My travel companion is unwell so I’m on my own for the temple by the sea, a must see in Busan. Should be simple, right?
As usual I have done very little preparation or research for my two weeks in Korea and in fact, when Kate proposed the trip, that was my only condition for coming along, that I was not to be involved in any of the planning. In travel at least, I am a follower.
On arrival I noticed immediately that Google Maps wasn’t working properly and when I met up with Lisa and Kate at our accommodation they informed me that Google and Apple Maps aren’t supported here. No biggie I thought because there are numerous alternatives that my companions had both downloaded. As I was going to be with them all the time, I didn’t see the need to download something myself and so the first week of the trip proceeded without event with one or both of my fellow trippers leading me along.
When Kate and I arrived in Busan she was already under the weather. Lisa had already returned to Perth. So the next day, I left her in the hotel and went to find the temple. Google Maps still works for public transport but has no direct guidance for anything else including walking to and from the train station or bus stop. However the Haedong Yonggungsa Temple is a big tourist attraction on the sea so hard to miss. Miss it, however, I did!
I got off the bus a stop early due to the approximations I was making with a less than sufficient map app. I couldn’t see a hint of ocean anywhere so had to use the app to try and work it out. I must be close after all, I thought. As soon as I hit the ocean, I’ll see the temple and can enjoy a pleasant walk to reach it.
On arriving at the ocean there was no sign of a temple anywhere but there was a peninsula. I was clearly on the wrong side. I’ll just walk around the rocky beach and I’ll be there!
So I set out, fearless in my quest to find the sacred place upon the sea. Initially there were signs I was on the right track. People had definitely been here before.
I was enjoying clambering along the rocks. I saw crabs and fishermen and flotsam and jetsam. I found signs of a long journey ahead but chose to ignore them being the pragmatist that I am.
After about half an hour of making my way around the coast, still with no temple in sight, I came across the last fisherman.
This bolstered my hope of continuing along the same path however just beyond him was a place where the water came up against a sheer face of stone. I would have to swim to reach the other side and I wasn’t in my quick drying pants. I had recently passed an entry to the rocky beach from above so I back tracked to reach it and ascended into the bush.
The path was less a path and more a track but it seemed to be running parallel to the coast in the direction I needed to go. It clearly was not regularly traversed but there was the occasional evidence of human activity.
As I kept trudging along, the path narrowing, me getting sweatier and more red faced, it became harder and harder to remain optimistic. After another hour of walking, without seeing another soul, a few negative niggles began to drift into my inner monologue.
What if I get to the other side of the peninsula and the temple isn’t there? What if the path terminated in a dead end? What if I pass out from dehydration or hunger? What if I tread on a snake and get bitten?
And then the path opened up into a grassed area and in the distance, further along the coast I could see a genuine path with railings! That must be the temple. Hurrah!
On the other side of the grass, the path widened to accommodate vehicles. This must be it. I must be close to a real road! I continued along the vehicle track with renewed vigour and all my negative thoughts dissipated.
Until…
Disaster!
There was no way around the gate, just sheer rock on each side. It was too tall for me to climb over but there was enough room for me to belly crawl under. I dropped my pants and copped a squat to relieve myself while contemplating my options.
To get under the fence I would need to wriggle along the ground. I’m already dripping with sweat. If I ever do reach the temple, would I feel comfortable walking through a sacred site completely filthy with dust and dirt? There is no guarantee there isn’t more locked gates, angry guard dogs and startled men prepared to yell at me in a foreign language on the other side. The alternative is to go back but I’ve been walking 90 minutes and that also seemed daunting! What to do? Then I remembered that about ten minutes ago I passed a branch in the path that was a steep turn deeper into the bush. May be that goes somewhere? With the decision made I stood up, pulled my pants up and back tracked to the branch.
The path I found was neither a path nor a track. I think it was the route of least resistance for water to run down the cliffside when it rained. There were many saplings lining the route which I used to pull myself up. I started to contemplate the foolishness of my endeavour. If I fell, there was nothing to stop me continuing down the steep hillside. I could break a leg or hit my head and there was no one around to help me. It was a bit dangerous. I took a moment to rest and received a text from Kate. I sent her a map shot so emergency services would at least have a place to begin!
I climbed higher and higher until I reached the top and the track completely disappeared. At this point I was truly bushwhacking my way through Busan!
After about ten minutes of this I saw a sign and headed towards it. The sign was on a genuine path. I forged on and just a few minutes later I had a glimpse of a shimmering oasis through the trees! Could it be what I hoped?
I quickened my pace in excitement. Yes! The temple car park! What a relief!
And here’s some shots of the temple. I didn’t take many because this part of the story, you can Google. That search app works in Korea too!
Just in case you are foolish enough to want to follow in my footsteps or more likely, avoid them, here is the path (in green) I took to the temple.
