Tongdosa Buddist Temple(통도사)

대웅전(Hero Hall)

금강계단(Geumgang Ordinance Alter)

대방광전

구룡지(Nine Dragons Pond)

진신사리탑(Budda`s Saria Stupa)

개산조당

 

용화전



Lee Sun-shin

Lee Sun-shin (April 28, 1545 – December 16, 1598, Korean: 이순신, Hanja: 李舜臣) was a Korean naval commander, famed for his victories against the Japanese navy during the Imjin war in the Joseon Dynasty, and is well-respected for his exemplary conduct on and off the battlefield not only by Koreans, but by Japanese Admirals as well. Military historians have compared his naval genius to that of Admiral Horatio Nelson. His title of Samdo Sugun Tongjesa (Hangul : 삼도수군통제사, Hanja :三道水軍統制使), literally meaning "Naval Commander of the Three Provinces," was the title for the commander of the Korean navy until 1896.


Perhaps his most remarkable military achievement occurred at the Battle of Myeongnyang. Outnumbered 333 ships to 13, and forced into a last stand with only his minimal fleet standing between the Japanese Army and Seoul, Yi delivered one of the most astonishing defeats in military history.
Despite never having received naval training or participating in naval combat prior to the war, and constantly being outnumbered and outsupplied, he went to his grave as one of few admirals in world history who remained undefeated after commanding as many naval battles as he did (at least 23).

Yi died at the Battle of Noryang on December 16, 1598. With the Japanese army on the verge of being completely expelled from the Korean Peninsula, he was mortally wounded by a single bullet. His famous dying words were, "The battle is at its height...beat my war drums...do not announce my death."

The royal court eventually bestowed various honors upon him, including a posthumous title of Chungmugong (충무공, 忠武公, Duke of Loyalty and Warfare), an enrollment as a Seonmu Ildeung Gongsin (선무일등공신, 宣武一等功臣, First-class military order of merit during the reign of Seonjo), and two posthumous offices, Yeonguijeong (영의정, 領議政, Prime Minister), and the Deokpung Buwongun (덕풍부원군, 德豊府院君, The Prince of the Court from Deokpung). Yi remains a venerated hero among Koreans today.

Centum City

Centum City  is a major multi-project urban development part of Haeundae-gu in Busan, South Korea. This site is at the westernmost area of Haeundae-gu in Woo-1-dong. The site was originally the place of Suyeong airport, the former airport of Busan (Gimhae).
Centum City can be accessed by the Busan Subway on Line 2 at Centum City Station.

Gwangalli Beach

Gwangalli Beach is a beach in Busan, South Korea. It is located at Gwangan 2(i)-dong, Suyeong-gu, Busan Metropolitan City, west of Haeundae Beach. It sits inside a cove spanned by the Gwangan Bridge and covers 82,000 square meters over a length of 1.4km and a width of 25 to 110 metres, in a curved in a half-moon shape with fine sand. Adjacent are alleys with restaurants, coffee shops and nightclubs. Because of its popularity, city officials are pushing for improving water quality around the beaches.
The beach is near the Busan Yachting Center used for the sailing events of the 1988 Summer Olympic.

Taejongdae

Taejongdae is a natural park of Busan, South Korea with magnificent cliffs facing the open sea on the southernmost tip of island of Yeongdo-gu. It is a representative visitor attraction of Busan where has dense evergreen trees and several facilities for tourists such as an observatory, an amusement park, a light house, a cruise ship terminal. It is said that its name to have taken from King Taejong Muyeol (604 - 661), the 29th king of Silla Kingdom who liked to practice archery the place after the unification of the Three Kingdoms of Korea. Taejongdae is designated as the 28 Busan monument, along with Oryukdo Island.

Haeundae Beach

Haeundae Beach in Haeundae-gu is located at the southeast end of the city of Busan. Haeundae beach is only 40 minutes away from Busan's main railroad station (in the Downtown area), and less than one hour from Gimhae International Airport. Along the 12 km of coastline is Busan's most popular beach, and with Seogwipo's, it is one of the most famous beaches in South Korea. Because of its easy access from downtown Busan and the famous beach atmosphere, the beach is busy year round with several kinds of beach festivals and visitors from in and out from the country. Dongbaekseom (Dongbaek Island), located at the south end of the beach, offers a view of the sea by car and its coastline is famous for fishing. Oryukdo (Oryuk Islets), a symbol of Busan to many Koreans, can be seen in the distance from Dongbaek Island. During the hot summer months (late July to early August when most Koreans take their summer vacation), Haeundae beach becomes heavily crowded into a virtual human wall with thousands of people and parasols packed into a mile of sand. Visitors to the beach come from all over South Korea as well as outside of Korea. Haeundae is home to majority of expatriates currently residing in Busan.

