I tried it. I really did. You can see how much I tried it. But the inability to organise posts in a meaningful way has left me with a burning need to go to Wordpress to continue this blog.
I apologise if you're a Blogger addict, but it just doesn't seem to be for me.
The new blog, with all current posts imported, is here: http://trooadventure.wordpress.com/
I'd love it if you could keep reading :)
Thursday, 17 January 2013
Tuesday, 15 January 2013
Bulguksa, Gyeongju, South Korea
Bulguksa is about 40 minutes out of Gyeongju by bus, and well worth every minute of the incredibly bumpy, bone-rattling drive.
Built between 751 and 774 AD, the temple has had a spotty history. It began as an important Silla-period temple, mainly focusing on prayer to protect the country from invasion. Japanese invaders burned it down in 1593, since it had become a headquarters for the local militia. The buildings weren't fully restored until 1969-73, which gives them a strangely inauthentic feel at times.
The bus alights beside a vast car park which contains the ticket office and excellent bathroom facilities should you feel so inclined after almost an hour on a jiggly bus. Then it's a gentle hike up a relatively easy hill for about 15-30 minutes - dependent on how lazily you take it and how often you stop to admire the view.
Entry to Buddhist locations in South Korea always begins with a bridge over flowing water. Water is seen to purify the spirit, so when you step over it you are symbolically leaving the secular world behind you and stepping into the spiritual one. All your worldly concerns are to be left at the door.
The South Korean Government has classified Bulguksa as Historic and Scenic Site No. 1. It isn't especially hard to see why. As well as being an important site for over a thousand years, Bulguksa is set in gorgeous countryside, with terrific landscaping and some of the country's most important Buddhist relics still on-site.
Some treasures survived the temple's razing and can be found within - once you've passed the protective scrutiny of the four guardians in the main gate, that is.
The majority of surviving treasures are built from stone, such as these steps: The lower steps are the Blue Cloud Bridge, and the upper are the White Cloud Bridge. The bridges used to cross a pond which has since dried out.
Buddhist temples in South Korea usually feature four temple instruments: A bell, a drum in the shape of a fish, a cloud-shaped gong, and a more traditional drum. The bell is struck to save the beings of hell; the wooden fish for saving all the beings of the sea; the cloud gong for saving all the beings of the sky; and the dharma drum is to save all the creatures of the earth. All four instruments are beaten both in the morning and evening.
Dabotap is a stone pagoda which dates from approximately 751AD. There were originally four stone lions guarding the stone staircases, but only one remains; the other three have been purloined by parties unknown over the years. The pagoda's construction is unique even to South Korea, and as such is designated National Treasure No. 20, and is featured on the ₩10 coin.
Restoration work has been very thorough and detailed, and gives an excellent idea of how the complex appeared when it was first completed.
Bulguksa is littered with shrines, most of which were reconstructed in the 1970's. The shrine below is of Gwanseeum Bosal, the Bodhisattva of Perfect Compassion.
Behind the Birojeon, a shrine for the Buddha of Enlightenment, are hundreds of hand-built pagodas or stupas. The Buddha of Enlightenment is seen as the Buddha from which all others are created, so it appears that these little constructions are built by those seeking blessings - they aren't mentioned in the handy guide provided at the front gate, and you have to walk around the rear of the building to see them. They vary in size, and are balanced on every available surface.
The temple's bell is massive, and rings out across the mountains and valleys twice a day.
Admission: ₩4,000. Free audio guide available.
Built between 751 and 774 AD, the temple has had a spotty history. It began as an important Silla-period temple, mainly focusing on prayer to protect the country from invasion. Japanese invaders burned it down in 1593, since it had become a headquarters for the local militia. The buildings weren't fully restored until 1969-73, which gives them a strangely inauthentic feel at times.
