Haeinsa Temple and the Tripitaka Koreana

Julio Moreno South Korea, UNESCO World Heritage Site , , , , , , , 0 Comment
Haeinsa Temple and the Tripitaka Koreana
One of the oldest temples in Korea that has never been destroyed by invasion. Visited June, 2012
One of the oldest temples in Korea that has never been destroyed by invasion. Visited June, 2012
Visited: June, 2012
Background and Opinion:
The Temple of Haein (‘sa’ means ‘temple’) is probably the most important Buddhist temple in all of Korea. It is located within the surprisingly scenic Gayansan National Park. While very famous among Koreans, it’s lack of international prestige is appalling, since it contains the Tripitaka Koreana. It is an amazing artifact, and uncharacteristic of Korean treasures by being original and not a rebuilt replica. It is a set of over 80,000 woodblocks that are the oldest known complete and flawless  Buddhist Sutra, scriptures which serve as a guide to the Buddhist way of life. The only downside of this site is that photos of the Tripitaka Koreana itself are not allowed.
One great, additional activity to do is a “temple stay,” where you practice the customs of monks for a full day. This temple is perfect to combine that experience with visiting this UNESCO world heritage site.

One note I must make (for backpackers that travel with everything you own) is that Haeinsa is a good three km (1.6 miles) from the bus stop out of Daegu. This means you have to hike a good while uphill to even get into the temple, so be prepared to sweat a little. In my opinion, it adds to the feeling of accomplishment if you had to work for it.Haein Temple (Haeinsa) was constructed in 802 AD by followers of Korean Buddhism (Zen Buddhism). The land surrounding Haeinsa was awarded to the temple which has an additional 20 satellite temples (one of them pictured below). Currently the land is co-owned by Haeinsa and the Korean Government. In 1236, work began to make the Tripitaka to be copied and replicated for others to read. This ‘sutra‘ which is analogous to a Christian bible, was carved by hand in over eighty thousand wooden blocks, with over 50 million Chinese characters (hanja), as it predated the invention of the Korean alphabet (hangeul). Since it is the oldest known ‘sutra’ to be intact and flawless, it is essentially the oldest known version of the ‘Buddhist bible’ to again borrow the Christian comparison.

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Gyeongju Historic Areas

Julio Moreno South Korea, UNESCO World Heritage Site , , , , , 0 Comment
Gyeongju Historic Areas

This pond is in the very middle of the historical center. When it was drained, so many relics were found that a museum was created to hold them all.

Location: Gyeongju, South Korea
Visited:
March, 2011
September, 2010

Background and Opinion:
The Historical City of Gyeongju is a nice city, with historical sites that include the oldest observatory in Asia, an ancient ice storage, Shilla tombs, and Buddhist temples. It is one of the best places to go to if you like Korean history. With that said, it also suffers from being possibly the most overrated place in South Korea. While it’s definitely worth seeing, it’s revered as a very beautiful ancient city with ancient Shilla (the old Korean Kingdom) buildings. In reality, besides the artifacts I just mentioned, it’s just like any other Korean town. In addition, sites like the Anapji Pond are not original as they have been destroyed in past Japanese invasions.

Gyeongju was founded around the first century BC. When it unified the three major kingdoms on the Korean peninsula, it became the first, truly unified Korean state (The Shilla Kingdom) which continued to prosper well into 1000 AD. The ruling clan at the time was named “Park” (박), the source of that surname. The “Silla Kim” clan was also very powerful, which accounts for 1/3 of all people with the surname “Kim” (김) (currently distinguished as “Gyeongju Kim”).

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Top 5 Signs that Traveling is NOT for You!

Julio Moreno Travel Tips , , , 3 Comments

Everyone loves traveling right? Wrong! It has been my experience that everyone is pressured into thinking they SHOULD like traveling, even if they don’t. The pressure is so great in fact, that we are raised to consider it one of those things that everyone should do, along with working, having friends, or being attracted to someone (man or woman). Traveling, however, is not something you need to survive and some people are quite happy staying in their town (or country) for the rest of their lives. If you think about it, the average human didn’t really have the resources to move around as much as we do today, so you could consider that the more ‘normal’ thing to do. This is a list of traits or actions I believe are inherit to someone who really doesn’t like to travel (even if they say they do). This isn’t meant to offend anyone, as I understand that just like Metallica is not for me, traveling might not be for you.

(Note: This is my first post under the new domain “travelworldheritage.com” so I am pretty excited.)

#5 You Will Only Stay in a Fancy Resort

Five Star Hotel

As I covered in my “Top 10 Overrated Things to do While Traveling” this is a complete waste of money. However, that is my opinion and I think I understand why a lot of people do it. Sure, I have heard the argument that “you need to relax sometimes,” but some people cannot travel without staying in a fancy hotel. This is an attempt to take the safety of your home with you, and maybe you are not the type to explore another culture.

(Picture note: Why is there a pool, if the hotel is in front of a beach?)

#4 You Travel to Countries Similar to Yours

British American Flag

I think the majority of readers will find this to be the most controversial entry on the list. Have you ever asked someone where they would like to visit more than anywhere in the world, and they tell you a Western European country? Now look, I don’t think there is anything wrong with Western Europe, nor do I think it is the same as the US. However, you must admit that it is the closest we can get in terms of similarity outside of America, besides Canada (but who says, “boy, I really wish I could visit Canada some day!”).

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Top 5 Korean Snacks, Street Foods, and Side Dishes You Should Definitely Try in South Korea pt.1

Julio Moreno Food Lists, Snacks, Street Foods, and Side Dishes , , , 2 Comments

This list is OUTDATED! I’ve combined all Korean Food lists into this single post.