There are many beach-related cultural events in Haeundae. Along with Geumjeongsan and Dalmaji (Greeting of the Moon) Gogae, Haeundae is one of the most popular spots in Busan to view the first sunrise of the year on January 1, with around a thousand gathering before dawn. Also, a famous beach event occurs in the first week of January when the temperature is around 0°C, the "Polar Bear Club." This event has occurred annually at the Choseon Beach Hotel since 1988. During the 2006 FIFA World Cup match between South Korea and Togo over 50,000 spectators filled the beach to cheer for the Korean team on a giant projector screen. The Nurimaru, pure Korean meaning for Nuri (World) and Maru (Peak or top) was developed in preparation for the 17th APEC(Asia pacific Economic Cooperation) summit on Nov 18-19 in 2005, as the conference hall for APEC. The building is three-stories high and is located on the tip of Dongbaek Island. The ceiling of the Nurimaru is modeled after Seokguram, the famous Buddhist temple in Gyeongju.
The beach and Dongbaekseom Island was used as a filming location for Seoul Broadcasting System's 2008 drama Star's Lover. The island was the location for the scene where Lee Ma-ri, played by Choi Ji-woo confesses her love for Kim Chul Soo, played by Yoo Ji-tae; and the couple takes a walk on the beach.

Haeundae is now an affluent, beach front community that attracts tens of thousands of Korean tourists and foreigners to what many consider to be Korea's best beach. It has been subject to considerable commercial development. It was recently featured in a movie of the same name, (Haeundae) which happened to be South Korea's first disaster movie.

Haedong Yonggung temple

The motto of Haedong Yonggung temple is "At least one of your wishes will be answered here through your heartful prayers." The sea has been with human-being in history from long time ago. It was very calm sometimes while furious sometimes. The Haedong Yonggung temple is situated near the sea unlike other temples located in mountains, therefore it's quite reasonable to call this temple an aquatic Buddhist sanctum. They say that the Great Goddess Buddha of mercy in the sea lives alone at a solitary near the sea and appears on the back of a dragon. That's why the Korean's worship of the Great Goddess Buddha was formed near the sea or on the island, and this Haedong Yonggung temple is one of 3 Sacred Places related to the Goddess Buddha. This temple preserves religious concept deeper than that of any other temple ever as the sea, dragon and the Great Goddess Buddha embody a harmony here. Haedong Yonggung temple, the southern most temple near the east sea was founded by the great monk Naong, who was the consultant of King Gongmin. While he was practicing asceticism at Bunhwang temple in Gyeongju, the nation was hard hit by a draught that made the crops burn to death and people suffer from famine, so people were disturbed badly resenting the god for not giving them rain. One day, a sea god appeared in Naong' dream and said that if they built a temple at the edge of Bongrae mountain and prayed there, all these hardship would go away leaving people back in happiness. After that dream, Naong visited the area where the Haedong Yonggung temple is located now, and saw that there was a mountain in the front and the sea at the back, which means if they say prayers in the morning they get answered in the evening. He built a temple later called Bomun temple by him and named the mountain Bongrae. The word “Bongrae” means something mysterious and pure to which hermits with great understanding descended. The word “Bomun” means the absolute and limitless power of the Great Goddess Buddha of mercy, called Gwanseumbosal in Korean. Unfortunately the temple was destroyed by fire when the Japanese invaded Korea and the monk Ungang of Tongdo temple rebuilt the temple in the early 1930's. Since then many head monks managed the temple until the monk Jungam prayed that the temple recovered as the Great Goddess Buddha's seminary. Amidst his 100-day pray session he witnessed the Great Goddess Buddha in white robe on the back of a dragon emanating five-color beam and after the dream he renamed the temple Haedong Yonggung temple. They believe that at least one of their wishes will be answered if they pray here and because of that belief many people visit this temple.

Beomeosa Buddist temple

Great Hero Hall in Beomeosa Buddist Temple

Beomeosa was constructed in 678 during the reign of Silla king Munmu, by the monk Uisang. It became known as one of the ten great temples of the Hwaeom sect, although like most Korean temples it was later assimilated into the Jogye Order. At its largest, during the Goryeo dynasty, it was much larger than it is today - with over 360 rooms and more than a thousand monks in residence. The temple was burned to the ground in 1592 during the Japanese invasion. It was reconstructed in 1602, but was burned again by an accidental fire. In 1613 it was rebuilt again. The main hall (Daeungjeon) and the front gate (Iljumun) date to this reconstruction.

