Looking Familiar - Jeongsusa Temple & Yaksuam Hermitage

A long morning walk with the doggies, and another new discovery.

Linda and I tried a road we had never been on. It led to a tiny little temple called 정소사 Jeongsusa.

Bless its heart. It was like those tiny little mid-west towns that were once small and thriving, but time has taken its toll and they are now just a faded shell of their former glory.

This bell has clearly not been rang for quite some time, as it has been turned into a plant stand. An ornate, beautiful plant stand, mind you, but not a functioning bell tower.

From there we followed a small trail winding its way up the mountain until we came to 얔수암 Yaksuam Hermitage. 

It is very common to see dragons with balls in their mouths. They are often red. There were several speculations about this when I looked it up, but the general consensus is that it is a pearl representing a wisdom.

The bell is on the second story of this building with the entry from the stairs below.

This is painted on the ceiling, with the four traditional guards painted on the walls, two on each side. 

As I climbed the steps, I began thinking that this place looked familiar. Not a shocker since most of the temple buildings in Korea look very similar. That's what the kids say when I am trying to drag them to see another one. And they are not wrong.

It was when we got to the parking lot that we realized we had indeed been here before, several times, actually. It is at the foot of the hike that we call Ladder Rock Hike. We entered from a totally different place since we walked the back path instead of driving up the main road. The things you learn when you're out exploring!

We opted for the backwoods trail on the way home again since it is not as busy as the road.

The crepe myrtles are almost done blooming, but this patch is still going strong. A man was under the trees, pruning them when we walked by.

I love all the flowers here when I'm out exploring; I like the comfort of seeing familiar ones from home like the crepe myrtles above, as well as the ones unique to Asia, like these purple bean pod-type things. 

[September 15]