The bus alights beside a vast car park which contains the ticket office and excellent bathroom facilities should you feel so inclined after almost an hour on a jiggly bus. Then it's a gentle hike up a relatively easy hill for about 15-30 minutes - dependent on how lazily you take it and how often you stop to admire the view.
Entry to Buddhist locations in South Korea always begins with a bridge over flowing water. Water is seen to purify the spirit, so when you step over it you are symbolically leaving the secular world behind you and stepping into the spiritual one. All your worldly concerns are to be left at the door.
The South Korean Government has classified Bulguksa as Historic and Scenic Site No. 1. It isn't especially hard to see why. As well as being an important site for over a thousand years, Bulguksa is set in gorgeous countryside, with terrific landscaping and some of the country's most important Buddhist relics still on-site.
Some treasures survived the temple's razing and can be found within - once you've passed the protective scrutiny of the four guardians in the main gate, that is.
The majority of surviving treasures are built from stone, such as these steps: The lower steps are the Blue Cloud Bridge, and the upper are the White Cloud Bridge. The bridges used to cross a pond which has since dried out.
Buddhist temples in South Korea usually feature four temple instruments: A bell, a drum in the shape of a fish, a cloud-shaped gong, and a more traditional drum. The bell is struck to save the beings of hell; the wooden fish for saving all the beings of the sea; the cloud gong for saving all the beings of the sky; and the dharma drum is to save all the creatures of the earth. All four instruments are beaten both in the morning and evening.
Dabotap is a stone pagoda which dates from approximately 751AD. There were originally four stone lions guarding the stone staircases, but only one remains; the other three have been purloined by parties unknown over the years. The pagoda's construction is unique even to South Korea, and as such is designated National Treasure No. 20, and is featured on the ₩10 coin.
Restoration work has been very thorough and detailed, and gives an excellent idea of how the complex appeared when it was first completed.
Bulguksa is littered with shrines, most of which were reconstructed in the 1970's. The shrine below is of Gwanseeum Bosal, the Bodhisattva of Perfect Compassion.
Behind the Birojeon, a shrine for the Buddha of Enlightenment, are hundreds of hand-built pagodas or stupas. The Buddha of Enlightenment is seen as the Buddha from which all others are created, so it appears that these little constructions are built by those seeking blessings - they aren't mentioned in the handy guide provided at the front gate, and you have to walk around the rear of the building to see them. They vary in size, and are balanced on every available surface.
The temple's bell is massive, and rings out across the mountains and valleys twice a day.
Visiting Bulguksa:
Take bus number 10 or 11 from Gyeongju Intercity or Express Bus Terminals, or Gyeongju Train Station. Alight at Bulguksa Temple after approximately 40 minutes.Admission: ₩4,000. Free audio guide available.
Friday, 11 January 2013
Golgulsa, Gyeongju, South Korea
Golgulsa is a Zen Buddhist temple approximately 25km from Gyeongju. Famous as the modern home of Sunmudo, a wholly-Korean Zen martial art, the temple also offers demonstrations of Sunmudo, as well as templestays for Koreans and foreigners alike.
Finding the temple is a test of your adventuring skills. Starting in Gyeongju, either at the Bus Terminal or Train Station (whichever is more convenient for you), take bus 100 or 150 to the Andong bus stop. Be wary: Don't confuse this little Andong for the town of Andong. Korea's a huge fan of giving multiple places, mountains, or villages identical names.
The bus stop is quite literally in the middle of nowhere. The stops have their name written in both Korean and English along the top of their awnings, but frequently buses stop at such a position where reading the sign while on the bus is impossible. Notify your driver when you get on that you are heading to Golgulsa and he'll wave you off at the correct stop about 30 minutes after you got on.
You should have emerged at a bus stop with a couple of houses and a small shop/cafe, with a road that leads off away from the main road. There is no pavement along this road, and a dried out river-bed to the right. Walk along this road for about 15-20 minutes. Watch out for heavy industrial vehicles and very angry wasps. In fact, walk along the side of the road with the wall, because just about every tree contains a wasp nest and these wasps are terrifyingly massive.
