Friday night in Hongdae (I know, it's getting repetitive, just after kicking my Itaewon fix I find myself being drawn into another nighttime comfort zone, I promise to branch out more in the near future) led to a rather late start Sunday morning. . .or, afternoon. After a quick, late, lunch, Nate and I decided we'd try to head back towards Inwangsan for the Shamanist Hillside Walk suggested by LP's Seoul City Guide.
If you remember, as I would expect you to, we tried to do this walk once before a few weeks ago but, due to a late arrival at Dongnimmun Station, decided to just stick to the Prison Museum instead. This time however we double checked the directions from the station to the hillside walk so we wouldn't once again get distracted. Taking the first left out of exit two, we made our way through a narrow ally towards what couldn't possibly be a shamanist mountain.
After about ten minutes of walking gradually up hill, we decided that our current path simply led us towards the parking lot of a housing complex, which, a few weeks ago, we learned there is often only one entrance/exit to, meaning you're not gonna find a short cut through the 'back way.' Just before turning around and heading back, as the sun was already just a few slivers off the western peaks, I caught sight of a small brown sign pointing us in the right direction.
While the sign told us that we were a mere 300 meters away, it spoke nothing of the road's grade which we had yet to climb. What looked like a remarkably, and incredibly steep road, turned out to be just that. We slowly ambled up what I learned (after checking out some other blogs on the intraweb) is a relatively new road (circa late 2006). How people made it to the base of this place before I couldn't possibly guess but it probably wasn't too nice!
Anyways, the road finally leveled out as a ornate gate, presumably the entrance to the mountain, came in to view. Now, I'll likely use the terms mountain and hill interchangably throughout as I believe Inwangsan is referred to as both. Standing at 338 meters I'll let you judge for yourself. I don't want to get in to the debate as I've heard Charles and Trevor go over this a number of times without anything ever coming of it. . .
'Front Gate'At the bottom of the hill leading up through the gate we paused to consider whether or not we should push on. It sure looked interesting but as I said, the sun was creeping dangerously low and the top didn't seem invitingly near. Well, having already hiked up the recently paved path, which I'm sure they did for us lowly English teachers, we decided to press on. Unfortunately, as I teased the thought of turning back and returning another day, I skipped photographing the signs and explanations I'm usually good about posting. Sorry! Go get your cultural knowledge from someone else. As for me, I just enjoyed the experience!
Enter. . .if you dareHunched over pushing up the hill we were passed twice by cars. One small SUV struggling to make it up the steep grade, it's driver evidently laying all the way down on the gas as the engine screamed in pain. Another small car gripped as tightly as it could to road making it's way back down as slowly as gravity would allow it to.
100 meters or so up from the front gate we again leveled out, for about the last time, in a small parking lot. We followed a winding stairway up through what almost appeared to be a small hillside village. While a number of the structures were clearly temples others seemed to be residences, though much more traditional looking than the majority of 'homes' in Seoul.
After passing an elderly foreign couple headed down hill we were left essentially alone on the winding path. Eventually, the 'village' gave way to forest and the sounds of barking dogs faded into the background.
100 meters or so up from the front gate we again leveled out, for about the last time, in a small parking lot. We followed a winding stairway up through what almost appeared to be a small hillside village. While a number of the structures were clearly temples others seemed to be residences, though much more traditional looking than the majority of 'homes' in Seoul.
After passing an elderly foreign couple headed down hill we were left essentially alone on the winding path. Eventually, the 'village' gave way to forest and the sounds of barking dogs faded into the background.
Moving on upOur silence didn't last long as we were soon greeted by the distant sound of a small gong. As the ringing grew louder, so to did the sound of a woman chanting. We passed a number of small shrines, demarcated by half melted candles and a soft pad on which to pray, before coming to an occupied one. During this portion of our hike I refrained from taking pictures as LP suggested we do at a religious sight. To be honest, it's kind of nice not worrying about trying to capture everything and rather simply enjoying it for your self. . .possibly a bit selfish, but nice!
Press OnWe stopped for a few moments captivated by the woman's prayers that were seemingly repetitive and ongoing. . .it was hard to imagine her either starting, or stopping, this ritual. Continuing upwards we came to a flat rock face which looked like it could played host to a number of spiritual individuals, though probably on warmer days! With a vertical face directly ahead of us we decided to try the left path first. While it led to a great look out over Jongno (the primary 'downtown' area where City Hall is located) and Namsan Hill, it didn't take us much further up Inwangsan.
