Suwon

Suwon (수원) is ringed by the best preserved fortress wall in Korea, built between 1794 and 1796 by King Jeongjo when he planned to move the capital here and be buried beside his father. The wall runs for almost six kilometres over hills and through the middle of the modern city, and it can be walked in a single circuit past four great gates, artillery bastions, a floodgate over a stream and an archery pavilion. Inside it stands Hwaseong Haenggung, the temporary palace where the king stayed, rebuilt after being burned in the Korean War. UNESCO listed the fortress in 1997, partly because the construction records survive in such detail that every wage and stone is accounted for. Suwon is also the acknowledged home of Korean galbi, and the alley behind Yeongdong Market is where to eat it.