Time of the visit:over several days from the 25th of sept. till the 9th of oct.,2025.
During the Korean War and the early Cold War, Busan became the temporary capital of South Korea and a key hub of international cooperation. The Provisional Presidential Residence and the U.S. Consulate, which briefly acted as the American Embassy, symbolized allied leadership. At Pier 1, U.N. supplies and refugees arrived, while the Meteorological Station supported military operations. Refugees built homes in places like Uam-dong Cattle Shed Village and Ami-dong Tombstone Village, showing the hardships of war settling among tombs and and former animal sheds . The U.N. Memorial Cemetery and U.N. Peace Memorial Hall honor those who served and commemorate Busan’s vital role in the Cold War and Korean War. Together, these sites tell the story of survival in one of the most defining conflicts of the 20th century.

But is this enough to be worthy of an Unesco title??

First, I visited two components in one day, the Meteorological Station and the former U.S Consulate which briefly served as the American Embassy.

To sum it up, the former U.S. Consulate is now a modern library, with some information panels on the first floor. The former Meteorological Station is now an observation deck from which you can get a nice view of parts of Busan. Afterwards, however, I went to Busan Tower, where the view was spectacular.

The library is practically a minute away from the Busan Contemporary History Museum, which I found superficial and uninformative.The entrance is free and the staff were very friendly though.

I was truly astonished... these two buildings are supposed to be part of a world heritage site? What the hell...

The next day, I happened to be near Pier 1 and visited it. You can only see it from the outside; you can't enter the building itself. A boring building. I asked a dock worker using my translation app what the building's function was. His answer: a customs depot.

The following day I visited the former Government Building of the Provisional Capital in Busan which served as the administrative center of South Korea during the Korean War, when the city became the temporary capital. Today, the restored building houses the Seokdang Museum of Dong-A University, preserving the history of the provisional government and the nation’s struggle during wartime.So far the most interesting component,but I still couldn't see any OUV. Due to lack of time I was not able to visit the nearby Provisional Capital Memorial Hall. A few days later-during the week-long Chuseok holiday - I had an opportunity to visit it.The visit was disappointing. The building itself is closed and undergoing renovation. There's a temporary hall next door, which is small and relatively uninteresting.

I asked myself whether I should waste any more time on the other components. Busan is an incredibly attractive city that offers many fascinating places for its visitors. Well, I continued on foot to the Ami-Dong Tomb Stone Village. This former shanty town proved to be incredibly diverse, interesting, and educational. The more I walked up and down through the labyrinths, the more I realized that this tentative world heritage site might be something more than just anemic buildings without content and without anY outstanding architectural features.I visited all marked places on my online map in that former shanty town,enjoyed some fantastic views over Busan,and loved to discover every inch of that area.Not as colourful as the nearby Gamcheon Cultural Village and its disneyland-like mass tourism,but more authentic and honest in a way.There are lots of abandoned houses but the neighbourhood seems to be still intact up to a certain degree.Most of the inhabitants are elderly people.I asked some of them if they like to live there.All answers were positive.I truly had a good time in that Tomb Stone Village.

Yesterday I visited the Busan Citizen Park,site of the former American millitary base "Camp Hialeah". It served as a logistics and support hub for U.S. and U.N. forces. The base closed in 2006.

I first went to the Park History Museum, where an 80-year-old volunteer who spoke good English gave me a tour and explained to me important points about the former US base. I also received a map of the park that showed me all the places where there were American installations, such as the former theater, the Commander in Chief's house (Forest Book Cafe now... I invited the old man to a matcha latte there), the Citizens' Sarangchae, the Dasom Hall, and former simple buildings for ordinary soldiers, now ice cream parlors and souvenir shops. A great park and a great museum. Camp Hileah was a satisfying visit.

Today I visited the UN-area with the UN Peace Memorial Museum and the UN Cemetery.I was lucky enough to be at the cemetery shortly before 4 p.m., where I was able to witness the flag ceremony. I also visited the colossal complex of the National Museum of Forced Mobilization under Japanese Occupation next to the UN Memorial .

Then I took one of the very frequent buses to the nearby Uam-Dong Cattle Shed Village.

A completely run-down and neglected neighborhood full of garbage, abandoned houses, food smell in the narrow streets, and mostly elderly residents... At the edge of the neighborhood, most of the shops are empty. A slum for poor elderly people who haven't yet left the area. Very safe, it is Korea after all; the neighborhood exudes an oppressive atmosphere. Totally different from the Ami-Dong Tombstone Village.

A truly wild and diverse odyssey through Busan, its history, and thus also the history of the Korean War, the Cold War, and the internally displaced persons. An odyssey not only geographically but also emotionally. From boring to incredibly fascinating... it had everything. A UNESCO World Heritage Site? The longer I think about it, the more I'm inclined to the idea, but given the subpar quality of some of the solid buildings, I tend to give it the thumbs down.A hard nut to crack.