Look Out BelowBy this point I was really regretting not snapping a photo of the hillside map at the base. I remembered reading that the majority of the large rocks seen on the hike were named according to what they 'looked' like. While these labels I'm sure are a bit ambiguous, it would have been nice to match a name to rock. . .'ahhh, so that one's Face Rock and the other one was Zen Rock'
Oh well. . .the two shots below are of the same rock from slightly different views. I wish the pictures were a bit more vivid but I unfortunately realized part way through the hike that I was for some reason on a 'neutral' color setting. . .oops, at least those greys and light brows sure looked good! Sorry!
'Something' Rock
'Something' Rock again through 'Snowy Trees'Running in to a long barbed wire fence we decided that 'left' was not the way to go from the last plateau. So, we headed back down to try right. Just as we were headed up the 'right' path, we learned that we were in fact, not.
A small man darted out of a tent set up on the hillside ushering us down and away from wherever we were headed. While we weren't sure that his authority was official, we decided to respect him for the sheer fact that he set up shop in a 'tent' half way up a hill above down town Seoul. This tent, to clarify, is really just a lot of large pieces of plastic kind of draped together and strung from trees. I'm not really sure what exactly you'd call it or, to be honest, what exactly it's for. What I can surmise is that foreigners ain't to welcome unless, possibly, they're showing darn good signs of being a practicing Buddhist!
We headed down as we were ordered to and briefly stopped to examine crossing what looked like a short land bridge across a small creek. Peaking around we decided it would be safe just as the man reappeared and waved us onwards. Well, that felt better at least. It's good to know he wasn't kicking us off the mountain, just pointing us in another direction!
We passed a few more people, primarily women, in the midst of prayer. While the mountain and it's surrounding temples have a rich religious history that I haven't even begun to explore, I have come across a number of sources indicating that most of the hillside praying is in hopes of encouraging a son to be born. . .interesting, and, a better way to do it then just keep your fingers crossed I guess!
Passing the last of the worshipers we came to another branch of the fortress wall. This is now our third (I believe) encounter with this wall that runs all along the northern and southern border of Seoul, protecting it from ancient, and modern, invaders. Apparently this wall needed a bit more rebuilding than the one at Namhansansan, but, even so, it's still an impressive and somewhat inspiring sight.
A small man darted out of a tent set up on the hillside ushering us down and away from wherever we were headed. While we weren't sure that his authority was official, we decided to respect him for the sheer fact that he set up shop in a 'tent' half way up a hill above down town Seoul. This tent, to clarify, is really just a lot of large pieces of plastic kind of draped together and strung from trees. I'm not really sure what exactly you'd call it or, to be honest, what exactly it's for. What I can surmise is that foreigners ain't to welcome unless, possibly, they're showing darn good signs of being a practicing Buddhist!
We headed down as we were ordered to and briefly stopped to examine crossing what looked like a short land bridge across a small creek. Peaking around we decided it would be safe just as the man reappeared and waved us onwards. Well, that felt better at least. It's good to know he wasn't kicking us off the mountain, just pointing us in another direction!
We passed a few more people, primarily women, in the midst of prayer. While the mountain and it's surrounding temples have a rich religious history that I haven't even begun to explore, I have come across a number of sources indicating that most of the hillside praying is in hopes of encouraging a son to be born. . .interesting, and, a better way to do it then just keep your fingers crossed I guess!
Passing the last of the worshipers we came to another branch of the fortress wall. This is now our third (I believe) encounter with this wall that runs all along the northern and southern border of Seoul, protecting it from ancient, and modern, invaders. Apparently this wall needed a bit more rebuilding than the one at Namhansansan, but, even so, it's still an impressive and somewhat inspiring sight.
Seoul Fortress WallFiguring we had come this far without quiting we decided to push upwards along the wall towards the top. It wasn't long before we came across a sign pointing us in the right direction that only encouraged our 'summit.' At this point we had begun to move with some sense of urgency as the sun continued its ever quickening descent. Actually, to be honest, we paid little attention to the setting of the sun as from our perspective it stayed even, if not rose, over the horizon as we continued to gain altitude.
Eventually the tree lined path cleared out to once again reveal spectacular city views. It's a shame that the snow didn't quite clear the air out like a good rain would have or else I'd certainly have grabbed a number of more urban snapshots. . .you'll have to settle with what I could see through the smoggy haze!
