My Sassy Girl|Hwahongmun — The Water Gate Where the Fortress Lets the Stream Through

Hwahongmun is the north water gate of Hwaseong Fortress, seven stone arches over Suwoncheon. Jeongjo's builders had to let the stream keep running or the new city would flood. They built a pavilion on top so the wall would not break. In spring the water is loud. In winter the arches hold sheets of ice.

The 2017 remake of My Sassy Girl put its Joseon inside this fortress city. Palace scenes went to Haenggung. The streets and water belong to the same circuit. A princess leaving the compound toward the north would have crossed this stream under these arches.

Walk ten minutes uphill from Haenggung along the inner wall, or come down from Janganmun. The gate is free from the street side. Stand on the modern footbridge and look back at the pavilion. Evening light hits the brick the way it hits every other drama that borrowed Suwon.

Leave the palace ticket in your pocket for this stop. The water does the work. The drama needed a living city. The stream is still here.