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 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.

Gyeongju City Tour Bus (part 4): 안압지 Anapji Pond

Now let me get this straight. Do I need to walk all the way down the long lane..with barely no trees to the hall beyond? and I got to walk for about 40 minutes, should I want to enjoy the whole area?

The answer is YES.

But..then..I reluctantly did what I had prepared for: I'd rather stay put..and enjoy the pond from afar. So, my pictures do not show the intricate pictures that I should've taken. 

But..I learned a thing or two about the place, though.

It's built in the 7th Century. It was created to serve as a royal exotic garden. Some say..that exotic animals, too, were brought in. (hmmm I wonder what those must have been).

Just when I thought that these were the 'original' buildings, it turned out that they were the restored version thanks to the historical records informing how they must've looked like back then (after being left in ruins). 

We were taking (again and again) some shelter under the tree.^^

I love the traditional pattern, representative of Shilla. I think I saw most of this design every where I went to around Gyeongju. 

See? It's simple, yet...it's simply Shilla. Wait..or is it the modern invention? 

Oh, Anapji pond was also dubbed as the detached palace of Shilla royal family. It's located right in the Anapji pond. yes..a pond with beautiful pond...that I did not have a chance to see.:( 

Freya and her auntie were walking around the detached palace in Anapji pond.

Later when I asked her what it was all about: "Oh...gosh..it's so hot"

Once again, I should've come to Gyeongju during Autumn or Spring.^^

Gyeongju City Tour Bus (part 2): Tumuli Park (천마총)

The 2nd place we went to is the famous Tumuli Park or 천마총 (Cheonmachong). My kids referred them as Teletubbies park. ^^ Well, that's how they learned about it...

Take a picture before heading into the park...

Most of the time, I was the one who took the picture.^^ 

See? That's the first impression that any first timers would get. What are those? 

These green hills are actually tombs, royal tombs of Shilla. Quite unique, right? 

There are hundreds of these in Gyeongju. But, this one at Tumuli Park is considered to be the largest concentration of such kind. 

Take a shelter in the shades before continuing our tour... 

Indeed, it was a okay-let's-do-this-kind-of-tour..since we're like being succumbed to the blistering heat of summer in Gyeongju. It was 37 degrees Celsius....:(( 

But, Eyra and her sister found a must-do list, i.e. stamping on each picture that matches the site of the spot we visited. This is the kind of activities that --I was pretty sure--surely agitated 'the competitive trait' in hers. 

She liked showing it off..that she did stamp the Tumuli Park mark.^^

Now let's go inside the tomb... 

Wait..I want to have a pic,too. 

Inside the tomb were the royal belongings which used to be incorporated into the tomb. All of the kings, nobles, families' belongings were preserved inside the tomb. and oh my..some were gold plated. 

This is the interior within the tomb. What a sight, though. 

Surprisingly, it was cool inside. So cool that people preferred staying longer, despite the contracted-time-limit of the tour... 

At least I came to learn a few facts...

Cheonmachong means 'Heavenly Horse Tomb' . er...what? heavenly? horse?

Well, the guide told us that it was called so because it is the representative of the wooden chamber tomb with stone mound in the Shilla period. But..why the horse??

Okay..it was built in 5th or 6th century. hmmm almost as old as Borobudur Temple in Indonesia.

It's around 13 meters in height...and...I don't know how large they are.

Thousands of historical objects or...artifacts were retrieved from the tombswhen they were dug out. 

and..one of the artifacts WAS a saddle with a painting of a flying horse on it.

AhA>...AHA>..that's why it is now called Cheonmachong..the what was that?

yes...Heavenly Horse Tomb.

Okay...I take it in. 

now..we're out of the tomb. Let's take a family picture before going back to the bus. 

Now..a complete family picture. Mama, put that umbrella for a while...:) 

The landscape view of the Tumuli Park. 

Once again, it would've been nice, had we had the trip in Spring or Autumn.^^

But then, what would my daughters call the hills if they're not green, then?

ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

Gyeongju City Bus Tour (part 1): Poseokjeong 포석정

We booked Gyeongju City Tour Bus: 8 Hours. 8 Places of interest. Each cost around 25,000 Won (bus, including all entrance fee, excluding lunch). We prepared our own lunch^^

The bus provides us with information on what to see before disembarking on each tourist spot. Oh, it's in 3 or 4 languages. 

The first site is Poseokjeong. Now let the pictures speak for themselves, first. 

I wish I'd come on Autumn!!!!!! 

We'd better take shades....^^ I mean..it was stiflingly HOT. But, sure..some people did attentively listen to the guide.

Is this the canal that's been talked about? I thought it would be grandiose....., though

Some of remains of the floors of the Shilla Kingdom... 

As for the other buildings...they're simply gone... 

only...trees now...stood there... 

Group pic. is a must.  

I was blending in....... 

Okay..A little bit about Poseokjeong: it's a separate royal palace where the kings of Shilla held banquets for the nobles. Although the palace is gone (destroyed??), the stone water canal (see the pic.  above?) remains. I heard it was made of granite. hmmm.

Oh, one interesting fact of this place was that the kings used to float their drinking cups on the canal...and while doing that, they were making poetry. (gosh..they did have some leisure time:). 

hmm one more fact...the last king of Shilla, King Gyeonggae (??) met his death here...and then came the kingdom of Baekje....

That's what I know about this place. More about this? hmmmmm no...

Gyeongju: Here We Come!!!!

 We are going to Gyeongju. Yes....although summer is hot..hot..hot, we do not want to just stay at home...without doing nothing. We want to explore Korea. I've been to Gyeongju, of course. But, my family and my friends have not. So....we booked trains (all kinds of trains: Saemaeul, Mugunghwa, and KTX) to have a different taste of Korean train in all of its aspects. We depart from Seoul to Gyeongju via ordinary train, and we return to Seoul via KTX. Smart, choice? hmm..not really..coz we could've just booked all KTX train..from and to ..back and forth Seoul - Gyeongju. Because it's not even 5,000 Won in difference!!!!

Anyway we booked it already. Yeeeeeeee...

We go to Gyeongju with mas Wawan and mbak Ulfa: our fellow friends. 

Wait..this is not the price for Gyeongju, but Busan..

hmm going to Busan via KTX costs above 50,000 won per trip.

But...the trip to Gyeongju cost around 40,000 per trip.

Guess..we'd do it  

aoh..one more thing, we did manage to secure a home (pension) for our 3 days, 2 nights trip to Gyeongju.

We do hope that this is a great and an enjoyable trip.

Hurray!!! Got the tickets already...for 6 people in our group.

Korail Train Ticket.....^^

and...of course....one of the ways to explore Gyeongju (for those who want to have a hassle-free experience in Gyeongju).....is to take the Gyeongju City Tour Bus.

Got our seats reserved already...and we're ready to see the Shilla Kingdom:)