LIFE ON 'THE PENN': Flashback: Silla Dynasty

Sokkuram Grotto.

We went to Gyeongju (or Kyongju) this weekend to see the sights. And boy do they have sights! I think you could live there for years and not take it all in. Gyeongju was the capital city of the Silla (or Shilla) Dynasty for almost 1000 years. The city and surrounding area is covered in historic sites built by the Silla, many of them designated "World Cultural Heritage" sites by UNESCO. Gyeongju is called "a museum without walls". Even without the history it is a beautiful area.

Its crowning glory is Bulguksa Temple (above). It has existed since 528, although all the wooden structures were burned down in 1593 by the Japanese. (Note 1: The Japanese invaded and apparently ravaged Korea in past history. The Koreans hate the Japanese [and vice versa] and many things are blamed on them. Whether they are all true or not one can only guess.) The most admired part of this complex are the stone stairs, called bridges. (I don't know why.) There are two 'bridges' each comprised of two staircases. They are: Chongun Gyo, Paegun Gyo, Yonhwa Gyo, and Chilbo Gyo. They still exist with their original stones from 1200 years ago. Therefore, you are not allowed to walk on them. The below is Yonhwa & Chilbo Gyo. (Sorry, I couldn't rotate for some reason.)

Besides the temple the setting is just beautiful. Even with the crowds it seemed like such a peaceful place. We were there I think at the peak of fall foliage beauty and it was simply gorgeous. There are two famous and historical pagodas here also. Tabotap was covered in scaffolding and such for repair. It is also featured on Korean coins. The one pictured here is called Sokkatap.

This is a large temple complex, but I won't bore you too much! I'll just post a couple more pictures...

Another Buddhist site we visited was Sokkuram (or Seokguram) Grotto. It was built around 751 (the two books I bought have different years) and from what I understand still exists almost exactly as it was except for some structural reinforcement. (Note 2: I'm not sure how much I read is the whole truth and nothing but and how much is braggadocio.) The inside of the grotto contains carved stone statues pertaining to Buddhism and as I don't know or understand much I'm not going to try to explain. But apparently all this stone encased in this grotto building suffered no deterioration from humidity for over 1200 years due to the Silla's "scientific and architectural genius". They blame the ensuing deterioration on the Japanese effort to reinforce the structure in the early 1900's. (Remember note 1?) You are not allowed to take pictures of the inside so if you want to see you'll have to google it. It's worth a look. Once again, irregardless of the grotto temple and Buddhist statues the setting is phenomenal. It's set near the top of the mountain and the trail you walk up is lined with the beautiful fall foliage and rocky cliff sides. It was really magnificent. In the first picture below, the building on the left farther up is the grotto temple; the other on the right is the souvenir/snack shop - yes, even at super old "world heritage culture" historical treasure sites capitalism thrives! In the picture of Carrie & me the building behind us is the grotto.