Traditional and Historical Sites
| The Korean countryside is breathtaking...70% of the country is mountainous, and the majority of places you will visit are the mountainous National and Provincial Parks. This is at Sorak-san on the east coast. Its interior is for serious hiking enthusiasts. It's definitely a must-see. |
|
 |
A string of lanterns on a path leading to a temple. Korean Buddhist temples are decorated with these lanterns during Buddha's birthday. |
| This is the double Buddha statue, Paju Miruk, in Kyonggi Province. The bodies of this statue are carved in low relief into a flat rock face with separate stone blocks on top that make up the heads. Carved around 900 years ago, they are the only such twin figures in Korea. | 
|
| This is Popchusa, a temple in Songnisan National Park in North Chungchong Province. It's a great place to visit, and the mountains are an easy climb. The five-story wooden pagoda (Palsangjon) seen here, is one of the oldest wooden buildings in Korea, and the only large wooden pagoda in Korea. It dates from the early 1600's. The Buddha statue is a Maitreya Buddha, the largest standing bronze Buddha in Asia. | 
|
 |
..the 33-meter high Miruk Buddha of Popchusa (seen above). The bronze statue was cast in one mold and weighs 150 tons. It was dedicated to Korean unification and world peace. |
| Nuns pray in front of the 10-meter tall Miruk buddha at the Miruk-saji temple site in North Chungchong Province. This is a recently excavated temple site of the Koryo Dynasty era. | 
|