Gyeongju
We went on yet another trip here in Korea, this time to the historical city Gyeongju and then to the modern city Busan. It was only a two day trip but I took many pictures so I will let the pictures mostly speak for themselves. So, first off, pictures from Gyeongju, a city "for both the dead and the alive", filled with historical buildings and tombs from Goryeo dynasty.
They are not sure what this is, but one suggestion is that it was used for studying the stars.
Some of the tombs
The sign shows that a drama was filmed there
A garden from Goryeo dynasty. There used to be a lot more buildings, but they were burnt down during the Mongolian invasion (Djingis Khan, you have all heard of him), and not all buldings have been restored yet.
How it originally looked like
Can you see the crane?? It's in the middle of the picture, sitting on a tree branch
The crane is flying!
Where we had out lunch
Asian fusion sandwhiches with veggies, meat and rice.
Gyeongju Bulguksa - a temple area that was completed in 774 and served as a center for "Silla Buddhism". (Silla is one of the early dynasties in Korea)
We were not allowed to take pictures of the buddha inside...
A building where a monk is said to be buried. It was believed back then that if a very good monk died, pearls will come out of his body. So they are currently looking for the pearls.
Flowers with prayers
A big bell used for prayers
This was the historical site I was most curious about - an artificial cave with very complicated architectural design. And inside the cave there is a staty of a buddha. However, not only were we not allowed to take pictures inside, we were not even allowed to go in the cave. Only to see it through a glass from outside, so, although I understand the destruction massive tourism can cause, I couldn't help feeling disappointed. I would have at least want to see the roof where the complexity is most apparant.
Lamps with prayers
This cave was quite remote, and the last kilometer we had to walk. But the walk was pretty indeed.
Refilling the energy with some fresh fishcake sold at the gate
Old ladies selling edible goods on the street
While waiting for the bus, there was public cameras where people could take their photos. By mistake, we our picture ended up saved in their gallery for everyone to see
This night there was a lunar eclipse!
After a long day in Gyeongju, we went with the bullet train KTX to the nearby city Busan where we stayed the night at this hostel.
Busan is right next to the sea
A night market with fish food
Just to hop in and point at which fish in any of the fish tanks you would like to eat
While we were in Busan, there was an international film festival going on.
Kommentarer
Trackback
