Geumsunsa Templestay

I had read about templestays in Korea and signed up for a 2-day, 1-night program. I wanted to learn more about the Buddhist life. It's easy to sign up online at http://eng.templestay.com/.

I chose Geumsunsa. It's just outside Seoul, easy to get to by public transportation, yet it felt remote in the mountains.

1. Take the orange line subway and get off at Gyeongbokgung(경복궁).

2. Use exit No. 3 and walk straight forward about 70 m to the bus stop.
3. Take the green bus No. 7212 at the bus stop.
4. Get off at the bus stop, Yibukodochung(이북오도청) after a 20-minute ride. It's the stop right after the bus makes a U-turn.
5. Walk along the main road to the north for about 20 minutes. The first 10 minutes is a walk on the road; the last 10 minutes in up a hill. If you have heavy suitcases, write the temple ahead of time and they will send a cable cart down to the parking lot.

Sign pointing the way.

Entrance to the temple.

View of Seoul from the temple.

Bell tower.

On the grounds of the temple.

Temple building.

The program begins at 3 pm with an orientation. We arrived around 2 pm and were issued our purple temple uniform. There were about 25 of us from all corners of the world.

Bowing to the buddha.

Our group.

General Schedule

First Day
15:00~16:30 : Registration & free time
16:30~17:30 : Orientation (learn about etiquettes in temple)
17:30~18:30 : Temple Dinner
18:30~19:00 : Tolling a bell & Evening Service
19:00~20:00 : Walking in peace(or Conversation with a monk)
20:00~21:00 : Let it be
21:00~ : Sleeping

Second Day
04:30~05:00 : Early morning Service (Optional)
05:00~06:00 : Seon Meditation
06:00~07:00 : Temple breakfast
07:00~08:00 : Communal work (optional)--I weeded while my husband swept the grounds
08:00~09:30 : Walking Meditation along the tranquil forest path
09:30~10:30 : 108 prayer bows
10:30~11:30 : Temple tour
11:30~12:00 : Comments and photo
12:10~13:00 : Temple lunch
After lunch : Departure

We slept on mats in the communal room--separated by sex. There is a locker to place your belongings but there is no lock. There was a washroom and shower--soaps and small towel were provided.

It certainly was a very peaceful experience and I'm glad I did it. I learned how to meditate and to appreciate what I have. The vegetarian meals were quite good, the walks in the woods beautiful but the 108 prayer bows made me sore for days afterwards.



2013 09 21

Bulgogi Lunch

We were in search of bulgogi. A lot of restaurants don't have self-grilling for lunch. We found this restaurant in the basement in Insadong. 

Galbi--W10,000. This was actually not good. It needed more flavor and the meat was tough.

Tofu dregs--W5500. This is a dish with mashed tofu in a spicy broth. Not much else in it. Skip it.

2013 09 20

Jongmyo Shrine

Jongmyo Shrine is a World Heritage site that houses the spirit tablets of the Joseon kings and queens. Their spirits are believed to reside in holes bored into the wooden tablets

On the day of our visit the day after Chuseok, there were musical performances on the grounds throughout the day.

Not sure where the spirits live.

2013 09 20

Dongdaemun Design Plaza & Park

Dongdaemun Design Plaza & Park is a large urban development project that is still under construction. It will eventually have a park, fashion plaza and underground mall. If you're short on time, skip this.

This is made of recycled plastic bottles.

2013 09 20

Mandu

We had read about a restaurant in Insadong that served good mandus. You can recognize the restaurant by the huge mandus being made just inside the front door. These mandus were huge--three were large enough to feed 1, or a not-so-hungry 2 people. 

Simple banchans of cucumbers and marinated onions. There was also chap chae, which we loved.

Kim chee & spinach in soybean.

We ordered the seafood haemul pajeon, which was crispy and quite good. This was much better than any I have had in the US. W12,000.

Mandus--Korean wontons for W6500.

