Another (out of sequence) naked wander from my RTW trip.
This one was in south Korea. Not a place I thought any chance of getting naked while out for a walk would be possible. But I rode up to a temple on a hill top at Seokguram in the Gyeongju National park in the south east of Korea. The temple itself was relatively interesting with a famous statue of Buddha and a strictly no photographs policy. It was a bit of a walk uphill to get there and I actually enjoyed the scenery and the natural world on the way there more than seeing the statue. But once there I noticed a signed path that went to the summit of the hill
On the exit from the temple there was an area wher the failthful could light a lantern... I assume in a similar way to the catholic faith of lighting a candle to remember the deceased.
Deciding to take the uphill path despite the humidity I passed through a gate and from that point on actually didn't see another person until I passed two chaps struggling uphill on my way back from the summit.
The heat was overwhelming and wearing shorts and a tshirt I was soon overheating as I climbed the steep path.
Once I decided I was confident that no one else was mad enough to scale the hill in the heat of the day I lost my clothes, which in most cases eases the sense of heat as a cooling breeze chills my skin..
The path was smooth and obviously well trodden, but on a mid week day in what is probably the hottest part of the year, it was quiet. Not many cars were in the voluminous car park at the temple and everyone I had seen both local and obvious tourists were walking to the temple and returning via the gift shop.
The air on my skin didn't help cool me in this case though - The humidity was overwhelming to my european sensitivity. Something that changes over the coming months and I acclimatised to hotter climes.
To one side of the path I spotted a rock formation that looked out over the hillside. On further investigation it wa not just a natural feature, but had been work on and provided what I can only describe as a bird bath style carving, that I later wondered it it provided a source of water for foolish climbers!
As the path rose the humidity increased until, despite walking naked I was soaked. The flora dripping with water and the air seemingly incredibly thick - if that's possible. I was slightly aware that I was in an environment that I'm not familiar with. I know that in such climates snakes and insects could offer a risk , but I was careful and/or lucky that I encountered no problems.
After a walk of around 45 minutes from the temple I reached the top and the view was quite stunning
I rested at the top aware that I was in a very exposed place I suffered a little lapse of confidence. I did find a helipad at the summit and wondered why it might be there. To one side there appeared to what I think was a weather station. So I assumed that measurements must be taken, meaning the helicopter probably saved anyone having to make the hot walk to the top.
After drinking the bottle of water I had and recovering a little I started to make my way back. Walking easier the change in temperature was obvious with every metre I descended. As I approached a turn in the path I spotted a bright red spot on the path some way in front of me. Donning shorts I came across the two Korean gents resting on a bench. What looked like a elderly father and son making their own pilgrimage to the top.
All in all I walked from just outside the temple gate to the summit and about a third of the way back down - about a two hour walk in total and all the way there and some of the way back walking naked and loving the sensory overload that it provided in an environment that was completely at odds to what I have previously experienced.
