A good night sleep and wake up on a sunny
'Sunday'! Had an egg tart and with a cup of white coffee; I am ready to share
my stories on Day 3 of my visit to Seoul, Korea.
DAY 3: 23/11/12 (FRIDAY) - Part 2/3
After around 1 hour bus journey from our Resort (Sorak Daemyung Resort), we
have reached the main entrance of Seoraksan National Park (NaeSeorak - 설악산국립공원 - 내설악),
one of the designated District of Biosphere Preservation by UNESCO since 1982.
It was a rainy day all the way from our resort to the national park.
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| From the time we got out from the bus, we can see non-stop
amazing scenery...the true beauty of NATURE!!! |
Since it was raining, first thing that Melvin
(our tour guide) did was to bring us to a stall near the entrance where we bought two disposable rain coat for 5,000won (RM15). Glad that we bought it at
the very beginning of our visit to the national park as the rain did not
stopped and later, it was snowing.
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| All set and we are ready to go! - Main Entrance Gate |
We walked to the main entrance gate after we got
ready with our waterproof coat. It was really freezing at that time because
according to Melvin, the winter came early this year. Plus it was raining that
day, it is so cold that you just feel like keep walking...Once we entered to
the park, we proceed to the cable car station to go up to the peak. The cable
car will take about 5 minutes and another option is to walk to the peak, which
will take around 3 hours. So, took the cable car 'Smart!'
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| At the cable car station |
On
the way up in the cable car, we saw a change of scene, from raining to
snowing. Everyone was so excited when it started snowing...it was so unreal,
just like a dream with the sights that was so perfect to be real!
 |
Within a few minutes, we saw the
mountain started to turn white, its snowing!!!!
|
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At 11.00am, we reached the peak!!! When we got
down from the cable car, everyone just keep saying one word 'snow'!!! Despite
of heavy snow falls and freaking freezing, everyone was amazed by the scenery
and can't stop walking around to take pictures. Kids were jumping around,
playing with snowballs, a real winter feeling.
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| At the peak, and still snowing.....! |
After
enjoying the fun and the beauty of the fantasy-like world, we took a break and
bought a hot chocolate for 3,500won (around RM10) to warm ourselves. Something
we found impressive is that they managed the tourist spots very well and staffs
were very polite. There were heater everywhere so you don't have to worry the
moment you enter the rest area.
Anyhow, we have to wake up from this fantasy and continue with our visits to
other parts of the national park. We then headed down from the peak after an
hour of excitement with snow. We took a walk to the Sinheungsa (Sinhungsa)
Temple, a head temple of the Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism. Along the way, we
saw a big buddha statue. Despite of the rain, we managed to take some pictures
along the way.
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| Some useful information: Historical accounts
vary as to whether this ancient Zen (Seon) temple was first constructed by
Jajang in 653, first called Hyangseongsa (Temple of Zen Buddhism), or in 637
following his return from Tang China. It burned to the ground in 699, was
rebuilt in 710, burned again in 1645 and was rebuilt in 1648 at its present
location by Uisang. This temple is believed to be the oldest Zen (Seon) temple
in the world."--Wikipedia. |
After having the honour to pay a visit to one of
the historical Buddism temple in the world, we then headed back to the bus.
Feel reluctant to leave this place because it is really a comfortable and
relaxing place to hang around. On our way to the bus, we got to see for the
last time, the great national park of Seoraksan. I just cannot imagine that
there are such beautiful place in the world that we are living in. Maybe we
have been living in the urban area for too long and forgot about the how the
real Earth looks like. While walking near to the bus, this scene got my
attention. My jaw dropped - wow!!!
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| No photo editing needed...the colour of nature! |
At last, very reluctantly but to say Good Bye to this amazing and
historical place. I wish I can come back again in the near future, maybe in
different seasons of the year. We left the national park at around 12.50pm and
proceed to lunch - Grilled Mackerel Fish. Our destination for lunch is just
about 20 minutes away from the national park. Stay with me for Day 3 part 3, to
see how does the mackerel fish looks (taste, if you can imagine that) like
...yummy!!!!
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