“A Night of Counting the Stars” in Buam-dong, Following the National Poet Yun Dong-ju

Yun Dong-ju (1917-1945) is the most loved poet by Koreans. His poems, such as “A Night of Counting the Stars” and “Foreword,” in which he did not give in to the reality of his country being colonized and stood up to death, give a deep resonance to this day. On the road from Seochon to Buam-dong through Cheongun-dong, many places remind you of the poet, such as Yun Dongju Boarding House, Yun Dongju Hill, and Yun Dongju Literary Museum. The road to follow the footsteps of a poet who lived “without a single bit of shame toward heaven” is a time to look back on oneself.

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Yun Dongju Boarding House: The Place He Wrote His Representative Poems

Poet Yun Dong-ju was born in Mingdong Village, Jilin Province, China. After attending Mingdong School and Soongsil Middle School in Pyeongyang, he entered Yonhui College (now Yonsei University) in 1938. He boarded in school dormitories, Bugahyeon-dong, Seosomun, etc. He lived at “9, Nusang-dong, Jongno-gu,” the house of Kim Song, a novelist he admired, from May to September 1941 with his friend Jeong Byeong-uk as a roommate. It was only five months, but he wrote ten poems, including “A Night of Counting the Stars” and “Self-Portrait” there. Before leaving for Japan to study abroad, he compiled 19 poems and transcribed three copies titled . He kept one copy and gave one to Jeong Byeong-uk and one to his professor, I Yang-ha. Unfortunately, two of the copies disappeared, but thanks to Jeong Byeong-uk's handwritten manuscripts safely stored in a jar under the floor at his hometown house, Yun Dong-ju was able to publish a collection of poems after liberation.

At the time Yun Dong-ju stayed, it was a tiled hanok, but now its old appearance has disappeared, and only a sign saying “Yun Dongju Boarding House” is attached to the wall of the building. The street that passes through Seochon and leads to Yun Dongju Boarding House is lined with cute shops, so it's fun to walk. If you go about 180 m further from the boarding house, you will come to Suseongdonggyegok Valley, the entrance to Inwangsan Mountain. Jeong Byeong-uk recalled his daily life at the boarding house with Yun Dong-ju, "Before breakfast, we took a walk to the middle of Inwangsan Mountain, the back mountain of Nusang-dong, washed our face anywhere in the valley, returned to our room, finished cleaning, and went to school after breakfast.” The scenery of the stone bridge over the rocky valley, the pine forest, and the mighty rocky peak of Inwangsan Mountain are wonderful.

Inwangsan Choso Chaekbang, Deosup: A Bookstore Surrounded by the Forest of Inwangsan Mountain

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Inwangsan CP is a police post built to protect Cheong Wa Dae. Since 1968, when Kim Sin-jo and his team, who came down from North Korea, raided the mountain behind Cheong Wa Dae, it has played a role in monitoring and controlling the Inwangsan Mountain area. Since 20218, when the mountain was fully opened to the public, the police post stopped its operation and was remodeled into a space that anyone can use, it was reborn as Inwangsan Choso Chaekbang, Deosup. It is a good place to stop for a break on the way from Suseongdonggyegok Valley to Yun Dongju Literary Museum.

The large glass windows give a sense of openness to fully take in the surrounding nature while keeping some of the concrete frameworks of the existing building. It is also impressive that the concrete walls and old iron gates were left so visitors could guess the original purpose of the building.

Bookshelves full of interesting books catch the eye. While using the small bookstore, you can freely choose and read the books you like. When you look up after reading a book, the green forest at the foot of Inwangsan Mountain will refresh your eyes and mind.

Yun Dongju Hill Prepared on the Hill with Starlight

Going up the stairs next to the Yun Dongju Literary Museum, you will see Yun Dongju Hill. On the front side, there is a large monument with “Foreword” written on it, and on the back side, “Sad People,” as well as a small memorial stone engraved with the words “Yun Dongju Hill” and “Site of Poet Yun Dong-ju's Soul.” There is also a sign beside the memorial stone announcing that it is a night-view spot. So where was the hill where the poet counted the stars in the night sky 80 years ago?
“With my heart singing to the stars, / I shall love all things that are dying / And I must walk the road / that has been given to me."

Yun Dong-ju, who thought that the path given to him was to live as a Joseon poet, wrote poetry in the Korean language until the end, against the policy of eradicating the Korean language. He left for Japan to study in 1942, was arrested on charges of the independence movement in July 1943, and passed away in Fukuoka Prison on February 16, 1945, six months before liberation.

