The Changing Of Colors At Seoul's Namsan!

If Gyeongbuk Palace has changing of the guards (read blog here) , Namsan has its own changing of colors. 😀

Every autumn, I make sure that I pass through this mountain to observe the Gingko trees' annual changing of their colors, and it's always a convenient trip since I live next to Namsan. 😎

In spring and summer, their leaves are green. But when the cooler temperatures of autumn descend upon Seoul, they gradually lighten up to yellow-green, and then to yellow, before they all fall off from the branches before winter.☃

Every year though, it seems that the changing of the colors is not synchronized. In early autumn, some Gingko trees were already turning yellow, while the ones next to them were still green. Even the Gingko trees in my Hannam-dong neighborhood were also unevenly yellow and green (read blog here). I found it weird. Something has messed up the carotenoids of these trees. Global warming, perhaps? 😱

It is always an experience to see these trees in their yellow glory when struck by the autumn sun especially at noon. A few years back, I walked through the Gingko tree road in Namsan and enjoyed an afternoon autumn trek (read blog here) and it has become a yearly tradition  to retrace my steps and relive the experience.

The road that traces the southwestern side of Nam-san is perhaps the highest busy road in Seoul - that road from the Grand Hyatt Hotel up to the Millennium Seoul Hilton.  

I don't know if Namsan is the only mountain in Seoul where, up there, public passenger buses have routes.  If it is, then these roads, which have the highest elevation in the city, are also the busiest since they allow traffic to go around it. 😊

I guess, since Nam-san is the geographical center of Seoul, it was commercially viable, not just to drill tunnels through it, but to also spend a lot of money in chiseling roads around it, so that the mountain doesn't become a hindrance in connecting everyone from around city. 🚗🚌

And thanks to this road, everyone passing and driving through Nam-san's southwestern side is always rewarded with a view of the west and southern Seoul. You can see the tall buildings of Yeouido and even the mountains like Gwanak-san in the south.

And these views are even more conspicuous when you're up the NSeoul Tower (read blog here).

And during my annual autumn treks on Nam-san, the Gingko trees and the colors of the mountain don't disappoint. As you can see from the photos, it is a delight to see the imposing imperial yellow leaves, especially when the day is cool and the skies over Seoul are clear and blue.😃

So, if you can, do swing by Namsan and trace the Gingko tree lane to enjoy Nam-san's changing of colors. 😄