Anam-Gol, a common nickname for Anam, is one of the many indications of how barren people consider Korea University’s (KU) campus town to be. With Gol meaning “valley,” Anam-Gol highlights the isolated qualities of the KU neighborhood. Although optimists may devalue these negative sentiments as they accentuate the tight-knit atmosphere of the KU community, many students possess their own vision for how to bring about a more bustling campus town. For the June issue of The Granite Tower (GT), GT interviewed five KU students on their suggestions for Anam-Gol’s renovation.

Yoon Jin-hyeok (‘22, Materials Science and Engineering)

I feel like Anam lacks many leisure sites compared to other campus towns. I always have to go out of my way to more busy areas in Seoul to engage in activities other than eating. For example, I would always have to go to Sungshin Women’s University to watch a movie, since Anam does not have a movie theater. The same goes for escape rooms, which is one of my favorite pastime activities to enjoy with friends. The only things Anam has enough of are bars and restaurants, and even that is not enough to cater to the tastes of every KU student.

Kim Jin-wook (‘19, Biomedical Engineering)

As someone who rarely has enough time or money to go to restaurants with my peers, I would appreciate it if more stores served quick and easy munchies in Anam. I used to enjoy eating snacks from food stalls during my high school years where I was able to grab a quick bite to eat before and after my classes. A great example of such a stand would be Myeong-rang Hot Dog, a popular franchise hot dog shop in Korea. If Anam had more stores that sell food that is more accessible for busy students, I feel like they would be an immediate hit.

Koo Bon-wook (‘22, Food and Resource Economics)

Being a musician, the most important factor that I look for when renting a recording studio is its proximity to where I live. After several attempts, I realized that I gravitate more towards home-recording sessions rather than studio sessions in circumstances where I found the commute to be time-consuming. I once wasted nearly three months of rent money because I would simply not visit my studio due to its distance from home. Studios tend to be situated in places where other studios are already densely located. This attracts newcomers who have expectations that these areas are already packed with rentable studios. I feel like Anam needs to build a foundation to have more of such facilities in place.

Kim Seung-kyum (‘21, International Studies)

I don’t think Anam accurately reflects the international quality nor the diversity of its outspoken, defiant student body. I believe Anam could one day be a smaller version of Itaewon, a very open-minded area in Korea full of foreigners. Therefore, the first idea that came up in my head was that there needs to be more drag bars and LGBTQ+ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer) friendly spaces in Anam. Because June is Pride Month, I was reminded of how nice it would be for there to be safe spaces in Anam where sexual minorities are free to express themselves – something that is very much restrained in the conservative atmosphere of Korea.

Shin Cho Yeon (‘20, International Studies)

People underestimate how difficult it is to develop your hobbies in Anam due to the lack of facilities compared to other campus towns. As a student taking a leave of absence and working as an intern, I do not have time to engage in student clubs at KU. However, I do have many hobbies such as dancing or playing the guitar that I would love to improve on. The most frustrating experience for me was finding a dance studio in Anam. To my knowledge, there is only one studio in the area that is far too big and costly for one person to use on their own. Even if there was enough availability of time slots – which there is not – for people to reserve the space, I would always be hesitant to pay an extensive amount of money for a space I could reserve for half the price in Sungshin Women’s University Station.