Choryang: The City on the Stairs · 5
The Shanghai Gate and Cyrillic signs: two foreign layers
Ep. 5 · Chinatown and Texas Street
FitTrip Editor · 2026.07.18
Choryang’s Chinatown, facing Busan Station, began with the Qing concession established in 1884 — the Shanghai Gate, an overseas-Chinese school and old Chinese restaurants line it. Overlapping the same blocks, Texas Street keeps a name from the postwar US-military era, but today most of its signs are in Russian, serving sailors and traders moving through the port. One block, two layers of migration — Choryang’s internationality condensed.
Cross the road from the station square and the Shanghai Gate stands before you. Inside, a street of red lanterns and Chinese signboards — yet a few steps into the next lane, the signs turn Cyrillic. In one Choryang block, two foreign countries are folded together.
The 1884 layer: overseas Chinese
Chinatown’s origin is the Qing concession established here in 1884 Fact. Chinese merchants settled, a school was founded, and Chinese restaurants passed down the generations Fact. The Three Kingdoms mural lane and the Shanghai Gate — commemorating the Busan–Shanghai sister-city tie — are today’s markers Fact. As on Brick Lane in Shoreditch, a migration layer survives longest as food — this lane’s dumplings are the proof.
Named Texas, signed in Russian
Texas Street, overlapping the same blocks, took its name from the strip that served US soldiers after the Korean War Fact. The space the troops left was filled by Russian sailors and traders moving through the port — which is why most signboards today are Cyrillic Fact. A street whose name and signboards point to different eras: a port city’s migration history, stacked like strata and still open for business on the same pavement.
FAQ
- When did Chinatown begin?
- With the Qing concession set here in 1884, when Chinese merchants settled. A Chinese school and restaurants followed, forming today’s Chinatown (Shanghai Street). The Shanghai Gate commemorates the Busan–Shanghai sister-city tie.
- Why the name Texas Street?
- It formed after the Korean War as a strip serving US soldiers. After the troops left, it became the street of Russian sailors and traders working the port — hence today’s Cyrillic signboards.
- What should I eat?
- Dumplings and Chinese dishes at the old overseas-Chinese houses are the signature; the famous seed-filled hotteok street snack also rose here. Save your main meal for Ep. 6’s market and pork-rice soup.
Checklist
- Enter Chinatown through the Shanghai Gate
- Dumplings at the old houses are this stretch’s snack
- Read the Cyrillic signboards on Texas Street
- The Three Kingdoms mural lane is the photo spot
See the full course on FitTrip →