This site was named Semiwon because of its
abundance of fresh water and plethora of beautiful
flowers. The name Semiwon comes from an old
proverb that says, “one will cleanse their
mind by looking at water and the mind will
become beautiful by looking at flowers (觀水洗心
觀花美心)”. With the hope that this garden would
allow everyone who visits it cleanse their
minds and reach a peaceful state of mind, all
paths in this garden were symbolically made
with washboards instead of bricks.
At Semiwon, there is a 400 pyeong (1 pyeong = 36
square feet) World Water Lily Garden which is in
bloom throughout the year, consisting of over 50
kinds of water lilies and over 60 kinds of plants
that grow beautifully all year long. Behind the World
Water Lily Garden is the 1000 pyeong Environment
Learning Center, which serves as an environmental
education area where experiments of how aquatic plants
purify the environment are conducted. At Semiwon,
visitors are able to enjoy the water lilies from
10 AM to 3 PM. Visitors are also able to appreciate
the beautiful sun set from the Han River from 6 PM.
