Changwon, South Korea

Changwon is a city in and the capital of South Gyeongsang Province in South Korea. The city is approximately 40 kilometres (25 miles) west of Busan on the Namhae Expressway. The city proper has a population of 503,930 (2008). Along with adjacent cities of Masan, Jinhae, and Jangyu in Gimhae, Changwon constitutes Ma-Chang-Jin metropolitan area, which has a population of approximately 1.2 million.Changwon has many parks and gardens throughout the city which give it a different feel from places such as Busan. For example, Yongji Park contains a small lake with a jet-fountain and hosts laser light shows at night. The Junam Reservoir is an important bird migration site and the largest in Korea. During the peak winter season, an average of 30 to 40,000 birds a day can be seen there.[citation needed] There is a birdwatching festival there each year.Azaleas bloom on the hillsides around Changwon for a short time in the spring and the city hosts two one-day festivals to commemorate the phenomena. The city is close to the seaside city of Jinhae. Each spring Jinhae has a tree blossom festival that attracts many Changwonians.Changwon is also home to the Changwon Exhibition Convention Center (CECO), located adjacent to the City 7 lodging and shopping complex. CECO hosted the 2008 conference of parties to the Ramsar Convention. It is home to three soccer clubs and a basketball club- K-League side Gyeongnam FC, National League side Changwon City FC, K3 League team Changwon United, and KBL team Changwon LG Sakers.