The temple will be on your left, up a hill, with statues of monks in various poses on the right of the approach road.
Don't mind the tape; I seem to have arrived during construction season.
I do wonder whether every season at Golgulsa is construction season, though.
Continue through the main gate and follow the road. You will find a souvenir shop, a map which lies, and various temple outbuildings.
Wait. What's that? A map that lies? Why, yes. You see, Golgulsa only offers Sunmudo demonstrations twice a day, and the map kindly lists in both Korean and English where exactly those demonstrations will be.
Except they weren't. They were somewhere else entirely. Somewhere 20 minutes' hike from where the map said they were, because the demonstration stage was... Yes! Under construction! Even better, several monks and other staff saw tourists waiting patiently at the demonstration stage and said nothing. Only when we found an American templestay volunteer did he tell us where the demonstration was taking place that day, by which time it was far too late for us to catch it.
Speaking of the templestayers...
The grounds are mostly maintained by templestay volunteers. The buildings are erected and painted by templestay volunteers. In fact almost every piece of work we saw being undertaken was done so by templestay volunteers, and every single volunteer had a slightly creepy cult member vibe. In fact, walking past the templestay residences and overhearing the chit-chat from within transformed Golgulsa from a potentially intriguing destination into an outright surreal one.
But, onward! On to Golgulsa's pride and joy, the massive carving of the Maya Tathagata Buddha, which sits atop the caves containing the original 6th century temples. The Buddha is carved from the rock face, and there are several equally-deadly ways to climb the rocks to view it. I highly recommend that you take the stone steps to the right which initially cross over a little stream. This is the safer of the routes.
Or you can do what I did, and try the left. Perhaps you're a mountain goat, or perhaps - like me - you think from ground level it looks more approachable.
The left has the advantage that nooks and crannies in the rock face are littered with completely bizarre and sometimes unrelated offerings and tokens. These cute little statues gathered together in one little space were among the best.
It also leads to a couple of shrines, and the main temple building.
What it doesn't lead to, unless you're a mountaineer or someone who has no fear, is the Maya Tathagata Buddha. Being a person who is paralysed by heights and can just about overcome them with the assistance of a good, solid handrail, I didn't particularly fancy attempting the narrow ledge with the loose rope handholds, so I'm afraid I had to pass.
I did then go down to ground level and attempt the ascent on the right instead, but this too eventually led to a dubious rope rail, and while the steps were broader, some were pretty wobbly, and the fear of heights won out again.
All in all it was a pleasant place, with some interesting features, but it felt oddly inauthentic and new. Make sure to ask a volunteer where exactly the demonstrations are taking place today, rather than take the advice of the Map Which Lies.
Admission: Free.
Finding the temple is a test of your adventuring skills. Starting in Gyeongju, either at the Bus Terminal or Train Station (whichever is more convenient for you), take bus 100 or 150 to the Andong bus stop. Be wary: Don't confuse this little Andong for the town of Andong. Korea's a huge fan of giving multiple places, mountains, or villages identical names.
The bus stop is quite literally in the middle of nowhere. The stops have their name written in both Korean and English along the top of their awnings, but frequently buses stop at such a position where reading the sign while on the bus is impossible. Notify your driver when you get on that you are heading to Golgulsa and he'll wave you off at the correct stop about 30 minutes after you got on.
You should have emerged at a bus stop with a couple of houses and a small shop/cafe, with a road that leads off away from the main road. There is no pavement along this road, and a dried out river-bed to the right. Walk along this road for about 15-20 minutes. Watch out for heavy industrial vehicles and very angry wasps. In fact, walk along the side of the road with the wall, because just about every tree contains a wasp nest and these wasps are terrifyingly massive.
The temple will be on your left, up a hill, with statues of monks in various poses on the right of the approach road.
Don't mind the tape; I seem to have arrived during construction season.
