A Stroll Along Gangnam Area (part 2)

Still at Bongeunsa (봉은사)..the downtown temple--well, that's how I describe it. 

One thing for sure, this is just well-situated in the center of business district. 

Lots of activities to see and to do here.

Like this one. A group of children clad in their hanbok was marching along the temple area. 

I was not sure what they're up to, but they're surely giving a different feel to the temple. 

Oh, there was even one wedding reception complete with its orchestra.

What a perfect day to hold a wedding ceremony..in the heart of the temple and the city (in autumn). 

The orchestra was rehearsing when we were there. Though I could't see the 'real' ceremony, at least I got the feel of what it would've been like. 

Continuing on my tour with mr. Nugroho, I got a closer look into the intricate drawings on the ceiling of the temple. 

The drawings, colors, shapes, patterns are all full of symbolical meanings--I assume. 

Wish I'd known them.

But...surely they're pretty neat.

A Stroll Along Gangnam Area (part 1)

I was taking Mr. Nugroho, who's been in Seoul for a mere 2 months, to see Seoul. Well, we're up to buying something as he needed more 'stuffs'. So, I took him to Coex Mall only to find that it's mostly closed due to the renovation.

so, we ended up going up to the East Gate of Coex Mall and found that that there was this flower exhibition.

*it looks like Chester from Alice in Wonderland. 

Then..some other 'float' of flowers decked on the entrance hall. 

Oh, it was the World Trade Center's flower festival. 

Well, it's not as huge as I thought it would be, though. 

okay...then we strolled around to Bogeunsa temple which is located just around the corner of Coex mall. I think I'd better take him there to see the Buddhist temple's view. 

I didn't know as to whether people do flock to this temple on a daily basis or was it just a coincidence that there was this 'festivity' going on. 

Either way, it was a good thing to be able to witness the charms of this temple with its adherents doing their rituals.  

Candles lit and incense with its fragrance....

I spotted two monks were about to do their ritual of circulating the temple to give blessing.

COEX Mall's Facade

 OTW to Bongeunsa: another story to tell. I might as well write down something about the time when we stopped at Samseong station where COEX mall was located.
The story was not about the mall itself, but more about what we did with the time when we were passing by the mall that day.

THe COEX mall sprung up for miles and miles if we ever happen to circle all the corners of the mall. It is connected with the World Trade Center and other convention and exhibition (coex) halls. 

The glass tower was rejuvenating the facade of Gangnam area.
International trade and business world-related endeavors seem to be mingled and mixed up in one-stop service & state of the arts' facilities.




What I could remember most from our passing-by trip through the glass high-rise mall was that it was a clean & well-spent afternoon.



The sun was about to set that time. See the glowing sun light being reflected on the surface of the building?
It does show how tall the building is.

I think the architecture of the building somewhat gives a different look to Gangnam area, especially when seen from across the river from the Gangbuk area.

COEX Mall OTW to Bongeunsa TempleCOEX again....

We were on the way (OTW) to the Bongeunsa temple where a lantern festival was being held. Since Samsong subway station was the closest in vicinity, we had to get there first in order to reach the temple. OK, I've been to COEX mall several times or countless times, for sure. But, as long as I could recollect, that was the first time that we ever got out of the subway station and had ourselves strolling in front of the mall. 

We were a bit exhausted after a long walk, so we just let ourselves rest or sit on the stairs. I bet not many Seoulites dared to just relax themselves and be as freely as we could in front of the malls and took pictures as we did. Well, I guess because we felt like it was just OK to have ourselves some time to enjoy and discern the looks and facade of the mall from its exterior.  

A family picture was a must, then. Our fellow students who were accompanying us took the picture. I think it was about 7.30 pm or so. It was dusk already but not yet Magrib. The sun sets at about 7.45 pm. We  pretty much liked the idea of being exposed to longer daylight coz we could do more stuffs during the day.