Looking around we noticed an enclosed encampment just off to our side. The presence of men in fatigues yielding enormous machine guns confirmed our suspicion that it was an army post. That and the barrel of a gun that resembled the top turret of a tank yanked off and set in to concrete! Without looking too suspicious, as one of the guards clearly had his sights on us through a pair of binoculars, I managed to grab a picture of the post while pretending to do a 360 video. . .not that it really mattered what I pretended to do or not but it made me feel both better about grabbing the picture, and, slightly risque. . . oooo, living on the edge here!
Actually, I just read on someone else's blog from 2004 that there were once apparently a number of 'Do Not Photograph' signs that warned against doing so with the threat of being shot. . .oops! Good thing I'm not living in the past! Enjoy the picture, it may cost me my life! (You'll have to blow it up to see what I'm talking about but it should be pretty visible.)
Eventually the tree lined path cleared out to once again reveal spectacular city views. It's a shame that the snow didn't quite clear the air out like a good rain would have or else I'd certainly have grabbed a number of more urban snapshots. . .you'll have to settle with what I could see through the smoggy haze!
Looking around we noticed an enclosed encampment just off to our side. The presence of men in fatigues yielding enormous machine guns confirmed our suspicion that it was an army post. That and the barrel of a gun that resembled the top turret of a tank yanked off and set in to concrete! Without looking too suspicious, as one of the guards clearly had his sights on us through a pair of binoculars, I managed to grab a picture of the post while pretending to do a 360 video. . .not that it really mattered what I pretended to do or not but it made me feel both better about grabbing the picture, and, slightly risque. . . oooo, living on the edge here!
Actually, I just read on someone else's blog from 2004 that there were once apparently a number of 'Do Not Photograph' signs that warned against doing so with the threat of being shot. . .oops! Good thing I'm not living in the past! Enjoy the picture, it may cost me my life! (You'll have to blow it up to see what I'm talking about but it should be pretty visible.)
Posting Up
Looking back out down the wall we just climbed along.From the great view of the Post and the Wall it was only a short climb up a rung of stairs to get to the peak of Inwangsan. While 'summiting' hardly yielded the sense of pride and accomplishment that mounting the flag at Bulamsan does, it still feels great to grab a full 360 view of a city that otherwise looms over you at all times!
There goes the sun!
In awe at the vastness of it all. . .can you find Nate?
Look Ma, We Did It!From the top of Inwangsan
Perched on the boulder marking the top of Inwangan we were able to see not only across the city to Namsan but down on some pretty interesting sights as well. Just below the mountain we could see in to the compound surrounding the Blue House: Korea's equivalent of our White House (maybe something to do with the military post?). We were also able to grab an aerial view of Gyeongbokgung Palace which is truly massive in scope. The grounds span what must be dozens of city blocks, all nestled right in with an ever expanding urban skyline! I just wish it was a bit clearer out so we could've gotten a better view. . .oh well, this is certainly a hike I'd enjoy doing again, especially if any visitors ever make it this way!
We didn't hang around at the peak very long though, again for fear of being left in the dark!
Only inches from sunset and we're still up top. . .hmmmNow I'm not a boy scout, though I think I might have been once upon a time, I'm pretty sure that if you don't have any sort of equipment, namely lights, you're not really supposed to hang around moutansides at night. So, we decided to start heading down. The only issue was that we had a choice. Our first option was to return the way we came, which would certainly not be difficult, but would offer nothing new. While our second option seemed much more appealing, it wasn't exactly the easy way down, as we had to first descend aways, climb back up, then head down the back of the mountain pictured below. . . I'll let you guess which way we chose.
Option Number TwoYeah, we went for it. Mostly because the presence of a man halfway down the path in the picture below (bet you didn't see him the first time) made us feel more comfortable about heading that direction. . .or, it did for me at least! This second climb wasn't nearly as bad as it seemed and we made it to the second peak in no time. From here though we really did start to head down as quickly as we could. . .following the wall along the path you see below.
Going down, Second attempt
Into the setting sunShortly after starting our second descent we came to a fork in the road that offered us yet another option to climb upwards again towards the top of the peak you can see below. While we both would have loved to, the lighting issue simply made it slightly irresponsible to do so. . .alas, I will have to return to truly conquer all of Inwangsan!