2013 09 20

Changgyeonggung

We had some time to kill while waiting for the Secret Garden tour at Changdeokgung and went into Changgyeonggung, which was right next door.  This is the Palace of Flourishing Gladness, which was turned into a zoo during the Japanese occupation. After you’ve seen one palace, you’ve seen them all. This one looked just like the other ones. We walked to the edge of the palace grounds and saw the Crystal Palace on the lake--this was the distinguishing factor .

2013 09 20

Changdeokgung & the Secret Garden

Changdeokgung is another of the royal palaces in Seoul. It means Palace of Illustrious Virtue and is a Unesco World Heritage property. It was built in the early 15th century as a secondary palace to Geyongbukgung, destroyed by the Japanese in the 1590s and rebuilt as the primary royal residence until 1872. It was used well into the 20th century.

Apparently, it's a popular place to take wedding photos.

The Secret Garden is part of Changdeokgung. Admission is by tour only and cost an additional W5000 (included in the Integrated ticket). You could reserve online or show up on the day to snag one of the remaining 50 tickets. The English tour is at 11:30 am and 3:30 pm. The tour takes 70-90 minutes and takes you into the inner sanctuary of the king, where only invited guests were allowed. It’s a very peaceful area with a park-like setting. There is a lot of walking, up and down hills. 

At the end of the tour, we were shown a 700 year old juniper tree. This is near the main entrance.

2013 09 20

Another Porridge Breakfast in Seoul

Near Bukchon Hanok Village, we found a restaurant serving porridge--Korean Traditional Porridge Restaurant. It's on Samcheongdong gil, leading to the village.

Beef with mushroms for W8000. This was a huge bowl and could easily feed 2. It was 3 times the portion of the porridge we had at the beginning of the trip

 Beef with seaweed for W7000.

2013 09 20

Galbi

There weren't a lot of places open for dinner on Chuseok. We found this restaurant serving to tourists and we stopped in.

Typical banchans--cucumber, kimchee.

Beef galbi hotpot for W7000.

Bibimbap for W6000.

2013 09 19

Bungeoppang

Checking off the items on our food list, we found bungeoppang, a pastry in the shape of a carp that was crispy on the outside and filled with warm red bean paste. We got 6 for W2000.

2013 09 19

Egg Toast

Another food on our list to try was egg toast. We found this one in Myeong-dong for W1000. It's sweet bread with a fried egg on top and tasted just as described.

2013 09 19

Chuseok

Chuseok is the harvest festival--the 15th day of the 8th month of the lunar calendar.

We received a Chuseok gift in our hotel room. These were rice cakes, traditional sweets eaten during the national holiday.

Full moon over Cheong-gye-cheon stream.

2013 09 19

War Memorial Museum

The War Memorial Museum memorializes the military history of Korea. In addition to exhibits, there are 4-D rides showing military battles. They're cheesy, subpar Disney rides. Outdoors, there are helicopters, planes, tanks and carriers on display. The museum is very impressive and it's free. It was open on Chuseok and is a nice place to go when it's hot outside.

Full scale model of turtle ships, which were used to defend the Japanese at the end of the 16^th century.

Outdoor exhibit with helicopters, planes, tanks and carriers

2013 09 19

Roasted Squid

After lunch, we found a guy selling roasted squid snack for W4000. He cranked them through a machine which stretched them and perforated them.

2013 09 19

Gimbap

We left Namsangol and found a restaurant just outside the park. 

Gimbap--W4000.

Tofu soup

Mandu--boiled dumplings for W4000.

2013 09 19

Namsangol Traditional Village

Near the base of the mountain, we veered off to Namsangol Traditional Village. We saw the Time Capsule and discovered that San Francisco is a sister city of Seoul, along with Honolulu, New York and Washington, DC.

The village with modern Seoul in the background.

At the village, there were traditional activities for Chuseok. It was packed full of people.

Display of traditional foods for Chuseok.

2013 09 19