Banpo Bridge

Where it sits. Banpo Bridge crosses the Han River in central Seoul, linking Banpo-dong in Seocho District on the south bank with the Yongsan side to the north, immediately downstream of the point where the river turns past Yongsan. It is a double-deck structure, and the two decks are not the same age or the same idea. The lower one, Jamsu Bridge, opened in 1976 and sits deliberately close to the water — its name means submerged bridge, and it is built to be overtopped and closed when the river rises. The upper deck, Banpo Bridge proper, was added in 1982 to carry the main traffic load above flood level. The result is a bridge that doubles as a flood gauge: when the lower deck disappears, the city knows exactly where it stands.

The fountain. In September 2008 the city installed a fountain along both flanks of the upper deck, and it has been the bridge's public identity ever since. Nearly 380 nozzles run for roughly 570 metres on each side, pumping water drawn straight from the river below — on the order of 190 tonnes a minute — out in an arc that falls back into the channel, lit after dark by around two hundred coloured lamps that cycle through the sequence the city calls the Moonlight Rainbow Fountain. It holds a world record as the longest bridge fountain anywhere. Shows run from April to October, several times a day, with the sequence lasting about twenty minutes; the late-afternoon and evening runs are the ones worth planning around, because the daytime shows lose most of the effect.

Where to watch from. The bridge itself is the worst vantage point. The fountain is designed to be seen side-on, from the riverbanks: Banpo Hangang Park on the south side directly beneath the span, the lawns and steps east of it, or a river cruise passing under. The lower Jamsu deck has a wide pedestrian and cycle way that gives a close, loud view from underneath the falling water, and it is closed to cars on some summer weekends for pedestrian use. Photographers generally set up on the south bank forty minutes before the evening show for the blue hour, when the city lights on both banks come up but the sky still carries colour.

On screen. The Han River bridges are the connective tissue of Korean screen geography, and this one carries more than its share. Jamsu Bridge's low deck, close enough to the water to feel like a pier, is a standing location for the night-walk scenes that Korean drama uses to stage difficult conversations, and the fountain reads instantly as Seoul in an establishing shot. The riverbank immediately downstream had a rather different star turn when Marvel filmed sequences for Avengers: Age of Ultron in Seoul in 2015, using the Han River, the Sebitseom floating islands moored just off Banpo Hangang Park, and the roads either side; the three artificial islands, opened in 2011, sit within sight of the fountain and were built as a floating conference and performance complex.

What else is on the bank. Banpo Hangang Park is one of the busiest of the eleven riverside parks. Beneath and around the bridge there are grass terraces, a rainbow-lit set of steps, convenience stores that sell the instant noodles Seoulites eat by the river as a matter of ritual, bicycle hire, an outdoor pool in summer and a moonlight night market that trades on Friday and Saturday evenings from spring to autumn. The bike path along the south bank runs uninterrupted for tens of kilometres in both directions. On summer nights the lawns fill with mats, delivery riders and portable tents, and the whole stretch stays busy until well after midnight. The riverside terracing here is also a piece of flood engineering rather than landscaping: the whole bank is designed to be inundated when the Han rises, which is why the fittings are bolted down, the planting is coarse grass, and the park closes without ceremony in a serious storm.

Getting there and timing. Express Bus Terminal Station, served by Lines 3, 7 and 9, exit 8-1, is about a ten-minute walk to the park through an underpass; Sinbanpo and Dongjak stations are alternatives. Everything here is free. April to October is the fountain season, and the show is cancelled in strong wind or heavy rain, so checking on the day is sensible. The park is flat with ramped access from the underpasses and accessible toilets, though the walk from the subway is long and the riverside steps near the fountain are not step-free. Winter closes the fountain entirely but leaves the bridge, the river ice and a much emptier bank.