Introduction of Busan

City Introduction

Busan is the second largest city in Korea, apart from Seoul. It is attractive and exotic with garden villas and hotels lined along the shore, which makes the city a tourism destination brilliantly illuminated through the night. The night view of Gwangan Bridge is comparable to the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco and the Rainbow Bridge in Tokyo and leaves an unforgettable memory in foreign tourist’s minds.

Busan is a harbor city always lively and energetic with people, fish, and seafood, The city is always crowed everywhere in the markets and streets. In the Jagalchi Market, there are many fish restaurants where you can taste various kinds of fish, even raw and live fish. With all the glitter, glamour and gossip in October, the Busan International Film Festival underscores the city’s desire to be a global meeting place. All of this makes Busan a glamorous harbor city.

History and Culture

In Goryeo Dynasty (The end of 10th century to 14th century), Busan was called Busanpo. “Busan “means a mountain,  named after the shape of the mountain behind Busan Port. “Po” means port or bay because from the beginning of the 15th century, the Korean Government designated Busan as a trading port with the Japanese and allowed their settlement, which continued until Japan invaded Korea in 1592. After the war, diplomatic relations with the new shogunate in Japan were established in 1607, and Busan Waegwan was permitted to be reconstructed. The Japanese settlement, though relocated to Choryang later, continued to exist until Korea was exposed to modern diplomacy in 1876. In 1876, Busan became the first international port in Korea. During the Japanese rule, Busan (known in Japanese also as Fusan) developed into a hub trading port with Japan. Busan was the only city in Korea to adopt the steam tramway before electrification was introduced in 1924. During the Korean War, Busan was one of only two cities in South Korea not captured by the North Korean army within the first three months of the War. As a result, the city became a refugee camp site for Koreans during the war. As Busan was one of the few areas in Korea that remained under the control of South Korea throughout the Korean War, for some time it served as a temporary capital of the Republic of Korea. UN troops established a defensive perimeter around the city known as the Pusan Perimeter in the summer and autumn of 1950. Since then, like Seoul, the city has been a self-governing metropolis and has built a strong urban character. From 1978, three container port docks were opened and in 2013, Busan is the third port in the world due to its facilities and overall capacity.

Nature environment

Busan is located on the southeastern-most tip of the Korean Peninsula. Busan borders low mountains on the north and west, and the seas on the south and east. The Nakdong River Delta is located on the west side of the city, and Geumjeongsan, the highest mountain in the city, on the north. The Nakdong River, South Korea's longest river, flows through the west and empties into the Korea Strait.

Climate

Busan has a cooler version of a humid subtropical climate. Extremely high or low temperatures are rare. Busan has a sub-tropical climate with a hot humid summer and autumn along with a mild winter. Busan typically doesn't experience snow.