Stonington, Maine

Stonington Harbor

I lived in Stonington during the summers when I was in college. It's a small town on Deer Isle, about an hour and half from Bangor. At least the way I drive it is, I heard some fishermen claiming they could make it in 30 minutes. I went back for the first time in years this summer. I didn't take too many pictures, unfortunately.

Looking down towards the harbor

The main street runs along the harbor. It's a fairly small town, just over a thousand people. It's not close to anything, but it really is beautiful. A lot of people who live there are fishermen or lobstermen. There are also several art galleries for tourists. There is a little conflict between the two groups. There used to be a lot of granite quarries (hence the name) but most of them have been shut down now.

You can actually see a tiny part of the house I lived in, I think. It's on the far right.

I took this photo years ago, when I still lived there. I didn't mind the fog, but I didn't like the fog horns. They could be startlingly loud. I did get used to it.

Caterpillar Hill

This was taken in Sedgwick, on the trip back from Stonington. You can see the bridge to Little Deer Isle from this spot, but it's not visible in the picture. This was taken facing west, towards Camden.

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Peggy's Cove

I went to Nova Scotia in September, I'm not sure why it took me so long to post these pictures. Peggy's Cove is near Halifax. It's a major tourist attraction, but it wasn't that crowded the day I went. The light was incredibly strange the day I went. It's hard to tell that from the photos, but I think it makes the photos seem a little unreal.

This was taken in the town next to Peggy's Cove. Indian Harbor, I think.

Peggy's Cove

This looks like it's a toy village, I think.

Not a great shot but you can see more of the town.

Taken from the same place, looking towards the ocean.

The lighthouse

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Book Vending Machine - Singil

This is the most interesting vending machine I've seen. I saw it at Singil station in Seoul. I have no idea what the books are about. They were 2000 won, or about $2 (at the time - I don't know what the exchange rate is now).

It opened up the books periodically so that people could see a random page, which I thought was pretty useful.

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More Bongeunsa Photos

Cherry blossoms

Bongeunsa is a Buddhist temple in Gangnam. It was built in 794, but few of the original building remain.

Skyscrapers

It's hard to completely leave the city behind, but it's still peaceful and quiet, particularly if you just came from the COEX building.

Flowers

It's worth visiting in the spring, to see all the flowers. They also grow grapes, so if you go in the right season, you can pick them yourself. Unless I imagined that. I definitely had grapes once when I was there, but I'm not completely certain they grew them there. I find Korean grapes to be a bit too grape-y flavored. That probably says more about the quality of grapes in the US though. I've had some fantastic strawberries though. 

Buddha

The state of Buddha is actually much larger than it looks in this picture, but I don't really like the other photos I took, so you'll just have to imagine it.

Temple Buildings

It took awhile to get used to all the reverse swastikas. You see it a lot on maps, it's a symbol for a Buddhist temple. It means the same thing in Japan, but I think it's more common to see it painted on the temple itself in South Korea.

Lanterns

I believe these lanterns are for Buddha's birthday. They put out lanterns for a lot of the festivals. I've seen lotus-shaped ones and all-white ones. I posted more photos of them here: Lanterns in South Korea

Man reading a newspaper

Not everyone was there to pray or sight-see. I think some people were locals trying to stay out of the heat. There are a lot of volunteers and monks walking around too. Quite a few people spoke English and were willing to talk about Buddhism - they have day programs where you can follow the monks around. Everyone I talked to were super-calm and peaceful. It's very different from the rest of Seoul. I imagine most temples are like that.

Side of temple building

To get there: Take Line 2 to Samseong. Take exit 6 and walk north (away from the big intersection). Take a left at the next intersection, and look for the trees (it's on the other side of the road, so cross over). I think you could also take Line 7 and get off at Cheongdam, but it's a longer walk. It's been a few years since I've been there, so it's probably a good idea to double-check before you go.

Bongeunsa Official Website

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Hong Kong from Victoria Peak

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Gyeongbokgung Palace in Seoul

Gyeongbokgung Palace, Seoul

I took these pictures a few years ago when I was living about an hour south of Seoul. Usually when I went to Seoul, I was looking for English language books or good foreign food, but did visit a few interesting places. I'd love to go back to see the things I missed.

Hyangwongeong Pavilion with the museum in the background

Gyeongbokgung Palace was originally built in 1394. It's been nearly demolished and rebuilt twice. They are still rebuilding it now. It was only about a third done when I went. There were originally over 300 buildings. It must have been a huge complex.

One of the inner buildings

 

A small gate

Gwanghwamun - the main gate into the Palace

The city is built up right to the palace walls on the south, so you can see the skyscrapers. I think the other three directions are greener. Apparently since I've taken this picture, they moved the entire gate 14 meters south. I had wanted to go back right before I left, but it was blocked off, so I was lucky I went when I did.

Corner of one of the buildings

I like how every bit of wood was painted, even the parts most people wouldn't be looking at. 

My feeling is this was taken somewhere on the western side of the complex, but unfortunately I don't remember where.

View Larger Map

To get there: Take Line 3 and get off at Gyeongbokgung station. You could also get off at Gwanghwamun station on Line 5. It's only a few blocks away, and depending on where you are coming from, it might save you from transferring and going another 3 stops. I think the Kyobo bookstore (which had a decent English section) is right by Gwanghwamun station.

Gyeongbokgung - Korean Tourism Org 

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Lanterns in South Korea

Bongeunsa Temple, Seoul, South Korea, near the COEX building.
This was for a holiday. I'm not sure which one, but I believe the lanterns are lotus blossoms.

Also at Bongeunsa Temple.

Gunpo, South Korea. This town is between Anyang and Suwon, south of Seoul. Admittedly the lanterns are pretty small, but I thought the flowers looked beautiful so I'm including it anyway.

This is in the art mall off of Insadong, a street in Seoul. There are a lot of art galleries and tea shops in the area. It's pretty crowded and touristy, but I think it's worth a visit (and I'm not a big fan of galleries).

At the top of the mall in the last picture, looking towards the street. I believe this was the day of Lotus Lantern Festival. If you are in May, definitely try to see the parade. The date varies because it's based on the lunar calendar, but it's on or near Buddha's Birthday.

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