of these famous Koreans. Next to the Ojukheon Museum there is the Gangneung Municipal Museum which shows folklore and antique pieces from the history of the city. Located in the hills surrounding Gangneung City, there is the revealing Daegwallyeong Museum. It consists of a private collection with more than 1000 artifacts and shows the agricultural history of the region.

Religious architecture

is one of the Roman Catholic sanctuaries in Korea. Show the cathedral style of Gangwon province in the 1950s. It became Registered cultural heritage No.457.

Transportation

On Gangneung city, the expressway is Donghae Expressway which connects Incheon to Gangneung and Yeongdong Expressway which connects Yangyang County and Donghae City. National highway is National Route 7 which connects Goseong County to Busan. It takes about 2 hours and 30 minutes to Seoul by road.
The Yeongdong Line passes Yeongju city to Gangneung. before 2006, Saemaeul-ho stopped at Jeongdongjin Station and Gangneung Station and it took 5.5 hours at Cheongnyangni Station, but now only Mugunghwa-ho is stopped, It takes 6 hours to drive. In 2017, Gyeonggang Line was opened and Gangneung Station was designated as an esseintial-stop station. the time between Gangneung Station and Cheongnyangni Station has been reduced from the existing 6 hours to the minimum of 114 minutes after KTX operation.
It was operated by Gangneung Airport for air traffic, but passed the passenger transportation right to Yangyang International Airport in 2002 and closed its service as an airport.

Road

passed city west to east, Donghae Expressway passed through the city from south to north. National Route 6, 7, 35, 59 passed through city.

Train

is essential stop Jinbu and Gangneung Station. On 2018 Winter Olympics period, increased frequency of KTX.

Buses

Local transit operators connect communities in the city divided three regions. This is managed by Gangneung City Office and the operation is carried out by each transportation company.
Gangneung Intercity Bus Terminal operates the intercity bus and operates six Express Bus line in the Gangneung Express Bus Terminal, the largest terminal in Gangwon Province.

Taxi

A total of 589 units in Gangneung are operating taxi licenses. The basic fare of Gangneung city taxi is 2,800 won for 2 km. After that, 100 won will be charged for 152m from 2 km to 6 km, and 200 won will be charged for 152m after 6 km. but Jumunjin area, Gangdong-meon, Okgye area are designated as exceptional areas to 45% extra charge.

Sea transport

of Gangneung Harbor handles the Gangneung-Ulneung passenger ship.

Sports

Football

Ganwon is the home of the National League football club Gangneung City FC and K League football team Gangwon FC. Since 1976, Gangneung Jeil High School and Gangneung Junior high school soccer team rivaly Durby, which is held every day in the Dano Festival, have become popular.

Ice Hockey

In 2016, Daemyung Killer Whales, which is affiliated with the Gangneung Hockey Center, is active in the Asia League Ice Hockey.

2018 Winter Olympics

The city 'Gangneung Coastal Cluster' will be the venue for the indoor sports of the 2018 Winter Olympics and Paralympics in Pyeongchang. All these facilities, except for the Gangneung Curling Centre, have been newly built for the Olympics.
The city will also host an Olympic Village for the athletes and a media village.

Image gallery

Sister cities