Templestay

In an effort to cross of one more adventure from my Korean bucket list, I participated in a templestay this past weekend.  The Buddhist temple I decided to stay at is located on Gwanwado Island, a 3.5 hour commute via public transportation from where I live.  Correction.  In reality, it was more like a 5.5 hour commute via public transportation.  I was a little late.  The plan was to get there around 2, stay the night, and then check out at noon the next day.  Everything was pushed back by about an hour or so, but it didn't matter much. 

I'll say right off the bat that it was a good experience, but not quite what I had been expecting.  What I had heard from friends, and read online, lead me to believe that this would be a somewhat strict, silent, and contemplative introduction into Korean Buddhism and the lifestyle of the monks.  I chose to go to this specific one because there would be a Russian monk present who could speak some English.  That way I would be able to understand more of what was going on, and get more out of the experience.  There were five of us who showed up independently (myself, and four friends from San Francisco), and about 40 foreign English teachers who came via group tour.  They brought a bit of a spring break vibe to the event - not something I had anticipated.  Regardless, it was fun - and as it turned out, I actually knew one of the people from the group tour.  It was nice to see a familiar face.

So, my day started off with me leaving my apartment around 9:30am, hopping on the subway for a little over an hour, and then eventually catching a bus.  (Waiting for the bus to arrive was what delayed my plans so drastically.)  Once I figured out which bus stop to get off at, I had a make-shift map to navigate around town.  The map led me up a hill and through the East Gate of the temple.  Once through the temple wall, I continued to walk all the way up to the very tippy-top of the hill where the temple office was located and found the person I had been in contact with while planning the trip.  

  

The East Temple Gate

The activities hadn't begun yet, so the only repercussion of me showing up late was that my rooming situation had to be adjusted.  Initially, I was supposed to stay with all of the girls in the group tour. We were all to share a large room and sleep on a bunch of mats on the floor - sardine style, which isn't uncommon here.  Given that everyone was already settled in there, I was actually given my own private room.  My delinquency paid off!  ;)

My Sleeping Mat

It's hard to tell, but my room was more or less a small square, with three sets of doors.  It had a electricity, a light, floor heating, a sleeping mat, blanket, and rice pillow.