June 2, Election Day
Our plan was to go to the voting precinct early in the morning so we could have the rest of the afternoon to enjoy. The precinct is merely 5 minutes away by foot from where we live, but it took a lot longer to get there cause we couldn't find a place to park the car. When we finally did, Chris hurriedly entered the booths and registered. I, on the other hand, went to use the restroom and the next thing I knew he already voted! It was sooo fast, we were in and out of the place in 10 minutes!
After that quickie voting, we hit the road going to Danyang, North Chuncheong province. It's a place known for it's 8 scenic wonders, hence the name Danyang Palgyeong (단 양 팔 곙). We planned to visit all of it in one day, so we skipped lunch and went directly to Dodamsambong (도 담 삼 보) - the first the eight wonders. Multitude of tourists come here all year round to see the three gorgeous rock formations that grew in the middle of the river. It's beautiful but it's better to come here right before sunset when the sky turns golden as the rocks look even more stunning then.
And as weird as it may sound, there is a very intriguing story behind those three rocks. It goes something like this; rock no. 1 is the husband, rock no. 2 is the barren wife, and the last rock is the pregnant mistress and they're all part of this one giant love triangle.
Even without the scandalous rocks, the river is already worth the visit. It's beautiful on it's own
and the air is fresh and clean. We walked at the side of the river for some time till we saw a steep stairway that leads to Seokmun (석 문). It's one of Danyang's eight scenic wonders.
Seokmun is a giant rock that formed into a very interesting shape - an arch with trees and plants growing on it. Because of the shape, they called this place the "stone gate".
There is another scenic point far up the mountain, but it requires hiking for hours. Chris wasn't feeling it, so we left the place and went on with our quest to see more of Danyang. We drove till we reached Gosu Cave (고 수 통 굴). The cave was discovered in the 70's and during that period, they unearthed several equipments that dates back from the stone age.
After the cave, we drove towards the downtown area to find some food and saw this place by chance. I don't think it's included among the eight, but it's so beautiful it rightfully deserves a spot there.
We followed the road that leads to Namhan river, Chris said we're gonna go for a boat ride. The scenery along the river is breathtaking, and it pains me to see that the government is breaking it. Pres. Lee Myung Bak has plans of turning it into a canal where ships and boats can pass through. In some parts of the river, the construction has already began, and it turned the water
from green to muddy - not a pretty sight to look at. Thankfully, the construction hasn't started in the area where we took the boat. At least we got a chance to see it's natural beauty before they decide to break it.
So we took the boat for 10,000 won each, and we got the best seats in the house! It's right in front and the view was perfect there!
The captain served as the guide saying bits and pieces about the different mountains and rock formations that we passed by. Of course, Chris was there to translate so I kind of understood what the captain was saying. I understand that some of the eight sights are here, but I couldn't care less. They all look the same to me anyway - all beautiful and spectacular.
The boat ride lasted for an hour, and by the time it reached the dock, it was almost sunset. We thought we've seen enough of Danyang so we decided to go. It was a well-spent holiday, and right now, I'm hurting for another one..
The boat ride lasted for an hour, and by the time it reached the dock, it was almost sunset. We thought we've seen enough of Danyang so we decided to go. It was a well-spent holiday, and right now, I'm hurting for another one..
0 comments:
Post a Comment