Gyonam-dong and Haengchon-dong cannot be explained by one famous attraction. Joseon Seoul's western gate has disappeared. Houses once occupied by an independence leader and a foreign correspondent survive between a hospital and apartment blocks. Much of the former hillside wall village has been replaced by broad roads and a large residential complex. A 140-minute walk of roughly 2.6 kilometers lets you read several kinds of urban change together: demolished architecture, restored houses, a protected tree, steep terrain, and a neighborhood remade through redevelopment.
0–30 minutes: Estimate the scale of an invisible gate at the Donuimun site
First find the marker near the junction of Jeong-dong Intersection and Saemunan-ro. Traffic lanes and modern buildings now make it difficult to imagine a gate pavilion here. Stay behind the pedestrian boundary. Use the ground markings and historical photographs to picture the space where the gate, city wall, and westbound road once met.
30–55 minutes: Encounter the tension of post-liberation politics at Gyeonggyojang
Gyeonggyojang, inside the Kangbuk Samsung Hospital grounds, served as the office and residence of independence leader Kim Gu after he returned to Korea in 1945. Members of the Korean Provisional Government gathered here to discuss political strategy and the possibility of a unified government. It was also where Kim Gu was assassinated in 1949. Because the house stands in an active hospital, patients, caregivers, emergency vehicles, and medical staff always have priority.
55–100 minutes: Read Dilkusha and the Hong Nan-pa House beyond single-hero narratives
Climb the Haengchon-dong slope to Dilkusha, the former home of American correspondent Albert Taylor and his wife, Mary. Its story connects international reporting on the March First Independence Movement with the privileged but precarious life of a foreign family in colonial Korea. Continue to the Hong Nan-pa House, where the achievements of modern Korean music must be considered alongside the composer's controversial collaboration with Japan's wartime colonial system.
100–140 minutes: Use the gingko tree and the wall-side terrain to read the height of the former village
Around Haengchon-dong's old gingko tree, observe the incline at the foot of Inwangsan. Many buildings have changed, but steep stairs, retaining walls, and the rise toward the city wall still reveal the underlying terrain. Check opening restrictions and weather before entering the Seoul City Wall trail. If you lack suitable shoes, daylight, or time, finish safely on the larger road below the wall.