Korea has an abundance of Temples and having visited so many I'm trying to find the more unusual ones to visit. One I read about was Golgulsa which I planned to visit on my weekend trip to Gyeongju. Golgulsa temple is unique in several ways not only having rock cliff shrines and a giant carved Buddha but I also wandered into a martial arts display that takes place twice daily.

Golgulsa is located in the country well outside the Gyeongju city limits. To reach it you can take either bus 100 or 150 for 1500w ($1.25) from outside the bus terminal. Buses are not that frequent and seemed to be at 30-45 min intervals.

Driving in rural countryside I wasnt sure where to get off but fortunately there are english announcements at the stop for Golgulsa and Girimsa which both use the same stop.

To reach both temples you have to walk up a side road that intersects the country road. After about 20 mins you will reach Golgulsa. The sign said Girimsa was a further 3km from here. I was debating whether to go or not and it would have been 6km round trip from Golgulsa plus the 20 min walk back to the bus stop.

I decided to just goto Golgulsa first which was probably the right decision as this temple ended up taking quite a lot of time. There were also banners saying there was a daily martial arts display at 11am and 3pm (except Mondays). It had just past 11am so I wasnt sure if I'd miss it

It was a long hill walk leading into the temple. The main outer gates had a line of bronze martial arts figures in various fight poses. This was unusual for a temple and seemed more like visiting a film studio.

The temple buildings were also decorated with figures of fighting martial arts figures. This was very unique and distinct to this temple complex

Walking further in I could hear music and drums playing in the distance but I didnt know where the martial arts display was taking place. It was still a long uphill walk so hard to run or walk fast.

Eventually I made it to a crowded hill overlooking a temple building where the fight display was taking place on its outer terrace

It was now almost 11.30am so the demonstration was coming to an end. I managed to see a couple of high kicks before the final curtain call. There were two foreigners who were participating in the events as well as a hooded female.

You can also do an overnight Templestay here and there was a large group of foreigners in local robes watching the display.

Now I was free to explore the rest of the temple which is more famous for a Buddha rock carving than for the martial arts display. The temple is built at the base of a tall cliff which has the carving at its peak.

From the distance you could see the many layers of terraces going around the tall cliff face where people were walking around like in outdoor mice tunnels. These may be natural or carved out but have since been supported with railings.

A staircase to the rear of the temple started the ascent upwards. There were uneven steps to begin with but this changed to smoother rock floors on the actual cliff.

A short distance up was a smaller temple shrine to the left. Inside this was a cave shrine with many tiny buddha figures lined into the cave walls in neat rows.

I was going to try going higher but there arent steps and you have to navigate the rock face with the railing for support. I had my large backpack and my palms were very sweaty so no use on the metal railings.

You have to be able to climb, be fit, and good with heights to navigate the sometimes smooth rock surfaces to get to the top. Many seniors and kids were running around making it look easy but I'm not good with heights so decided to give up after trying to go up the first level.

Watching people climbing or looking at pictures does make it look easier than it actually was. In places there were bottlenecks where people had to wait for others to get thru tight passages or using the handrail to climb down steep rock surfaces

Back at the base I was able to use the zoom on my camera to see the Buddha carving. I then noticed another staircase going up the opposite side. This made it easier to get to the top without having to climb around any rocks.

Going up there were a couple more small shrines built into small crevices that werent visible from the other side. In one case you have to crouch thru a crawlspace to get to one of the shrines.

Reaching the top of the staircase was like climbing a long ladder and getting onto the roof of a house. The staircase is separate from the rock cliff so you have to climb across from the staircase onto the rocks of the cliff to reach the top.

I did reach the top but not being comfortable with heights it probably wasnt a good idea for me and I had to ask people to help me back down.

Back down at ground level I passed by many of the buildings again decorated with many figures of fighters in martial arts poses. It was another 20 min walk back to the bus stop. Luckily one soon arrived and I was back in downtown Gyeongju in time for a needy large meal

It was a good job I didnt come yesterday evening when I could have got stuck in the dark being quite remote outside the city and a long walk from the bus stop. You can also visit Girimsa 3km away if you have the time. Its best to give yourself time and try to time it for the daily martial arts display.

To read a proper explanation of Golgulsa and Girimsa Temples from someone more knowledgeable follow these links

Golgulsa Temple
http://koreantemples.com/?p=220

Girimsa Temple
http://koreantemples.com/?p=219