10 April 2024
Designated tourist area
Northeast Gyeongju
Tonight I headed in the exact opposite direction to where I have been going on previous nights. The map showed that this direction has a 'designated tourist area'. I assumed that would mean historic stuff, shops, restaurants with picture menus etc. but no, designated tourist area means hotels that rent by the hour. There are lots.
You can find food in this are but it is not really my kind of thing, it is either a hotpot for 4 people minimum, or Korean fried chicken. That's it, no other choices.
While on the failed hunt for food on this side of town I did however find a solitary tomb. Smaller, with a stone base. I have been pondering ever since what happened to this guy that his tomb is on the opposite side of town to everyone else. I will never know.
Eventually I wandered most of the way back, which included crossing a stream and found hot pot for one! That was exciting.
Now for a few pics of all this nonsense.
I have seen this building across the road from my hotel and thought nothing of it. It turns out it is a multi level supermarket. As a connoisseur of supermarkets all over the world, this is exciting news.
I passed a new city gate and wall on my journey. So I climbed up it to investigate.
Other side of the wall.
Late afternoon sun makes for great drain photos, the same drain / creek I would cross later on those rocks you see below.
This is the former train track that ran through the middle of town, now ripped up.
Once over in the north eastern part of the city and high rise modern apartments are again a feature. There are not really any of these in the old tourist part of town.
The solo lonely funeral mound on this side of the city. Banished for eternity.
Here is an example of the hotels to rent by the hour streets that make up the designated tourist area.
Now I bravely crossed the raging torrent of water. I can report that I made it safely across and did not get wet.
I was surprised to see that a few places are still open in this market after dark, you never know when you might need blended fish guts.
This is the old station, now useless. Note the I love Gyeongju sign proudly boasts of APEC 2025. If it were to be cancelled for any reason, they may never recover.
And finally, my hot pot for one. It looks like a huge amount of food, but the vegetables piled high on top of the burner boiled down to nearly nothing very soon. It was all bean shoots, mushrooms and cabbage. So with the few thin slithers of beef, this was basically almost a healthy vegetable soup.
Tomorrow is a hiking day of sorts, I have spotted a path that takes in various abandoned relics on a mountain trail. It is hard to tell how long it is - I think the far end has no bus so I might have to double back.