The mountain where Beomeosa is found is said to have huge rock at the summit where there is a golden well which never, ever dries up. The water of this well is believed to have very special magical properties as one day a golden fish came from heaven and has lived there ever since.
Beom(범;梵) = nirvana - eo(어;魚) = fish - sa(사;寺) = temple. Thus the name of the temple came to be ＂Heavenly Fish.＂ It is also claimed that the fish came from Nirvana, the Buddhist state of non-suffering. Therefore the temple also became known as ＂The temple where fish from Nirvana Play.＂

On December 26, 2011, the Los Angeles Times printed a story of the fighting monks at this temple. South Korean Buddhist monk Ando demonstrates Sunmudo martial arts techniques. Monks from Beomeosa Temple are famed for defeating Japanese invaders during the late 16th century and again during the Japanese occupation of Korea in the early 20th century.

Busan International Film Festival (BIFF)

Busan International Film Festival (BIFF, previously Pusan International Film Festival, PIFF Korean: 부산국제영화제, Hanja: 釜山國際映畵祭), held annually in Haeundae-gu, Busan (also Pusan), South Korea, is one of the most significant film festivals in Asia. The first festival, held from September 13 to September 21, 1996, was also the first international film festival in Korea. The focus of the BIFF is introducing new films and first-time directors, especially those from Asian countries. Another notable feature is the appeal of the festival to young people, both in terms of the large youthful audience it attracts and through its efforts to develop and promote young talent. In 1999, the Pusan Promotion Plan (renamed Asian Project Market in 2011) was established to connect new directors to funding sources. The 16th BIFF in 2011 saw the festival move to a new permanent home, the Busan Cinema Center. The Busan Cinema Center is a USD140 million structure designed by Austria-based architecture collective Coop Himmelblau. The about 30,000 m² Cinema Center includes a 4,000-seat outdoor theatre; four indoor screens under an LED-covered roof; media centre; archive space; and conference rooms; allowing the festival to include industry forums and educational activities.

Jagalchi Fish Market

Jagalchi Fish Market is a fish market in the neighborhood of Nampo-dong in Jung-gu, and Chungmu-dong, Seo-gu, Busan, South Korea. The market is located on the edge of Nampo Port (남포항), Busan. The name is said to have originated from jagal (자갈 gravel in Korean) because the market used to be surrounded by many gravels. This is one of the ten landmarks of Busan, so many tourists visit there to shop.

Economy of Busan

Economy

Ships in harbor

Busan is the fifth busiest seaport in the world, with transportation and shipping among the most high profile aspects of the local economy. Since 1978, Busan has opened three container ports including Jaseungdae, Shinsundae, and Gamman. Busan has one of the world's largest ports and can handle up to 13.2 million TEU shipping containers per year.
The Busan-Jinhae Free Economic Zone Authority, one of two such administrations (the other in the harbor of Incheon), was created to reassert Busan's status as a traditional international trading centre. The port attracts ships from all over the globe and the surrounding area aspires to become a regional financial centre.

Korea Exchange (KRX), Korea's sole securities exchange operator, is headquartered in Busan.
Busan is the home of the headquarters of Renault-Samsung Motor, Hanjin Heavy Industries, Busan Bank, Air Busan, Hi Investment & Securities, Woori Aviva Life Insurance, Korea Technology Finance Corporation, Korea Asset Management Corporation.
Jagalchi Fish Market is the largest fish market in Korea.
Busan is ranked the fourth best city after Singapore, Seoul and Tokyo among Asia's top convention cities in a 2011 global ranking by the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA).


Shopping and commerce

Shinsegae Centum City is the world's largest department store.

Centum City

Seomyeon

Jagalchi Market

Commercial areas are dispersed throughout the city near busy intersections and adjacent to university campuses, but the two largest central business districts in Busan are Seomyeon and Gwangbok-dong/Nampo-dong. There are also four substantial shopping areas of note: Seomyeon, Gwangbok-dong, Busan Dae Hakap in Jangjeon-dong, and Centum City in Haeundae-gu.
Seomyeon is the crossroads of Busan. The local subway station serves two lines and is one of the busiest in the city. The local head offices of Korean and international banks are located in Seomyeon. It is recognized as the ascendant shopping and entertainment district. It is also home to "Seomyeon Medical Street", the district encompassing the 1 km-radius range around Lotte Department Store in Seomyeon and the Buam subway station. The Street is home to a total of 160 cosmetic and other medical clinics, including those specializing in cosmetic surgery, dermatology, ophthalmology and dentistry. Directly adjacent to Seomyeon is Bujeon Market, the largest traditional market in the city. Other companies with offices here include Yeolmae Food.
The Gwangbok-dong, Nampo-dong, and Jungang-dong areas form the old central business district. Some of the restaurants in this district use family recipes passed down the generations. Jagalchi Market, a large seafood market, is located in this area. The Gukje Market is also nearby. Jungang-dong is the home of many international law offices, the old Immigation Office, and the international ferry terminal serving Japanese routes. Lotte World II is currently under construction along the water between Jungang-dong 7-Ga and 8-Ga.
Centum City, an industrial complex, is a popular new shopping area with luxury department stores.

