Nic Trips

  The Seoul Lantern festival was started in 2009 and is an annual festival held in November along the manmade stream Cheonggyecheon (청계천). It lasts two weeks and brightens the stream with it's paper lanterns of various sizes and styles. It runs the 1.9 km stretch from Cheonggye Plaza to Supyo Bridge. Each year, the 4 sections of the festival will be currated according to the various theme chosen that year. The 2015 festival that I attended had themes as follows: Theme 1: Amazing World heritage in Seoul Theme 2: From local governments and overseas invitation Theme 3: Corporation and the character Theme 4: Light Art author show The pictures below were taken from my favorite section: the world heritage theme. Here there were first many lanterns depicting the famous things or places of Korea, then there were a few lanterns to represent other countries... Japan's Lantern India and China's Lantern USA's Lantern The lantern above depicted a common...

Cheomseongdae (첨성대) is the oldest astronomical observatory in East Asia. It has been dated to the 7th century, during the Silla Period, whose capital was Seorabeol (now Gyeongju). Cheomseongdae means "star-gazing platform". The tower is 5.7 meters wide and 9.4 meters tall. The site of the main palace, called Banwolseong (반월성) (literally meaning "half moon fortress"), at Silla's capital in Gyeongju is currently just an archeological site. However, one part of the palace grounds was restored from 1986-1975: Donggung Palace (동궁). It was originally constructed in 674 and consisted of Imhaejeon (임해전), which was the crown prince's palace and quarters, and Anapji Pond. Though there used to be 5 pavillions built around the outskirts of the beautiful pond, only 3 were remade during the reconstruction project. The are believe to have been used for parties or gatherings headed by the kind or crown prince. Now, Anapji Pond is a favorite visiting site a...

One of the other popular sites to see in Gyeongju are the Royal Tombs of the Silla (시라) Era. Filling the area just south of Gyeongju is a park full of the dirt mounds marking the burial sites of members of the royal family. Most of the tombs are signified by stone markers, like the one pictured below. Although several of the tombs are in an open, public park, most of them reside inside the Daereungwon Tomb Complex. It has an entrance fee of a few thousand won, but the scenery inside is wonderful. The main view point of the complex is Cheonmachong (천마총). This is the tomb of an unknown king that was excavated in 1973 and rebuild with an entrance to allow viewers inside. This way people could learn more about the construction of the tombs. In the typicall Silla style, the center is consrtucted of a wooden-lined chamber that runs east to west. This chamber is then covered in a thick layer of boulders and stones before being smoothed over with a thinner layer of dirt/earth on t...

Less than an hour bus ride north of Ulsan, just southeast of Gyeongju is Bulguksa (불국사). This temple is one of the most famous of Korea. I've been here many times now, in all seasons, but the colors of fall are by far the most beautiful. Bulguksa is located on the side of Toham Mountain (토함산). According to Wikipedia... " It is a head temple of the  Jogye Order  of  Korean Buddhism  and encompasses seven  National treasures of South Korea , including  Dabotap  and Seokgatap  stone pagodas, Cheongun-gyo (Blue Cloud Bridge), and two gilt-bronze statues of Buddha. The temple is classified as  Historic and Scenic Site No. 1  by the South Korean government." Bulguksa is home to two stone towers, or stone pagodas, which stand in the main courtyard of the temple. Above is Dabotap (다보탑). The other is Seokgatab (석가탑), but it is currently being restored. Bulguksa has been restored and repaired after many damaging incidents over th...

Changdeokgung Palace (창덕궁) is one of the "Five Grand Palaces" of the Joseon Dynasty in Korea. Its is located in Seoul, not very far to the east of Gyeongbokgung. It is sometimes called the "East Palace". This palace in particular is most famous for its gardens and the way the buildings seem to come out of the landscape, being part of the environment around them. Picture above is the main gate of the palace, Donhwamun (돈화문). It is the largest of all the palace gates. It was burnt down in 1592 with the Japanese invasion and restored in 1608. Behind the main ground of the palace is the Huwon (후원), the rear garden. It is 78 acres, and home to over a hundred different species of trees, some of which are believe to be over 300 years old. Part of the garden was forbidden to any other officials or visitors without the King's permission. This area was called the Geumwon (금원), the "forbidden garden", or more commonly today, Biwon (비원) "secret gard...

One of the great spots in Seoul to learn a lot about Korean history is the War Memorial ( 전쟁기념관) . The building was opened to the public in 1994 and includes a large outdoor exhibition area which is home to many statues and monuments. Pictured above is the Memorial Hall building. To the right of the building, you can see Namsan mountain and N Seoul Tower. The tall statue directly in front of the courtyard is the Korean War Monument. On either side there are statues of soldiers. Beyond these statues are placques to commemorate all of the 21 countries that assisted South Korea during the war. Next to the car entrance to the memorial is the Statue of Brothers (pictured above). It depicts two brothers (from opposing sides) meeting on the battlefield. On the left, the older brother is a South Korean soldier. On the right, the younger brother is fighting for North Korea. The two are meeting over the crack that has torn the country apart and embracing to express "reconciliat...