A yet conquered peak. . .Down the backside we eventually crossed over the wall, I'm not entirely sure how, to wander through a snow covered path. Though we clearly had the option of staying on the stone stairs we managed to pick the darker, snow covered trail instead. While slippery at times we managed to make it down safely. The only time I thought we might not was when we were forced to climb down an icy stairway that was badly tilted on it's side. . .luckily, tilted towards the side without a guard rail. . .whoa, that was interesting!
The Darkside of the Wall
Snow Shoes Anyone?We eventually found our way down and once again crossed the wall to the paved side. From here we looked out towards an almost, dare I say, beautiful neighborhood. The houses were not only real houses but were enormous, and not just by Korean standards! Sure they looked as though they were kind of dropped aimlessly in place with out much consideration for the eventual 'suburb' that arose, but hey, it has a lot more character than any gated community I've ever seen!
Following the path we passed another few smaller army posts, all but one of which was unmanned. The final one, which seemed to house nothing more than a small desk and landline phone, was protected by an enormous 'camouflage' wall painted in bright sky blue. Set against the offensively bright background were a few stenciled trees that looked like they belonged on the side of a kids summer camp, not hiding a military installation. . .but hey, who knows who they're hiding from, if it's people, I can't imagine it working, but there's a good chance that a bird might buy it. . .a dodo would at least.
We were eventually spit out from the mountain though a small iron gate that led directly in to the middle of a road. Good thing it wasn't busy! We crossed the street to what seemed like a path on the other side. There stood a policeman huddled in a mass of coat (is that the derivation of the word massive) who directed us towards our left as I asked him which way we should go. I wasn't quite sure what he told us to see but he said something was that way. . .so we went.
Not far down the road did we find another enlightening sign pointing us in the right direction. With a few different options we decided to follow the one pointing towards the 'Rock that fell off the mountain.' Hmm, sounds interesting.
At this point I'm expecting to encounter some sort of massive boulder that rolled down a cliff leaving a gnarly gash in the mountain side and coming to rest only inches from the nursery of a blind orphanage. Not quite. Instead, we happened upon a sort of public sculpture that looked like an Epcot installation gone wrong. The sign explaining this mass of iron rock was only Korean so we were left wondering as to it's origin or intent. . . well, not for long.
Following the path we passed another few smaller army posts, all but one of which was unmanned. The final one, which seemed to house nothing more than a small desk and landline phone, was protected by an enormous 'camouflage' wall painted in bright sky blue. Set against the offensively bright background were a few stenciled trees that looked like they belonged on the side of a kids summer camp, not hiding a military installation. . .but hey, who knows who they're hiding from, if it's people, I can't imagine it working, but there's a good chance that a bird might buy it. . .a dodo would at least.
We were eventually spit out from the mountain though a small iron gate that led directly in to the middle of a road. Good thing it wasn't busy! We crossed the street to what seemed like a path on the other side. There stood a policeman huddled in a mass of coat (is that the derivation of the word massive) who directed us towards our left as I asked him which way we should go. I wasn't quite sure what he told us to see but he said something was that way. . .so we went.
Not far down the road did we find another enlightening sign pointing us in the right direction. With a few different options we decided to follow the one pointing towards the 'Rock that fell off the mountain.' Hmm, sounds interesting.
At this point I'm expecting to encounter some sort of massive boulder that rolled down a cliff leaving a gnarly gash in the mountain side and coming to rest only inches from the nursery of a blind orphanage. Not quite. Instead, we happened upon a sort of public sculpture that looked like an Epcot installation gone wrong. The sign explaining this mass of iron rock was only Korean so we were left wondering as to it's origin or intent. . . well, not for long.
Nate and the Memory RockAfter grabbing a quick snapshot for the record books, we approached this fallen rock close enough to learn that it was in fact the Memory Rock that we had heard so much about! Okay, so that's a terrible lie, we've never heard of the Memory Rock, but to be honest, after seeing it, I felt like I should have! Why had LP not enlightened me about this before! Pick up the slack guys!
Making the Memory Rock happyAs commanded by the Memory Rock, we searched around until finding a pair of stones that we placed on the ledge. We figured that you are supposed to bring a rock down from the mountain to make the Memory Rock super happy but unfortunately, there were no signs at the top informing us of this. . .so we had to make due.
Our assumptions were confirmed as two gentlemen soon came to pay their respects to the Rock. One politely placed his stone on a ledge as we had done while the other took a mean granny shot launching his rock into the middle of the structure, open at top apparently, where it landed with quite a clamor. Not sure if this is somehow better luck but it seems like the thing to do next time I come!
