The Rose that Bloomed from a Trash Can - Seoul

My grandfather would always tell me that Seoul, and the very soil we are standing today looked extremely different only couple decades ago. As the very generation that went through the Korean War, my grandfather would tell me Seoul was not a city built preserving historic scenes, brownstones like New York, or old gravel roads of Paris. It was a city that had to build itself from a total destruction, and I remember reading a newspaper article published by London Times saying they would rather expect a "rose to bloom from a trash can" than Korea being able to achieve democracy and have a stable economy. The generations above me has done what is called the "Han River's Miracle", committed to the nation's, Seoul's growth, allowing me to experience and live on the city I can call home.

Gangnam Station in the 1970s and in the 2010s. (Photo taken from YonHap News)

Living in a city grew so quickly has shifted my experience living in Seoul. Even being one of the largest cities in the world by the time I was born, the city was undergoing and still is undergoing rapid changes, changing how I, and different citizens get to live and interact with the city. Ever since I was a kid, my father would bring me to our family's building, where I would spend time with my cousins, friends, and go around stores and restaurants in the area to spend time. What I noticed as I grew up is that the economy and building structures, the population age and atmosphere of the area changed dramatically, as I was able to notice the changes even from a small sector of gangnam station, where our family building stood.

Our family building in 2015, having restaurants for older people, and the area not having too much foot traffic (Photo was taken from Google Earth)

I would run into neighboring elderly people who would give me and my friends snacks and go around the wide roads with my toys because there was not too much people walking around the area. However, as I grew up, the area became more crowded, more bars and nightclubs started to come in the area, becoming one of the most populated streets in Seoul. Gangnam Station has become one of Seoul's projects to make it a global hotspot, and with the rise of social media and Psy's "Gangnam Style", it did not take long for the street to be over taken by the most popular restaurants, cafes, bars and clubs in Seoul. The average age of the area got younger, and more buildings and stores filled the streets, and our family building had to also make adjustments in the stores and design of the building in order to keep up with the rapid pace that Gangnam and Seoul was going at.

Our family building 2019, now filled with bars, a club downstairs and with extreme foot traffic. (Photo was taken from Google Earth)

Now reflecting at my experience, it taught me something about not only Seoul, but cities. Every city goes through its own adaptation and changes as years go by. Seoul, was in the more rapid side, as different needs, new age groups, and new trends can pop anywhere for any other city as well. With technology getting more advanced and social media having more power, I believe it will not take decades for even larger cities to undergo change in our generation. Just like my family building and our street, now an entire city can have a diffrent atmopshere within years. As planners and scholars of real estate and cities, it will be crucial to understand and be able to adapt to the different demands and the rapid trends in order to help creating a more dynamic, effective and strong city.