Yun Dong-ju Poet's Hill

A hill honoring Yun Dong-ju (1917-1945), often called Korea's most beloved resistance-era poet, sits within Cheongun Park on the slopes of Mt. Inwang, in Cheongun-dong, Jongno-gu.

In 1941, while attending Yonhui College (now Yonsei University), the poet boarded for about five months at the home of his junior, the novelist Kim Song, in nearby Nusang-dong. It's said that during this time he walked the Cheongun-dong and Nusang-dong area, refining the verses that would become masterpieces like "Foreword," "Counting the Stars at Night," and "Another Hometown" — which is why this hill in Cheongun-dong bears his name.

The hill holds a monument inscribed with his poem "Foreword," ten pine trees donated by the singer Lee Seung-hwan and his fans, and stone steps engraved with his poetry for visitors to read as they climb. Watching the Seoul sunset from here in the evening gives a faint sense of the moments when the poet, carrying the weight of his country's dark reality, found the words for his verses. A "Seoul night view" sign stands in front of the monument, marking it as a well-known spot for nighttime views too.

It connects to the Yun Dong-ju Literature Museum, remodeled and opened in 2012, so visiting both together offers a deeper sense of the poet's life and world. Changuimun Gate stands just across the way.