Gyeongju Tour: Going Back to Seoul

Finally the day we went back to Seoul arrived. It's just 2 nights in Gyeongju. 

Some things we remembered from Gyeongju:

The 37 Celsius Summer Heat!!

The cozy pension we stayed in.

The not-so-many buildings in and around Gyeongju: which turned out to be an advantage.

We love the trees and the lanes..and the blue sky that dominated most of what we experienced there. 

Not many cars. blue sky. trees on both side of the lanes... 

The green paddy field along the way.... 

A dome protruding out of the hills....(did not know what)!! 

We changed our ticket 3 times!

First: the original ticket we bought from Seoul.

Second: The second one we bought after we changed the time schedule. We changed the tickets into the earlier ones so as to provide us ample time to take a rest in Seoul (after arriving).

The third: After we MISSED the TRAIN to Seoul.!!!!!!!

Yes, I got a penalty for the tickets we bought. GEREHGDHGOIDHGEKHGDKGHDFDDG#$GDGR$^DG&D*G&D(GD&(GD*)(GD*)D*G)_D&*(GDUIGDHIOGDJOIGDUOIGDUIOG&*(E^*&GE^*&E^

But...IT was a great experience and we can laugh about it NOW. 

Freya always had fun time and found something to do...to spend. 

She never stopped talking. Well, that's a good thing. 

What about Eyra? She's busy with her phone.!!!!!! 

We're transfering @ DongDaegu station. 

And the 13.42 KTX time was the train we're boarding. 

It's a hanok-style waiting room inside the station. Is it??

Now..let's take the whole group. Say 'Smile'''' 

More members of our group came along. We still had some time left before departing to Seoul... 

Oh...the KTX train was approaching...oops..no..not that one.. 

So, let's take some time off again.... but...not for long..since our train would arrive soon  

It's a good thing that both of them were always enthusiastic and energetic....^^ 

Never complain or whatsoever...they seemed to have always been able to enjoy their trip.

Hope you enjoy your trip in Gyeongju, girls!!

Gyeongju City Tour (part 11): Dinner time

We had some dinner at the Pension Maeul restaurant lane. 

Since most of us wanted to have some seafood, we went to this ..낙지 마실 restaurant... 

any kind of seafood and any kinds of shells, crabs, ...etc...to name a few were there for them. not for me.^^

for me..I jus had my suntubu. 

the fountain...beyond...

Gyeongju City Tour (part 8): Stamp on-the-spot

Eyra did the job of stamping the sites we visited. It's surely nothing of interest for adults. Sure..who would?

But, for kids...and for easy-going-foreigners like us...this is a kind of trivial stuff that we find 'why-not-if-it-is-fun!!! 

There are still many places that we should have visited. But..the tour does not cover all places...we just went to the some of the most-visited places.

Gyeongju City Tour Bus (part 6): Bulguksa Temple (part 1);-D

First, greeted by the pond in our way to the temple. 

Just stay there and let me freeze you for a while, Dear.^^

for the sake of memories of being @ Gyeongju. 

Newly built ...er..planted trees on a park towards the temple. 

Yes...Eyra would never miss the chance of stamping her flyer. She's addicted to stamping!! 

The first glimpse of view of the whole temple...but shrouded by the trees. 

A clean earth-lane ..... 

I-should-have-known-what-those-were-monuments. 

now..the landmark of Gyeongju's tourism is in full view. 

Eyra surely did not yet understand what or where she were. She may just remember the word "Gyeongju", but not in the historical context...or just yet. 

So, the point of visiting was to experience the fact that we DID go there.

We're lucky to be here in the already cooling-off summer afternoon. 

The sky's still bright blue...but it's not that hot as noon's temperature. 

So, we could enjoy our sightseeing to the fullest. 

Just the two of us.^^ 

The famous Bulguksa temple has undergone ...more than 40 renovations!!

gosh...what a long history of renovation.

Built in 528 AD, it's once again..a proof of how historical object stay intact. 

Eyra...what were you trying to do, honey? trying to put the temple fit into your palms?^^ 

The famous Dabotap (many treasure pagoda) is within our reach. It's one of the most valued pagodas in Korea. It's well..only 10 meters or so..but the meaning and symbolical meaning it treasures...transcends those who take pride in it. 

Once again, Eyra..did not learn that much about it, yet. But, I am sure that she'll remember being here one day..and she'll be looking for what or where she was..^^ 

On the 2nd floor veranda(?) of the temple overlooking the front yard. 

and..let's take another pic of just-the-two-of-us.^^@ Bulguksa!!

Gyeongju City Tour Bus (part 5): 석굴암 Seokguram

Now we're walking up the hill towards the Seokguram: one of the must-visit Budha statues in Korea, or Gyeongju in particular. 

What a trail indeed. For those who're not that young-at-heart, discretion is advised. 

Never wear any high heels, lest you'd tire yourself down.^-^

Okay, what is it actually, this Seokguram? It's built in the 8th century..so I learned. It's actually a religious complex or let's call it a hermitage. 

Along the way..we're greeted with nothing but trees: which was a great thing..considering the fact that it's hot. so..the oxygen-filled trail was exactly what I needed. 

Yeach....we finally arrived to the top...only to find that we got to climb more stairs...

Okay more facts: Seokguram is actually a monumental statute of the Sakyamuni(?) Budha. Dubbed to be one of the masterpieces of East Asian Buddhist art. 

We're going up again, Eyra....Are you ready? 

Not long....we reached the top and approaching the exact place where the statue was placed. 

We needed to go inside the temple..to see the statue...

but...too bad...no cameras were allowed.

Of course, I got one:) *sneaky, Suray*** But..I won't upload it here... 

But, let me get it straight...this statue of Buddha was made of granite and overlooking the East sea. People flocked to see this...and though it's not that huge as I'd imagined before..and I am sure many others would have done the same......okay..I was here. 

The site was designated as the National Treasure in Korea and heavily guarded. Monitoring was strict, that's why. CCTV keeps on recording the ins and outs of the people.  

The lanterns hung on the front yard of the hermitage.  

The statue was kept inside the building up there... 

Let's wash our feet and hands...in this well. 

Should you drink this, you'll be pretty if you taste the water 'sweet'! Oh, c'mon.

But..that's just for the sake fun of it. 

and the other way around...and that's how we ended our journey there.