I do wonder whether every season at Golgulsa is construction season, though.
Continue through the main gate and follow the road. You will find a souvenir shop, a map which lies, and various temple outbuildings.
Wait. What's that? A map that lies? Why, yes. You see, Golgulsa only offers Sunmudo demonstrations twice a day, and the map kindly lists in both Korean and English where exactly those demonstrations will be.
Except they weren't. They were somewhere else entirely. Somewhere 20 minutes' hike from where the map said they were, because the demonstration stage was... Yes! Under construction! Even better, several monks and other staff saw tourists waiting patiently at the demonstration stage and said nothing. Only when we found an American templestay volunteer did he tell us where the demonstration was taking place that day, by which time it was far too late for us to catch it.
Speaking of the templestayers...
The grounds are mostly maintained by templestay volunteers. The buildings are erected and painted by templestay volunteers. In fact almost every piece of work we saw being undertaken was done so by templestay volunteers, and every single volunteer had a slightly creepy cult member vibe. In fact, walking past the templestay residences and overhearing the chit-chat from within transformed Golgulsa from a potentially intriguing destination into an outright surreal one.
But, onward! On to Golgulsa's pride and joy, the massive carving of the Maya Tathagata Buddha, which sits atop the caves containing the original 6th century temples. The Buddha is carved from the rock face, and there are several equally-deadly ways to climb the rocks to view it. I highly recommend that you take the stone steps to the right which initially cross over a little stream. This is the safer of the routes.
Or you can do what I did, and try the left. Perhaps you're a mountain goat, or perhaps - like me - you think from ground level it looks more approachable.
The left has the advantage that nooks and crannies in the rock face are littered with completely bizarre and sometimes unrelated offerings and tokens. These cute little statues gathered together in one little space were among the best.
It also leads to a couple of shrines, and the main temple building.
What it doesn't lead to, unless you're a mountaineer or someone who has no fear, is the Maya Tathagata Buddha. Being a person who is paralysed by heights and can just about overcome them with the assistance of a good, solid handrail, I didn't particularly fancy attempting the narrow ledge with the loose rope handholds, so I'm afraid I had to pass.
I did then go down to ground level and attempt the ascent on the right instead, but this too eventually led to a dubious rope rail, and while the steps were broader, some were pretty wobbly, and the fear of heights won out again.
All in all it was a pleasant place, with some interesting features, but it felt oddly inauthentic and new. Make sure to ask a volunteer where exactly the demonstrations are taking place today, rather than take the advice of the Map Which Lies.
Visiting Golgulsa:
Bus 100 or 150 from the Bus Terminal or Train Station, to Andong stop, then 15-20 minutes' walk. There is a tourist information office near the Bus Terminal who can give you directions.Admission: Free.
Thursday, 10 January 2013
Tumuli Park, Gyeongju, South Korea
Gyeongju is a tiny town which packs a heck of a lot of value. Once the seat of the Silla Kingdom, the area around it is now littered with sites of tremendous historical significance, including the tombs of an unknown number of members of the royal family and their court officials.
In the centre of Gyeongju, between its intercity bus terminal and train station, is Tumuli Park, or Daereungwon in Korean. The park contains several tombs, a couple of which have been excavated and yielded treasures now designated as important cultural properties by the South Korean government.
The main entrance is in the centre of the northernmost edge of the park. While maps show a second entrance at the south, I found this to be locked whenever I walked past it, with no signage as to whether this was a temporary or permanent arrangement.
The park is peaceful, and very pretty. Even if you don't enter the famous Heavenly Horse Tomb it's a very pleasant place to stroll around and have a picnic. But you've paid your entrance fee, and come all this way; of course you're going into Cheonmachong!
This is a very popular destination for buses filled with schoolchildren, none of whom are shy about yelling "Hello!" at tourists.
