First Timer in Busan - Day 2 韩国自由行

On day 2 in Busan, I went to Haedong Yonggungsa Temple, Gukje market, and Yongdusan Park (Busan Tower).
在釜山的第二天，我一個人去了海東龍宮寺，國際市場，以及龍頭山公園 (釜山塔)。

Yonggungsa (Dragon Palace Temple) is situated on the eastern side of Busan. It is one of the must visit places in Busan. What’s special about this temple is that it’s situated next to the sea. When believers pray to Avalokitasvara, they can feel the true meaning of the Buddhist phrase “The sea of suffering has no bounds. Turn around to the shore. ”.
海東龍宮寺在釜山東方海邊，是釜山的必遊景點之一。這座寺廟特殊的地方在於它蓋在海邊。信徒朝拜觀世音菩薩時，可以感受苦海無邊，回頭是岸這句話的深意。

You can reach this place via bus. I used Google Maps to find out the bus route and times. After you get off the bus, there are clear signs to guide you. The road to the temple has many cherry blossoms. That’s the good thing about going to Korea in April, you can see cherry blossoms while visiting tourist destinations. They look good every time.
這個地方坐公車就可以到達。我用Google Map找到公車路線。下車後，往龍宮寺走，沿路櫻花綻放。四月到韓國旅遊的好處就是可以順道賞櫻，百看不厭。

After walking for approximately 10 minutes, you will see a statue of a turtle carrying a big rock on the back. The word Yonggungsa is engraved on the rock, as well as the religious symbol for prosperity. This turtle reminds me of the giant turtle at Ming Xiaoling Mausoleum in Nanjing, China.
走了十幾分鐘後，會看到一隻石龜，背負一塊大石頭，上刻龍宮寺韓文和紅色佛教萬字。這讓我想起一年多前到南京明孝陵旅遊時看到的石龜。

In front of the temple there are some street food stalls. Some warm pastries on a cold day.
寺廟前有些小吃店，冷天還有燒餅可以吃。

Keep going forward and you will see the statues of the twelve zodiac figures. Each of the twelve Chinese zodiac signs (rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, sheep, monkey, rooster, dog, pig) has a corresponding deity. Each deity has a human body but an animal face.
再走一陣子會看到十二生肖守護神的雕像。每一個生肖都有一個雕像。每一個雕像都是動物的頭接在人的身體上。

This is the Ox deity. 這是牛神的雕像

This is the rat deity. 這是鼠神的雕像。

And I finally arrive at the Yonggungsa Temple. 接下來就到了龍宮寺。

On the top right you can see the 10 metre high statue of Avalokitasvara. 右上角有十公尺高的觀世音菩薩雕像。

The golden statue is Ksitigarbha. 金色的佛像是地藏王菩薩。

After Yonggungsa, I caught the bus to Gukje market. This trip takes about an hour and requires a bus transfer in between. Shortly after I arrived, i saw this 32cm long ice cream.
看完龍宮寺後，我坐公車去國際市場。從龍宮寺到國際市場要轉車，差不多一小時路程。
剛到國際市場，就看到這個長32公分的冰淇淋。

Gukje market has plenty of clothing stores. If you love Korean fashion, you should come have a look. Personally I don’t buy a lot of clothes, I did think about it though.
國際市場很多服裝店。喜歡韓風時尚的朋友可以來看看。我不常買衣服，但我當時有點想買。

I spent 40,000 KRW here to buy a 50cm tall suitcase. When the shop owner initially told me the price, I thought he said 30,000 instead of 40,000 because they sound very similar in Korean. Don’t get it mixed up. Although, it is still super cheap, as I saw something similar in Australia lately for double the price.
我在這裡花了40,000韓幣(236人民幣) 買了一個五十公分高的行李箱。40,000跟30,000韓語聽起來很像。千萬別搞錯了。但還是超便宜，如果在澳洲要兩倍的價錢。

You probably thought Busan was a quiet town with nobody around. Not this place. There were plenty of people here. This is the BIFF (Busan International Film Festival) Square. Other than movie theatres, it has all types of recreational shops, fashion stores as well as places to eat. There were people everywhere. You can see some cool architectural designs and signs for the Busan International Film Festival. They have moved the location of the festival to Haeundae, but this remains a good place to visit.
這個地方是BIFF (Busan International Film Festival 釜山國際電影節)廣場。除了電影院外，吃喝玩樂的店都有。以前每年會在這裡舉行釜山國際電影節，但現在場地已經移到海雲台。

After you have shopped around for a bit, use Google Maps to find the entrance to Yongdusan Park. You should be able to get here within a few minutes of walking.
逛了一陣子後，用Google Maps找到龍頭山公園的入口。從國際市場走幾分鐘路就可以到。

It’s obvious where you’re heading, just look for the tall Busan Tower. 路標很明顯，只要看到高高的釜山塔就是了。

You will have to climb a bit to get to the top. Maybe I shouldn’t have bought the suit case.. 要爬坡才能走到塔前。剛剛真不應該買行李箱。

Finally at the top of Yongdusan where the Busan Tower is. Climbing Yongdusan was a bit easier than Namsan in Seoul. 終於爬到山頂，看到釜山塔。爬這座山比首爾南山容易些。

Just in front of Busan Tower there stands the statue of Yi Sun Shin, a famous Joseon general from 400 odd years ago. He defeated the Japanese navy of 133 ships with just 13 ships.
塔下面有四百多年前朝鮮時期名將李舜臣的雕像。他曾率領13艘戰船打敗日軍133艘戰船。

bottom of tower.JPG