After the morning ordeal at Gyeongju Market, I decide to make a trip to Bulguksa Temple, one of Korea's best-known, and a must for visitors. I hail bus no. 11 in the street and mutter 'Bulguksa' to the driver, and with the help of an English-speaking Korean passenger (lucky me!), I discover the fare is 1,300 won (US$1.30).
The Korean bus systems in the urban areas work totally on trust. You should know how much your fare is, and just dump any combo of coins and notes into a receptacle, which swallows the whole lot into a metallic box. If you need change, just tell the driver, and he will operate a button which causes the cash box to spew out the exact change...or something like that. The thing I notice is that people entering the bus just throw cash (or use some sort of e-cash card), and the driver is not bothered a single bit - except when somebody asks for change. It is a very simple and convenient system.
Thirty minutes later, I am deposited at the car park of Bulguksa Temple, and I make an uphill trek to the entrance of the complex. Quite a task, especially with a pack on the back! It is located in the scenic forest at the foot of Mt Tohamsan, southeast of Gyeongju town.