Busan overview

Busan (부산, Officially Busan Metropolitan City),  is South Korea's second largest metropolis after Seoul, with a population of approximately 3.6 million. The Metropolitan area (includes adjacent cities of Gimhae and Yangsan) population is 4,399,515 as of 2010. It has Korea's largest beach and Korea's longest river. It is the largest port city in South Korea and the world's fifth busiest seaports by cargo tonnage. The city is located on the southeastern-most tip of the Korean peninsula. The most densely built up areas of the city are situated in a number of narrow valleys between the Nakdong River and Suyeong River, with mountains separating some of the districts. Administratively, it is designated as a Metropolitan City. The Busan metropolitan area is divided into 15 major administrative districts and a single county.
Busan was the host city of the 2002 Asian Games and APEC 2005 Korea. It was also one of the host cities for the 2002 FIFA World Cup, and is a center for international conventions in Korea. On November 14, 2005, the city authorities officially announced its bid to host the 2020 Summer Olympics Games. After Pyeongchang's successful bid for the 2018 Winter Olympics, the city is considering its bid to host the 2024 or 2028 Summer Olympics.
Busan is home to the world's largest department store, the Shinsegae Centum City.


Parks, beaches, and resorts

Haeundae Beach

Beomeosa Temple

APEC Nurimaru

Yongdusan Park at night

Haedong Yonggungsa Temple

Geumjeongsan to the west is a popular weekend hiking spot for Busan residents. To the north, the neighborhoods around Pusan National University (also known as PNU, which is one of the most highly recognized national institutes of higher education in Korea) have student theaters, cafes, bars and restaurants, as well as open-air cultural street performances on weekend nights. Nearby is Beomeosa, the city's main Korean Buddhist temple.

Yongdusan Park occupies 69,000 square meters/17 acres (7 ha) and is home to the Busan Tower, Yongdusan Art Gallery, and the Busan Aquarium. The park supports approximately seventy different species of trees and is a favorite tourist desitination, with various cultural events throughout the year.
Dongnae-gu is a wealthy and traditional residential area. Dongnae Oncheon is a natural spa area with many baths, tourist hotels, restaurants, clubs and shopping areas. Many restaurants in the area use family recipes. Chungnyeolsa is a Confucian shrine for soldiers who died during the 16th century battle against the Japanese at Dongnae Fortress.

Busan is called the summer capital of Korea since it attracts tourists from all over the country to its six beaches. Luxury hotels and a carnival boardwalk line the beach at Haeundae. Gwangalli Beach has cafes, bars, and restaurants along the beach, and the Grand Gwangan Bridge. The area around Pukyong National University and Kyungsung University has many cafes, bars and restaurants attracting college students and youth.
Taejongdae is a natural park with magnificent cliffs facing the open sea on the island of Yeongdo.

The area known as the "Foreigners' Shopping Street", but commonly referred to as "Texas Street" near part of the Port of Busan, and adjacent to the front entrance to the Busan Train Station (부산역) has many businesses that cater to the local Russian population, as well as the crews of foreign ships. The area was originally the location of the local Chinatown and still contains a Chinese school.
Busan Aquarium, located in Haeundae Beach, is the largest aquarium in South Korea. Haedong Yonggung temple is one of 3 sacred places related to the Goddess Buddha. It is located right next to the sea. It lies in a mountain in the front and the sea at the back.

Traditional cuisine

Dongnae pajeon

Busan Fishmarket

Busan was once a center of military affairs in the southern region of the peninsula and therefore was an important site for diplomatic relationships with Japan; high-ranking officers and officials from the court frequently visited the city. Special foods were prepared for the officers such as Dongnae pajeon (동래파전), a variant of pajeon (Korean savory pancakes), made with whole scallions, sliced chili peppers, and various kinds of seafood in a thick batter of wheat flour, glutinous rice flour, eggs, salt and water.

During the Korean War, Busan was the biggest refugee destination on the peninsula; people from all regions of Korea came there. Some of these refugees stayed and adapted and adjusted the recipes of their local specialties. One of these foods is milmyeon (밀면) (lit. 'wheat noodle') a version of naengmyeon, cold buckwheat noodle soup, but using wheat flour instead. (Naengyeon is originally a specialty food of Hamhung and Pyongyang, the northern regions of the Korean peninsula, now part of North Korea.) Dwaeji gukbap (돼지국밥) (lit. 'pork/pig soup rice') is also a result of Korean War. It is a hearty pork soup and is becoming more popular nation-wide.