Next to the monument, there is also an explanation of Jeong Seon's “Jangan Yeonu.” This location connects Inwangsan Mountain and Bugaksan Mountain, and you can look down on Buam-dong, Cheongun-dong, and Hyoja-dong. It is a viewpoint from which you can see Cheong Wa Dae, Gyeongbokgung Palace, and Namsan Mountain below, and even Gwanaksan Mountain in the distance. This is the Jingyeongsansuhwa of Jangan (Seoul), covered with light clouds on a drizzling day. The name of the walking trail passing through this area is “Jingyeongsansuhwa-gil” because of Jeong Seon.

Yun Dongju Literary Museum: The Workshop of the Soul

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On the road following the footsteps of Yun Dong-ju, the place to focus the most is the Yun Dongju Literary Museum, which is located on the hill from Cheongun-dong to Buam-dong. With the motif of a self-portrait, the museum was reconstructed from the Cheongun Water Pressure Booster Station and water tank built to supply water to houses in the highlands, which had been used and left unattended. Just like the role of the pressure booster station to make the slowed stream flow vigorously again, the museum hope that Yun Dong-ju's poems will become a pressure booster station of the soul that reorganizes the waterway of the soul and makes it flow anew

The Yun Dongju Literary Museum, which consists of three small exhibition halls, is simple yet impressive. In exhibition hall 1, woodblocks from the well in Yun Dong-ju's birthplace are piled up in the shape of a well, and major poems written in his handwriting and covers of poetry books published in various countries are on display. The upper part of the water tank was opened in exhibition hall 2 to create an “open well” where you can see the square sky. Exhibition hall 3 is a “closed well” with scales still remaining on the walls, reminiscent of the Fukuoka Prison where the poet passed away. In exhibition hall 3, you can see a video summarizing the life of Yun Dong-ju.

Various cultural products are on sale in the museum, such as, a collection of poems that the museum published to commemorate Yun Dong-ju , a set of commemorative postcards, a storybook about the process of building the literary museum, and a DVD of the video

Travel Information

Public Transportation Information
From Gyeongbokgung Station (Seoul Subway Line 3), Exit 2 or 3, take Jongno 09 Village Bus and get off at the Jongno Park No-soo Art Museum Bus Stop. Walk for approx. 2 minutes to the Yun Dongju Boarding House.

Nearby Restaurants and Cafes
Goblin Pizza
Address: 1138 Changuimun-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul
Inquiries: +82-507-1346-7667
Main menu: Pineapple Pizza and Goblin Pizza

Jaha Sonmandu
Address: 12 Baekseokdong-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul
Inquiries: +82-2-379-2648
Main menu: Mandutguk (mandu soup) and Mandu Jeongol (mandu hot pot)


Gyeyeolsa Address: 7 Baekseokdong-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul
Inquiries: +82-2-391-3566
Main menu: Fried Chicken, Golbaengi Somyeon (sea snails with noodles), and Dak Doritang (spicy braised chicken)

Sosohan Poonggyeong
Address: 75 Jahamun-ro 40-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul
Inquiries: +82-2-395-5035
Main menu: Course Korean Table D'hote

Buamdong Tonkatsu House 1979
Address: 5 Baekseokdong-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul
Inquiries: +82-2-395-3566
Main menu: Tonkatsu and Katsu Sandwich

Adela Bailey
Address: 48 Bugaksan-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul
Inquiries: +82-507-1339-0707
Main menu: Adela Course, Bailey Course, and Pizza

Segeomjeong Tonkatsu
Address: 240 Jahamun-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul
Inquiries: +82-2-394-0057
Main menu: Brown Tonkatsu and Gold Tonkatsu

Boobing
Address: 136 Changuimun-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul
Inquiries: +82-2-394-8288
Main menu: Patbingsu (shaved ice with red beans), Strawberry Bingsu (shaved ice with strawberry), and Matcha Bingsu (shaved ice with matcha)

Club Espresso
Address: 132 Changuimun-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul
Inquiries: +82-2-764-8719
Main menu: Moon Blend, Cafe Latte, and Goat Milk Yogurt


Scoff Bake House in Buam Address: 149 Changuimun-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul
Inquiries: +82-70-8801-1739
Main menu: Butter Scones and Brownies

Changuimun Dduel
Address: 6-5 Baekseokdong-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul
Inquiries: +82-2-391-0012
Main menu: Americano and Flat White

Doi Chaang Coffee
Address: +82-2-391-1447
Inquiries: 10 Changuimun-ro 11-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul
Main menu: Specialty Coffee

* Credit & inquiries: KTO Tourism Exhibition Hall Management Team