Seoraksan, Day 1

I’ve seen two moods of Seoraksan, grey and sun-drenched. The first of my three-day visit to this northeastern national park had coolish hiking air and mist in the peaks while the second and final were blue-skied and bright. It’s hard not to be awed, from well before the front gate where your car or bus…

Seoraksan, Day 3

Day Three should have been more strenuous than it was. First I ambled through Sinheungsa, a Buddhist temple of the Jogye Order. The layout will be familiar to visitors of other Korean temples: the brilliantly fierce Four Heavenly Kings, the square inner courtyard and living quarters that flank it and the elevated main shrine hall….