When you go to Korea, you should eat as much as can possibly fit into your stomach. Having spent the last three years here, I eat Korean food on a daily basis. In that time, I have amassed a big list of favorite things to eat which I hope to share with everyone. Because I would like you to eat a lot in your travels here, I have separated main dishes and snacks into two separate posts for your consumption benefit. I hope you get fat with these amazing street foods and snacks when you come to Korea. You can find the first food related Korea post here.

#5 Pickled and Fermented Spicy Cabbage (I guess)/ Kimchi / 김치

Kimchi is the signature side dish in Korea. Cabbage is cleaned and filled with salt to draw out the water (watch the video). Then, it is prepared with a red paste and left to ferment for weeks, months, or longer. Kimchi, much like wine, apparently gets better with age. It is also quite expensive to buy prepared in stores, as they can go for about 9,000 won ($8.50 USD) a kilo (2.2 lbs for you Americans that can’t convert). Because of this, many people make kimchi for the rest of the year sometime in September or October when the cabbage is cheapest and store it in specifically designed “kimchi refrigerators” (I’m not joking). As Koreans eat kimchi with anything, you won’t have trouble finding it at any “kimbap restaurant” or pretty much anywhere.

So, if it is the signature side dish, why is it ranked so low? Because it is overrated (at least for my foreigner taste buds). Have you ever woken up one day and thought, “man, I really want to have some cabbage today!” No, no one outside of Korea has ever thought of that because cabbage is a very average (or below) vegetable. I do like cabbage sometimes and I do recommend that you try kimchi once, but it is not the be-all and end-all of Korean cuisine. There are many snacks that taste better. In fact, I recommend kimchi more for its cultural impact on Korean people, than its actual taste. Besides, it will be free with most meals, so just try it.

If you are more familiar with Korean cuisine, it might be prudent to add that there is not just one kind of kimchi. There are actually more than twenty kinds which can be found at any large super market if you want to sample them all. For the purposes of this article, kimchi will mean the most common type of Korean kimchi (the red cabbage one).

Related Articles / Links on other Sites:

1) Best Kimchi (To be honest, kimchi is found with ANY meal, but this ppyeohaejangguk place has my favorite kimchi)

Related Articles / Useful links on This Site:

1) Best Korean Main Course Dishes pt.1

2) Evaluation: King Sejong Tomb in Korea [UNESCO World Heritage Site]

3) Three Things to do in Southern Seoul

4) Three More Things to do in Southern Seoul

#4 Chicken Skewers / Dak Kochi / 닭 꼬치

Dak Kochi

The idea is very simple: Grill some chicken and some green onions on a stick and put some sauce on it, but it is still very delicious. In many of the markets or shopping centers in Korea, you will see people selling Dak Kochi on the street. While many are out year round, you can see them especially in the late fall or early spring when it is just warm enough to be outside at night. They are a great street food, and the vendors are usually some of the friendliest people around. They cost about 2000 won each ($1.80 USD) so grab one to hold you over until your next big meal!

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Top 5 Korean Foods (Main Course) You Should Definitely Try in South Korea pt.1

Julio Moreno Food Lists, Main Dishes 0 Comment

This list is OUTDATED! I’ve combined all Korean Food lists into this single post.


For those of you who like to try different cuisines while traveling, there is good news: Korean food is awesome, cheap (mostly), and plentiful. Korean food is not limited to the “Korean BBQ” that you find in Los Angeles, which is actually a Korean-American adaptation that Koreans call “LA Galbi.” Korean food includes soups, seafood, grilled meats, and much more.

Here are five things you should definitely try if you find yourself in South Korea anytime soon. In this list, I have only included main dishes, but will make another list about snacks or side dishes soon. If I know some good places, I also suggested them after each entry, and put the name (often just a description) in English, Romanized Korean (how it sounds), and Korean characters (for you to point at when ordering) at the top of each entry.

#5 Tuna Rice Roll / Chamchi Kimbap / 참치 김밥

Tuna Kimbap

Kimbap is usually made with rice, radish, many vegetables, a strip of ham, and your chosen extra (in this case, tuna) wrapped around in a seaweed leaf. It is then rolled (like sushi) and cut into cylinder slices (like sushi). One roll is usually enough to fill you up as it has a lot of rice, but get two if you are really hungry, no one will think less of you.

Kimbap comes in many forms including: vegetable, tuna, cheese, kimchi, and many others that are more unusual . Kimbap restaurants are the Korean equivalent of a fast food joint in America. You can see them anywhere in Korea, “Kimbap / 김밥,” in big neon signs. While most look appetizing, the tuna variety is by far the best. In fact, I don’t even remember the last time I had a non-tuna kimbap. Kimbap is also one of those sensitive foods that if done wrong, tastes terrible. Don’t be disappointed if you get a bad one. At less than 3,000 Won (under $2.80 USD), it is worth trying again and again until you get a good one.

Related Articles / Useful links on Other Sites:

1) Location of the absolute best chamchi kimbap place period (Zoom out to see the map)

Related Articles / Useful links on This Site:

1) Evaluation: King Sejong Tomb in Korea [UNESCO World Heritage Site]

2) Three Things to do in Southern Seoul

3) Three More Things to do in Southern Seoul

#4 Marinated Pork mixed with Rice / Jeyukdeopbap / 제육덮밥

Jeyukdeopbap

This is another one of those meals that taste amazing if done right, or average at best if done wrong. Jeyukdeopbap is a thin sliced pork marinated in a red or orange sauce with onions and a few other vegetables. It usually comes as a set of meat in its juices on one side, and a slab of rice on the other. When you mix the two, it tastes like a curry with a fantastic pork flavor. While it is not spicy, the sauce can be very flavorful and salty to give the whole meal a richer taste. It is usually around 5000 Won ( $4.50 USD) at most restaurants and will definitely fill you up.

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