SEOUL, Oct. 26 (Korea Bizwire) — Want to stroll down rustic riverside walkways and enjoy autumnal colors without getting out of Seoul?
Seoul’s municipal officials in charge of maintaining public parks alongside the Han River seem to have good recommendations for romantic walk enthusiasts.
The Seoul Metropolitan Government’s Hangang Project Headquarters on Saturday announced a list of the five best autumn walkways singled out in a survey of its employees.
They are Jamwon Grass Garden, Amsa Ecology Park, Jamsil Fishway Exploration Road, Nanji Reed Breeze Pathway and Ttukseom Forest Trail.
The Grass Garden in Jamwon, a neighborhood of Seocho Ward in southern Seoul, is full of 25 species of perennial plants, including the recently popular pink muhly grass, barley grass, orbicular sedge, Chinese silver grass and morning light.
It is a unique garden composed of grasses of various colors instead of flowers. Its peak season lasts until the middle of November.
Amsa Ecology Park and Jamsil Fishway Exploration Road are good places to go to with children.
In the Amsa park in Gangdong Ward, southeastern Seoul, visitors can observe aquatic birds from a wildlife observatory while strolling down narrow paths where silver grasses and reeds are in full swing.
In Jamsil, a district in Songpa Ward, southern Seoul, you can watch a 228-meter-long fishway which has been established for the upstream movements of migratory fish.
Land crabs, minnows, Chinese lizard gudgeons, cornet fish and carp are among the primary users of the pool-and-weir fishway.
At Nanji Reed Breeze Pathway in Mapo District, western Seoul, visitors can enjoy camping as well. Officials at the Hangang Project Headquarters said Nanji’s field of reeds can hardly be missed, particularly at sunset.
Ttukseom Forest Trail in Seongdong Ward, central eastern Seoul, is a secluded promenade where even bicycles cannot be seen.
If you have a lover, you are advised to walk along the so-called “Lovers’ Road,” which is narrow enough for one or two people to pass by, after inhaling phytoncide in a cypress grove.
“We wish citizens will be able to fully enjoy late autumnal flavors by walking in various Han River parks together with family, friends and lovers, before autumn passes,” said Ki Bong-ho, an official of the Hangang Project Headquarters.
(Yonhap)