 

I think this is some monuments-- a modern or contemporary state of the art park specially built to commemorate and to inaugurate the official opening of the G-20 Summit held in Seoul, Korea. The technology that was brought and installed into this park shows the prowess of Korea in the realm of information technology.

BOngeunsa Temple: Lantern festival

What did the temple offer to its visitors during the Lantern festival?

Fish-shaped lanterns spotted above the pond--the real ponds found in front of the temple. As the night sky falls and the lanterns are lit, the brightness that brings life to the 'fish' does invigorate the serenely eerie feeling of just looking at them. Eerie yet relieving to the eyes.

See the reflection of the lanterns on the surface of water? It's that life-life! The difference: of course, it was the fact that the 'fish' were glowing above the water^^ 

I think these kinds of lanterns were the ones that captivated me. 

As we were going deeper into the temple and got our back against the temple, we could see the entrance to the temple. It looked different when I saw it from different perspective.

This is what I meant. The sky-rise buildings at the back indicate that the temple are truly located in the middle of one of Seoul's most sophisticated districts bustling with shops, hotels, and malls. 

 Freya & her Mom
 

I spotted a plane-lantern.
My wife and I were both taking turn to take picture--to prove that we 'were' there.

Seoul Lantern Festival at Bongeun-sa Temple

First, white candles on the altar or table in front of the temple were lit by the visitors whom I believe were those having faith in Buddha. The contrasting color between the white candles below and the red lanterns above was somewhat strikingly calm.

Second, the lit lanterns adorned with wishes written on a piece of paper were hung all over the place, mostly above the ground.  

Third, I am sure that these wishes are the way people express and convey their prayers during the Buddha's Birthday celebration marked by this event. 

Fourth,  I noticed that some.....more and more people were flocking into the temple and began their prayers . First, they lit the candle and then made a wish or prayer and put the candles back into their designated places. 

Fifth,oh did I mention anything about the candles being white and pink? 

They must have had some symbolic or philosophic meanings.  

One thing for sure, I felt like the calmness and serenity of the night where some monks and commoners mingled and celebrated the night was a good thing to behlold.

Lotus Lantern FEetsival

Feetsival????^^ I mean...Festival. Lantern festival. ^^
Candles lit. Prayers chanted.  Wishes uttered. Lights lighted. Lanterns piled.
The night sky's bright.

 Since there were not many things to do or things that I could do, simply because we were just visiting the temple, we were not allowed to go inside the temple. But, there were just things that we could do: seeing people performing their prayers and things like that. It was interesting enough, though.

These were the lanterns hung on the entrance of the inner temple adjacent to the bigger one outside.

        Red, blue, yellow, white lantern on the ceilings and the railings of the temple imbued the atmosphere   into a radiantly bright night.

 This one right here is a close-up look of what and how they looked like. First, there seemed to be only one kind of lantern, but as we went deeper and scrutinize every bit of the temple's corner, we could vividly see the different patterns on display.

This pretty much sums up the whole yard overlooking the temple as more and more people were pouring into the temple and performing their prayers.
The hanging lanterns above them were indeed beautifully warm.

Traditional Lantern Festival @ Bongeunsa Temple (part 2)

Melizza & Azma (two of my students currently studying in Korea), Ulfa and Wawan (a wife-husband) who are currently residing in Seoul and who happen to be my neighbors, and of course my family were all delighted to see the festival for the first time. As for me, since I lived in Seoul once, it was not the first time to experience and see this lantern festival. For them, it was somewhat a different kind of experiences from their daily routines at campus.  

"First, try this one, Mommy. But, not that much...OK? 

Just a simple sip or lick to my candy is fine. How's it?"

"Now, it's my turn. I think this is the best way to put it into my mouth. Yummy"

"Aaaaaaaaahhh...it tastes a bit bitter and sour, yet sweet!"

** This was one of the episodes while enjoying the lantern festival.