Our assumptions were confirmed as two gentlemen soon came to pay their respects to the Rock. One politely placed his stone on a ledge as we had done while the other took a mean granny shot launching his rock into the middle of the structure, open at top apparently, where it landed with quite a clamor. Not sure if this is somehow better luck but it seems like the thing to do next time I come!
A little ways down the path we came across the Photo Spot that you'll see below. Now this is something that I can offer no explanation for and will not even attempt to assume anything. I would assume it's a marketing gimmick but am yet totally uncertain of even this as it was literally placed in the middle of nowhere along a lone path through this deserted park. . .anyways, not one to pass up an opportunity. . .
PosingWe wandered down through this empty park for a bit before a narrow twisting stairway dumped us out at the top of an hilly driveway. Making our way down the drive we realized we were in a rather upscale neighborhood of gated condos with names like Tuscany II. . .silly and ostentatious, yes, absurdly luxurious, yes, warm and friendly, not in the least! High gates, security cameras and stone walls blocked any street dwellers from even peaking into these compounds. . .oh well, I'm growing more at home in Dootavill each day. . .I continue to shake up life a bit too by switching between the couch and my loft. . .adventurous, I know!
Breaking free from the prison like neighborhood we came out to an intersection that looked extremely familiar, but, I believe, turned out not to be. We took a left up the street and had to ask permission to pass from a series of policemen who were setting up on the sidewalk, two abreast, shields facing outwards and enormous billy clubs in hand. We have seen this set up before on the street and still have not yet figured out why it happens. There are literally hundreds of cops posting up like this for no apparently reasons in otherwise deserted areas.
Well, a little ways down the street we learned a possible reason. We eventually wound up in front of the Blue House, Cheong Wa Dae, where South Korea's president resides. Though an impressive structure clearly stood beyond the large stone wall, the lack of lighting, exterior or interior, made it a rather disappointing find. No worries, we'll swing by in the day sometime!
Well, a little ways down the street we learned a possible reason. We eventually wound up in front of the Blue House, Cheong Wa Dae, where South Korea's president resides. Though an impressive structure clearly stood beyond the large stone wall, the lack of lighting, exterior or interior, made it a rather disappointing find. No worries, we'll swing by in the day sometime!
At least we got a picture of the Christmas lights remaining outside the Blue House!From Cheong Wa Dae we continued to wander towards the center of town, hoping to find something to eat. We made a quick pit stop at a convenience store to rehydrate before moving onwards towards Myeong-dong. Now this is a bit confusing as there are two somewhat distinct, but very close, areas that we have been referring to both as Myeong-dong. While the first one that we ventured upon is the primary area in question, we're certain that the later 'zone' is in fact the high paced commercial district made famous by, well, I dunno, for being crowded!
"Now this is what I mean by Asia. Neon light, tons of people. Yeah!"We did a bit of window shopping before being over taken by hunger. Even the short trip through Insadong where we grabbed a chicken-on-a-stick didn't do much to satisfy. Though we managed to pull ourselves away from the temptation of Subway, we didn't end up finding anything incredibly interesting to eat. Rather we landed at a chain restaurant, Nubo (I think that's right), where Nate and I go for our acclaimed steamed kimchi. Oh well, at least we tried something new that turned out to be a big boiling cauldron of noodles, rice cakes, meet, noodles and plenty of un-identifiables.
After scarfing down dinner it took every last ounce of strength we had to get back to the subway only a quarter mile away. By this point we had down at least five hours of non-stop walking, not easy on the legs or back! I caught a few z's on the subway home and was in bed not soon after making it in to Dootavill.
I can't imagine I'll have much to tell until after this weekend's ski trip. . .which we're still really kind in the dark about. . .so, if you don't hear from me until next week, don't worry. . . I might already be on my way to New Orleans. . .just kidding. . .kinda!
After scarfing down dinner it took every last ounce of strength we had to get back to the subway only a quarter mile away. By this point we had down at least five hours of non-stop walking, not easy on the legs or back! I caught a few z's on the subway home and was in bed not soon after making it in to Dootavill.
I can't imagine I'll have much to tell until after this weekend's ski trip. . .which we're still really kind in the dark about. . .so, if you don't hear from me until next week, don't worry. . . I might already be on my way to New Orleans. . .just kidding. . .kinda!
Myeongdong's FinestNike Shocks don't have anything on these!
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