I admit, there have been times when I've been tempted to go the tour bus route while on vacation. How nice it would be, I have mused, to have someone handle my baggage, feed me, lead me by the hand and interpret the way through a confusing maze of historical sites, museums, shopping districts and theme parks. If I ever get the urge again, slap me.
During our orientation period in Jeonju, we were treated to a day long field trip. A convoy of buses drove us to two significant sites, Hanok Village in Jeonju and Keumsan (Golden Mountain) Temple just south of Jeonju. The first site is an traditional Korean village composed of over 800 houses that have been renovated and maintained since the Joseon Dynasty, which began in 1392. The second is a Buddhist temple nestled on the side of Moak-san (mother peak mountain). Both are stunning sites to visit. Each would require a full day of touring on their own. Alas, that was not to be. We had only two hours at both sites.
Most of our time at Hanok Village was consumed with a fan decorating workshop. Go figure. What was left of our precious time was spent racing through the village trying to catch up with our interpreter. I took only two pictures within the village itself. Kinda like photographic grafitti...just to prove I was there. We had time to wander around and catch our breath at Keumsan Temple but there was no time to follow the trail up the mountain. The big shiny Buddha just sat there and laughed and laughed.
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