Day 244: Haedong Yonggungsa Temple

Today we visited the Haedong Yonggungsa Buddhist Temple, which is a rare temple along the coastline (most are in the mountains). We opted for a 54 minute taxi ride to see the city and coast. The Busan views included major port harbors, huge sky scrapers, and we went over two bridges.

The temple was completed in the 1930’s and it honors Haesu Gwaneum Daebul, the Sea Goddess Buddha of Mercy. There are several points of interest including descending 108 steps, a row of 12 inch high zodiac characters, a 7 story pagoda to pray against car accidents, and of course tons of Buddha statues. We could take off our shoes and enter the temple, and we admired the incredible paintings/decorations.

After visiting the temple, we walked along the coast and made an impromptu stop at the National Institute of Fisheries Science Museum, informing visitors on fishing techniques, aquaculture, and how to sustainably fish. The museum included an aquarium and there was a participation zone at the end with the doctor fish (the fish that will eat dead skin cells for exfoliation!!) We rode public transportation to get home on a 1.5 hour ride.

For dinner, we visited the Jagalchi fish market pretty late. Stall owners were packing up, so we picked our fish quickly and ran upstairs for the restaurant to cook it. It was a lot of fun and we plan to return tomorrow.

Food:
Spicy Pork Stew
King Crab
Seafood Stew

Spots:
Haedong Yonggungsa Buddhist Temple
Jagalchi Fish MarketRead more