Today we got to see a different side of Seoul by touring City Hall and the Arisu Water Purification Facility. Instead of just visiting cultural or tourist areas, we got to learn more about how the city actually functions and supports the people who live there.

At City Hall, I learned more about the history of the Korean government and how Seoul is organized and managed today. One of the coolest parts was learning how the new City Hall was designed to be as eco-friendly as possible. The building uses geothermal energy, and there are tons of live plants inside that help control humidity. It was interesting to see how the building was designed with sustainability in mind instead of just being a regular government building. We also learned that the old City Hall was turned into a library, which I thought was a really cool way to preserve the building while still giving it a useful purpose.

After that, we visited the Arisu Water Purification Facility. It was really cool to see the water plant up close and learn about the process they use to treat and purify water before it reaches people’s homes. Pictures were not allowed, unfortunately, but seeing it in person made me realize how much work goes into something we usually do not think about.

We also got to tour the museum at the water facility. The museum taught us about the history behind water purification and showed how far the process has come over time. I had never really thought much about everything that happens before clean water comes out of the tap, so it was interesting to see both the history and the modern technology involved.