Gongju
Dear family and friends: Soon after entering Korea I met with unforeseeable circumstances that landed me in a crude prison.
Nor was I the only subjected to this cruel, unusual punishment.
After pleading our case, the locals realized their grievous error and honored us with titles of royalty.
We wandered the ancient fortress (also not paying the fee for admission). Guardian spirits leered at us, promising a torturous death should we so much as step in a discourteous fashion.
Such was our trip to Gongsanseong in Gongju city.
In one shot below you can see the mascot of Gongju, the bear. The story goes that a mother bear fell in love with a lumberjack who escaped her by swimming across the Gold River (which you can see in some of the above shots). The mother bear followed along with her cubs and drowned in the river. The statue below depicts her yearning for the escaped lumberjack only moments before her tragic death.
The 2nd picture is the view from across her. There you see a bridge that cuts across the Gold River.
Also, you can see the rotating bear. I'm not sure what his purpose is, but he's pretty darned funny and cute. How often do you see a giant rotating bear in a suit?
That night we ate kalguksu and of course there was the omnipresent kimchi, the latter of which I did not partake. After an arduous flight back into the county only 2 days before, I nearly fell asleep on my hosts and was soon whisked back to my friend's apartment where I promptly passed out.
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