Bamboo Forest and a Heartfelt Story

Today's first program (09. 14.) was the Ahopsan Forest. We got there by taxi from the hotel. I used the usual k.ride app and within 5 minutes we were already zooming in a taxi. The Aphopsan Forest is a 400-year-old bamboo and forest reserve privately owned. The same clan (family) has been caring for it for 400 years. It has gained popularity recently thanks to The King: Eternal Monarch (Netflix series). The forest is wonderful and exudes tranquility, which was only disturbed by mosquitoes. We spent nearly 2 hours here. We were almost at the exit when we met a father with an 18-month-old baby boy. The baby was delighted to see us, and we greeted each other warmly. Before we left the bamboo forest, we sat down on a bench. The dad caught up with us, and the little boy happily waddled over and sat between us on the bench. We entertained him for a while, then we headed towards the exit. Here we tried to call a taxi, but it didn't work because certain roads were closed (we received this message on the taxi app), so we decided to walk a bit and try calling a taxi again later. Just when I was busy with this, the dad arrived in a car and asked us where we wanted to go. With the help of a translator, I explained that our destination was the Haedong Yonggunsa Temple. He offered to take us, and the little boy was also thrilled to see us. During the ride, the dad shared that his baby was seven months old when his wife collapsed due to a stroke, and he has been raising his son alone ever since, and they were on their way to the hospital to visit her. I must admit, I could hardly hold back my tears. We were infinitely grateful for his help despite being strangers.

The Haedong Yonggunsa Temple is a Buddhist temple known for its location on the beach and was built in 1376, although this claim is disputed.

From the temple, we continued by bus to the Haunde Blueinline Park - Songjeon station. Of course, we didn't manage to do this immediately, as we got off the bus earlier. I realized that Google Maps is probably the most useful for public transport because thanks to it, we finally found the station. Here, we boarded a retro tram that ran alongside the beach. The train windows faced the sea, so we could gaze at the sunlit sea throughout the ride. We traveled to the final stop (Nopo), then walked back to the hotel along the beach. We ended the day at the Haeundae Traditional Market, where we tried various Korean dishes.