Samsung Castle

October 29, 2013

Samsung Castle

Samsunggung (삼성궁) was the last destination of my Gyeongnam (경남) trip. (People in korea tend to shorten the words of each province for convenience) Samsung Castle (gung means castle, in Korean) was established in 1983, paying homage to the three mythical founders of Korea.

As you may have noticed by now everything that you see in this area is constructed by rocks. It's quite amazing how these structures have held up considering they have been stacked from bottom up by rock formations.

A very serene looking stone statue. I hope this is what my face looks like when I'm sleeping.

A couple of Jangseungs resting beside each other.

The autumn foliage is is beginning. I should have posted this when I went on the trip three weeks ago... The foliage was just starting around this area. The foliage has reached Seoul city now so practically the whole country is turning bright yellow and orange with striking red colors.

The from down below, looking up at the pagoda was spectacular.

These stone stairs protruding out of the sides of the wall made me wonder how safe they were. I was surprised that it was able to hold my weight, along with the hundreds of other visitors that step by this area. It also reminded me of that one scene from the latest Batman movie with Bane. There was that one scene where that one child character jumps across the stairs that are protruding out from the walls.

There brown barrel like jars are called 항아리's. (Hangari). I couldn't find any links on Wikipedia so I wont be able to link any sources but I can tell you the basic function of these jars. These jars are basically used as containers for preserving kimchi, korean bean paste (된장,doenjang), soy sauce and various other food related articles. The three that I have stated are the most commonly stored foods. Koreans like their preserved foods but I wonder why they have on yet picked up on processing their own cheese. I'm not talking about that awful factory produced plastic cheese that you can get in any supermarket around the cities.

This guy was supposedly laughing but he looked really creepy.

This one was really badass. He reminded me of this one manga/anime character called "Devilman".

The view from the pagoda was absolutely amazing.

This was a very strange tourist attraction. Right before you enter the castle this was this structure in plain sight. It was really wacky and off beat from the traditional atmosphere. I thought I was in Japan for a second. This building is a museum where they have a variety of models made from tree bark.

Dongdongju (동동주) is just the perfect drink to end your adventure. Except for this occasion! The photo may not make the bowl look big but that thing was humongous! It was probably designed to serve at least 3 people but I just couldn't let it go to waste so I bottled it! They didn't seem to mind because they actually offered a funnel for me to pour the generous magical liquid, gracefully.

Pajeon is not my favorite Korean dish but this one was an exception. The ingredients were vegetables that are very uncommon and the ingredients are usually available in traditional markets. It had such a distinct flavor, and I could imagine some people not liking its taste but I thought it was wonderful! Did you know that in Korea, when it rains, people make an effort to find a restaurant that specializes in Pajeon and drink Makgeolli.