Gyeongbuk Uljin travel

I and my co-worker, we have really short summer break.

So..We decide to go somewhere we can do many things in one place.
And see the water.. Ocean, river, valley, waterfall.. it doesn’t matter …
We just wanted feel this is summer and we are on a vacation even though it is short term!!

I have heard that Uljin is pretty fun place to enjoy water and
there is cave which is very cool inside and Great Park, harbor...
This is not my first travel in Gyeongbuk. But travel with good company makes me always exciting!

 Wow  Uljin is very long continent.

 The rainy season has ended and the heat wave has hit the country.

 A green tree and wave in the ocean was beautiful.

 It is well-known for the setting of last year’s most famous Korean TV drama.

  After rainy season, the sky was clear and sun was shining. 

 The water was very clean and it was nice place to rest.

 Uljin has plenty of mountain, sea and valley.

Especially there is lots of rocky mountain. Look at these pictures.

 Here is Bulyeongsa valley.

The water in the valley has risen significantly due to the heavy rain.

 The forest and valley forms the great background of the scene.

 Here is the entrance Uljin city and there is also EXPO park picture too.

This is a rock called “Sarangbawi rocks”

It looks like two people hug each other.

It has sad family story so that this two people is not a couple, it is sister and brother.

 Here is the legend of love rocks. ( Sarangbawi)

Long Ago there lived an orpaned brother and sister who made their meager way foraging for medicinal herbs in the Buryeong-sa valley below Tonggo-san. One night the two were visited in their dreams by a spirit who told them the King of the heavens was very ill, and he could only be cured by samjiguyeopcho (a type of korean barberry), a rare herb found in the valley - the spirits had looked for the herb but goats had eaten all but those growing on the high cliffs, which none dared to climb - if the children would go up there and get the plant a great prize awaited.

For three days the children prayed before heading off up the cliff, they reached the top seven difficult days later and found the plant growing on the edge. Naturally excited the brother ran to the edge to grab the plant and in the process slipped falling to his death. The sister mourned his loss for 3days and nights before throwing herself off the cliff to join her brother. From that day the valley was filled with the laments of the pair, which eventually reached the spirit. The spirit turned the pair into two rocks closly embracing so they should never face the agony of seperation. The mountain above the valley was named Tonggo-san (from Tonggok Mountain of lamentation) and the pine trees stained with their blood became a species known as Uljin Pines, whose bark and wood are both reddish.

Nowadays lovers come to the rock to pray for eternal love which many believe the rock has the power to grant and drinking samjiguyeopcho is said to do wonders to the fertility of prospective parents and aide in their conjugal harmony - it might at the very least get the ball rolling anyway as its usually soaked in liquor.

 The total length of Buryeongsa valley is 15km. It’s very long.

 A couple was dating in the valley.  

 Buryeongsa valley’s grounds are flat and not deep.

We dived into the water to cool off.! Water was really clear and cool.

 There was also camping ground near this valley.

We cooled off from the heat with a refreshing swim.

And got hungry.

We decide to eat Kal noodle which is my favorite Korean noodle!

Since the Uljin is famous for kingcrab, there is crab in soup.

I just love this noodle more than words can express!

Now my mouth’s watering……It is 5 stars!!

After a great dinner, we took a walk around area.

This is the drama set place.
A house was so pretty.
I thought I wonder if I will ever live in such a house some day.

 The lights of the house at night make for a fantastic view~

 This location where another TV drama was filmed had become popular tourist spots.

This is called “Uljin Hangguk-ri dropping pine tree”.

This pine tree is a rare breed.
And this tree is estimated to be at least 300 years old.

This tree has beautiful shape and very big.
I can see this tree has survived for long years.

Uljin is also known for bamboo and kingcrab.

We head for Bongpyeong beach~.
There are a few more beach as Mangyang, Goosan and Hupo.

Bongpyeong beach was picked by me~~

The water was so clear and clean.
It might little too early to swim in the ocean?

 The sea was quite because it’s still early I guess.

 After the beach we head for Seongnyugul cave.

In summer, it only opens until 7:00pm. So we should be there the latest by 6!

Seongnyugul Cave in Uljin is near the valley of Bulyeongsa Temple and
this cave is composed of limestones and tinged with grey, orange and white.