Cheonmachong has an excellent tourist information booth outside its entrance which provides information in several languages about the park and the tombs within it. The quality of the free English-language guides obtainable at South Korean sites is phenomenal, and this is no different. Make sure you get a copy: it contains information not only about the park and its tombs, but also about the town itself. It's very useful, plus it includes photographs of the treasures and insides of Cheonmachong - handy because you aren't allowed to take pictures inside.
During the stroll around the park, I encountered an elderly lady whacking a persimmon tree with a fallen branch to dislodge fruit. Mostly this encounter was marred by said fruit landing directly on my head. Watch out for old ladies bearing sticks!
Admission: ₩1,500, covers entry into the park and into Cheonmachong. Free guidebooks available within.
In the centre of Gyeongju, between its intercity bus terminal and train station, is Tumuli Park, or Daereungwon in Korean. The park contains several tombs, a couple of which have been excavated and yielded treasures now designated as important cultural properties by the South Korean government.
The main entrance is in the centre of the northernmost edge of the park. While maps show a second entrance at the south, I found this to be locked whenever I walked past it, with no signage as to whether this was a temporary or permanent arrangement.
The park is peaceful, and very pretty. Even if you don't enter the famous Heavenly Horse Tomb it's a very pleasant place to stroll around and have a picnic. But you've paid your entrance fee, and come all this way; of course you're going into Cheonmachong!
This is a very popular destination for buses filled with schoolchildren, none of whom are shy about yelling "Hello!" at tourists.
Cheonmachong has an excellent tourist information booth outside its entrance which provides information in several languages about the park and the tombs within it. The quality of the free English-language guides obtainable at South Korean sites is phenomenal, and this is no different. Make sure you get a copy: it contains information not only about the park and its tombs, but also about the town itself. It's very useful, plus it includes photographs of the treasures and insides of Cheonmachong - handy because you aren't allowed to take pictures inside.
During the stroll around the park, I encountered an elderly lady whacking a persimmon tree with a fallen branch to dislodge fruit. Mostly this encounter was marred by said fruit landing directly on my head. Watch out for old ladies bearing sticks!
Visiting Tumuli Park:
Approximately 5-10 minutes' walk from Gyeongju Intercity Bus Terminal, along the main road. Walk in the direction away from the river. Remember if you are asking for directions that the Korean word is Daereungwon: 대릉원. There is a tourist information office on the corner of the correct street, and they can provide you with maps and directions.Admission: ₩1,500, covers entry into the park and into Cheonmachong. Free guidebooks available within.
Tuesday, 8 January 2013
Dosan Seowon, Andong, South Korea.
I was fortunate enough to bump into one of the site's volunteers while waiting for the bus. A lovely lady, she happily explained much of the academy's history and cultural significance during the trip, and revealed that she had written the content for the audio guide available on-site. She took tremendous care of me throughout my visit, ensuring that I knew how to use the audio guide, checking with me when I left that everything on it had been clear and informative, and going so far as to be certain that I got on the correct bus back to Andong.
The site itself is peaceful and nestled in a valley which has since been flooded to create a reservoir. This places it at the edge of a lake which wasn't present during Toegye's time, and the old examination hall juts from the lake on its own little hill, raised to save it from flooding.
Buildings here are well cared-for, and have signage in Korean and English, along with markers to let you know which part of the audio tour to listen to. The library (above) is raised on stilts to protect its contents (now stored in a museum offsite) from humidity.
Visiting Dosan Seowon:
From the bus-stop outside Andong Train Station (on the train station's side of the road), take bus 67. There are only a handful of buses each day, so check with the tourist information office (directly outside Andong Train Station): Friendly, multilingual staff will provide you with a bus timetable and a map showing you which bus stop to use.If you do not speak Korean, simply show the timetable to the bus driver and say "Dosan Seowon", and sit or stand up front, and it's highly likely that he will tell you the correct stop when you arrive.
Admission: ₩1,500. Audio guide rental is free, and the office will hold your identification until you return it to them.
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