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There comes a time in every expat's life when you find yourself tired of the safety and banality of city life. A time when you yearn for a little danger, a little excitement, and a touch of the supernatural. Even in Seoul, there is an antidote to this particular type of boredom. It is a visit to the abandoned psychiatric hospital in Gonjiam. Although it is technically closed off to visitors, thousands of ghost hunters, curious foreigners, and camera crews break in every year to see for themselves if the place really is haunted. Sadly, it doesn't appear to be haunted and there is no tragic tale of its demise. The reason for its closure mostly resulted from problems with the sewage disposal system. No mad scientists or history of lobotomy.
Regardless, it was abandoned quickly and the owner left the country apparently not at all interested in insuring it was properly closed down. As a result, the hospital appears to have been abandoned overnight, with mattresses still piled up in the rooms, water-damaged calendars hanging loosely from the walls, and scientific books, furniture, and equipment scattered throughout the building. The building itself is in a state of ruin, with broken windows and flooded rooms.
We met some Koreans there the day we went (who scared the living daylights out of us in the pitch dark) who were planning to stay the night hoping to spot a ghost or two. Honestly, the place is freaky. It's dark and damp inside, but it's nothing unbearable during the day. Even as the sun was setting, I was getting anxious to leave, however. I take my hat off to anyone willing to spend the night there. It would be downright terrifying.
Getting there:
The town of Gonjiam is an easy bus ride from Seoul and takes about 45 minutes. Take bus 500-2 from Gangnam Station exit 7 or bus 1113-1 from Gangbyeon Station exit 1. Both will take you straight to Gonjiam. You can also go to any of the bus terminals in Seoul and catch a bus there. That's what we did from Dong Seoul Terminal. Once in Gonjiam, the best way to find the place is by GPS. Type in the coordinates 37.362433, 127.33474 onto Google Maps on your smart phone. It's quite difficult to give directions other than "follow the dot!" The walk is about 15 minutes.
A word of warning, this building and its grounds are closed off to the public. If you decide to enter, you are trespassing. If you are a foreigner, or worse, a group of foreigners, everyone you encounter will know exactly why are you in town. Believe me, there are no other attractions in this town. We were yelled at by a very angry man who marched us down to the sign on the entrance that says, "no trespassing." We had to pretend like we were leaving and turn around once we thought we could sneak past him again. He called the police on us as well. They did a drive-by but didn't even get out to scold us because they are clearly called there all the time and would rather fight real crime.
So be quiet and respectful to the people in Gonjiam. Or better yet have some drinks with the ajummas and ajusshis like we did.
Happy ghost hunting!
37.362433, 127.33474
bus
500-2 from Gangnam Station Exit 7 or the 1113-1 from Gangbyeon Station
exit 1, straight to Gonjiam - See more at:
http://chincha.co.uk/2013/06/breaking-into-a-haunted-mental-hospital-in-korea/#sthash.8d631o5v.dpuf
bus
500-2 from Gangnam Station Exit 7 or the 1113-1 from Gangbyeon Station
exit 1, straight to Gonjiam - See more at:
http://chincha.co.uk/2013/06/breaking-into-a-haunted-mental-hospital-in-korea/#sthash.8d631o5v.dpuf
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