Daejeon - Scholastic city

Daejeon is renowned as a city for academics

Daejeon is a key city in South Korea geographically, but it has only belatedly built on the practicality of its location.

Highways and railways go through the city, but only academics seem to ever stop off.

The city is renowned for its scholars and has the highest number of schools per capita in the country.

Part of the reason for its apparent failure to grab the bull by the horns and develop at a pace akin to the rest of the country could lie in the easy-going manner of its people.

Area facts

Population: 1.5m

Province: Chungcheongnam-do

Location: East central

Local team: Daejeon Citizen

Sights: Yuseong Hot Springs

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80% of the country's ginseng is traded at the Geumsan Ginseng Market

They are renowned for taking things very slowly.

Walking, talking, anything... caution and care are the watchwords of the city.

It is said that if one man sees his friend in danger, the latter will already be dead before the former gets around to shouting a word of warning to him across the street!

It has, however, made a belated effort to catch up with the rest of Korea in terms of technology and development.

Daejeon hosted the 1993 World Exposition.

From that sprung the "Techno Belt" and Korea's answer to the Silicon Valley is now based along the Expo Scientific Park.

Elsewhere, Daedok is a state-of-the art research complex with a scientific and industrial park housing more than 60 government and private research institutes.

The intellects of the city attracted such development and are now looking to sustain it at such centres of excellence.

Festival fun

Geumsan-eup

In August and September a ginseng festival includes Oriental medical check-ups

But, as with the majority of the cities in Korea, modernisation sits side-by-side with sites of historical significance and interest.

The minerals of the Yuseong Hot Springs are known to help treat skin diseases.

The area was named the country's first special tourist district in 1994 and has since evolved into one of Korea's best hot springs resorts.

Benefits for health abound and the city is encircled by a ring of mountains.

Opportunities for walking abound but, as well as providing a scenic back drop to every view in the city, the ring also traps all the smog of the developing city.

Bomunsan is the most accessible of the mountains, but for bigger and better challenges, the Gyeryongsan National Park can be found farther afield.

Gongju and Buyeo, ancient capitals of the Baekje Kingdom, are also beyond the city.