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We left the hotel at 8:40AM heading to the train station where we will take to our next stop: Gyeongju where we will spending the night in a Buddhist Temple. To get to the train station we will be taking the extensive Seoul subway which consists of 9 separate lines! As Rob had suggested I packed only a few essentials in the small tote I bought yesterday, leaving my larger suitcase at the Prince Hotel as we will be returning there at the end of the trip. That and my backpack was all I was taking. It turned out to be an excellent idea and made life a whole lot simpler.

It was nice having Rob lead us through the process of finding and boarding the subway as it can be a bit daunting the first time. Since it was a Sunday there were few crowds and the process was easy. Rob did tell us that during the workweek it can be a bit chaotic because of the crowds. They actually employ men who act as “pushers” to cram more people onto the subway cars. Sure glad we did not have to experience that!

It was only 2 stops to the huge main train station where we had about 30 minutes to wander around as Rob stood watch over our “luggage”. There were tempting eateries around in the station including a vending machine that sold Krispy Krème donuts! Unfortunately it only dispensed a box of 12! Having just had breakfast all I did was walk around and look at all the different offerings! I did buy a cream-filled pastry  that resembled a bismarck. It was loaded with whipped cream and red bean paste. Needless to say it was messy eating and I only consumed half.

This train trip was not one of their bullet trains; it was a conventional train but it was luxurious, quiet and clean. And it left on time. It even had excellent wifi service. A common sight during our train ride was seeing apartment complexes that consisted of 3 or more high rise towers.

The length of the trip was about two hours and we arrived in Daegu where we would be transported by bus to the Buddhist temple in Gyeongju. Since it was around noon Rob said we were free to have lunch at one of the restaurants located in the fairly large train station. I ended up with several others in a noodle shop where I had an udon noodle bowl with fried shrimp which only cost $5.65.

We then loaded into a huge 50 passenger bus so we each had our own row (or two) to ourselves for the ride to our destination for the night-the Golgusa Temple where we will experience life as a monk!

Upon arrival we were issued temple garb, consisting of over sized cotton pants and a sleeveless vest-like top. We were also given a sheet and pillow case cover and directed to our rooms which were pretty spartan! There was no bed and no chair. You were expected to sleep on the floor on a mat (covered by the sheet) and a duvet as a cover. There was a bathroom in the room which included sort of a shower, which I chose not to use while there. There was one small hand towel. Luckily I had bought a wash cloth while in Seoul so I was set. There was also a pair of slippers in the room as you were asked to remove shoes while in it.

There was a map of the temple facilities and a schedule of events given to us upon arrival, which included orientation of what to expect while there.

The first event was a demonstration of sunmudo, which is practiced and taught by the monks living here. Sunmudo is a combination of meditation, yoga and martial arts. Sounded interesting and I looked forward to the demonstration. Unfortunately it was being held in a building further into the temple complex from our living quarters and involved a considerable walk with a lot of elevation gain to get there. Dressed in our temple finery we trudged our way up to the outdoor patio where it would be held, out of breath and a bit sweaty by this time. Besides our group there were others who also were staying at the temple (dressed accordingly) and many tourists who came simply to see the demonstration, which I had to admit was pretty impressive, especially as performed by a young girl who seemed to be double jointed when doing some of her poses (all done to music). The sunmudo master also showed us the moves they make as part of their training. There was also a lady singer who performed several Korean songs that most attendees knew as they clapped along with the song. Sunmudo is obviously more complex than judo.

From there we are instructed to go to another building where the sunmudo master would hold a class teaching us the sunmudo poses. Well, at least the simpler ones. Because it involved mats on the floor and I was unsure as to how intense it would be I chose to watch with a few others rather than actually joining the class. I did some of the meditation exercises and simple stretching moves as I was familiar with them from my chair yoga classes. I even learned a few new, fairly simple routines. Then the master lead the group into more complex exercises that really stressed the body. I watched the others struggle to complete the poses/exercises. He really worked them!

I might add prior to the sunmudo class he showed us an animated film on how to show respect while in the temple, such as removing shoes in most places, the respectful bow, the etiquette of meals, etc.

By this time it was 6:30PM and time for our vegetarian dinner eaten while sitting quietly on the floor at low tables. The food was surprisingly good and filling. Hopefully it will help me lose the 5 extra pounds I put on during Covid. We were expected to wash our dishes after the meal. You had not be late for dinner because the food disappeared exactly at 7PM!

Our activities for the day were done and we were expected to have lights out by 9PM as we will be awaken at 5AM tomorrow! And we were not encouraged to wander around after dinner because of this posted notice.

Surprisingly I had internet access (thank you T Mobile!) so I worked a bit on this blog and caught up on the news before calling it a day about 8:30. We will see what tomorrow brings as the s schedule shows there is a optional meditation service at 5:30AM back at the Buddhist temple located where we saw the sunmudo demonstration today.