In the cave, there is a big water pool so it is much moisten and its inside temperature is 14.7。C.

According to the legend, it has been said that during the Hideyoshi's Invasion of Korea 500 of inhabitants hide themselves in this cave but they were all suffocated to death because Japanese army blocked its entrance. In the cave, there are 9 pools without water, 3 waterpools which are 4∼5 meters deep, stalactites hanging from the roof of the cave which look like icicles, stalagmites coming up from the floor of a cave formed by drops from a stalactite, stone pillars formed by getting connected of both creations and various cave creations.

 The temperature of cave never changes between 15 and 17 degrees all year.

Inside was really chilly.

There are a lot of amazing shapes.

Our next destination was right here.
Bibim naengmyeon restaurant!!

This noodle was also very good but a bit spicy to me.

This travel, I enjoyed my eyes and mouth big time~

Gyeongbuk is always great place to have pleasant!!

If you have a chance to look around Gyeongbuk, Uljin is the place you must enjoy!!

[Gyungbuk Sangjoo] Gyungchun-dae + Joongang market

It is been a long time to see sunshine.

More than 2 weeks, has been raining and I start to sick of rain even if I love raining day very much. Anyway,
I did not want to stay in the house.

I decided to head for Gyeongbuk by myself.

I took a bus to get Gyeongcheon-dae.

Since I was starving, I had a lunch as soon as I reach there.

This is Yeolmoo-Kimchi noodle which I love it! It was a bit spicy but great.

I arrived at Kyongchondae bus station. There are not many buses..
So I should check the bus schedule. T
here are two buses for back to the city, 3:15pm and 5:25pm.

Gyeongcheondae Terrace is said to be the most beautiful spot along the nearly 510km-long Nakdonggang River.
Gyeongcheondae Terrace, with its sheer cliff walls and scenic landscape, is imbued with a sense of serene mystery and harmony.
It has also been called Jacheondae.

It is located above Muujeong Pavilion, which was built during the Joseon Period.
In Gyeongcheondae, you will find Yongso Pond, which has a legend concerning a general who died during the Imjinwaeran
(the Japanese invasion of Korea in 1592) and an ancient manger.

Gyeongcheondae Terrace offers a spectacular view of the winding Nakdonggang River and beautiful rock formations peeking through the pine trees’ branches. It features an observatory, an artificial waterfall, Gyeongcheondae Children’s Land, and campsites and is the location of the mega-hit TV series, ‘Sangdo.’

There was a walk trail go along the river.
It would have been nice if was with someone. Maybe next time?

This is a small amusement park for kid.

Nice road to walk.

There were lots of stone tower.
I have heard that People make a wish when it piling stones on the top.
They believe if this is well saved, dreams come true.
So I also make a tower with my secret wishes.
Hopefully it’s going to happen!!

Wooh~ nice statue…… Looks like enemy….

 There are lots of stone towers.

This road is made by yellow soil.
I walked on the yellow soil with naked feet.

It was fun and I liked the feeling.

 What a beautiful flower. ~

I climbed to the top of the steps.
They said that the step number was 333.

Wow. It was good exercise.

I got to the observatory!!
It was not easy to get to here but I felt so great.

This is Nakdong River. There is a great view from the lookout.

This marvelous scenery from Gyeongcheondae proves that those praises and reputations of this exceptional view were not all exaggerated accounts. Besides a beach, an observatory, kids playground, and camp site equipped with convenience facilities make you enjoye the time with your family.

At Gyeongcheondae, pine trees are thickly covering a cliff that is standing high toward the sky, and on the other side, the golden sands is spread through which a blue and green river runs. 

There was a small pavilion on the top of the hill.

People were playing Korean card which is Go-stop!!
They seems having a good time ~

 Old men were getting together and spend relaxing time

I really like to look around local market. So wherever I go I always stop by market.
There was a Sangjoo market near Gyeongcheon-dae.
I decide to go there and took a look.

Here is Sangjoo central market.
There is traditional 5 days market every 2^nd and 7^th on month.
Since today is not the day it was very quiet.

Here is the local street market.

The price was cheap and you can even deal. This is the thing I really like Korea local market.
People are so nice and good as always.

The end of the day, it was raining hard…

Although it is a short day trip, I found pretty nice spot to see and enjoy.
Once, when my friend is coming to Korea, I would come with my friend again.