A Journey Along the Han River: History, Scenery, and Reflection
Leaving Sajiksin Park, I headed towards the Hangang Bridge. After walking along the main road for about ten minutes, Yongyangbongjeong Pavilion, a charming building, appeared on a small hill to my left, where a cool river breeze blew.
The name 'Yongyangbongjeong' is a poetic expression that sings of the scenery where mountains and water blend harmoniously. The shape of the winding river and the soaring peaks resembles a dragon raising its head (龍驤) and a phoenix flapping its wings and soaring into the sky (鳳翥). The name itself contains a landscape painting.
This place is more than just a pavilion. It was the central building of Noryanghaenggung, a temporary palace where King Jeongjo, the reformist monarch of the Joseon Dynasty, would stop when traveling to Hwaseong's Hyeonnyungwon (顯隆園, the tomb of Crown Prince Sado), his father's tomb. After leaving Changdeokgung Palace and crossing the Han River on a pontoon bridge, Jeongjo would stay here, have lunch, and rest for a while. Only one pavilion remains now, but it is said that when it was completed in 1791, it was a haenggung with several subsidiary buildings, a glimpse of its past glory.
At the entrance stands a signpost that reads 'Jukyosa Site (舟橋司).' Jukyosa was a government office established in 1789 by order of King Jeongjo. It was responsible for overseeing the construction of the pontoon bridge each year when Jeongjo visited Hyeonnyungwon. In particular, in the second intercalary month of 1795, a large-scale royal procession extending to Hwaseonghaenggung Palace had to cross the river for the sixtieth birthday banquet of Lady Hyegyeonggung Hong, so the scale of the pontoon bridge was unprecedentedly large. Recalling the spectacle of this magnificent procession, the place where I am standing now feels like a historical site.
Climbing the wooden deck path along the slope, a charming yet elegant building with six sections in the front and two on the sides appears. Entering Yongyangbongjeong Pavilion, paintings and records of King Jeongjo's river-crossing procession and the eight-day royal visit are on display. A guide approaches and kindly explains. She says she is a former Korean dancer and performs court dances at the annual royal parade festival, adding, "You must come and see it." As she talks about history, the energy of dance movements is evident in her lips and gestures, making even her explanation more vivid.
Dongjak-gu has recently named this area 'Dongjak Loyalty and Filial Piety Trail,' stationing guides at Sajiksin Shrine and Yongyangbongjeong Pavilion. Seeing me, the guide smiles and asks,
“Have you been to Sajiksin Shrine?”
Perhaps the guide there contacted her in advance. It's a small connection, but the warmth of the past and present, people and people being connected, remains in my heart.
Leaving the pavilion, I walk along the deck road next to the Han River towards Hyosajeong. The open view and cool breeze open my heart. Cars speeding along Olympic Expressway, the gentle waves of the Han River beyond, and the apartment forests of Ichon-dong across the river overlap as one scenery.
As I walk, I suddenly notice a statue of the novelist Sim Hun, the author of 'Sangnoksu' (Evergreen Tree). A monument with his representative resistance poem 'The Day Will Come' is also standing next to it. I took a seat next to the statue of Sim Hun sitting on a bench. If I had lived in the same era as him, he would be someone I would like to meet and talk to. Taking a break with the river breeze as my companion, I recite the verses in my heart.
“The day will come, the day will come….”
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