Busan(Busanjin-gu)

Founded in 1986, Samgwangsa Temple is the second Cheontae (천태종), located in Choeup-dong, Busanjin-gu, Busan. The temple nestled in the hillside of the Baekyang mountain so all Busan area is viewed at one glance with the bright morning sunshine. It opens 24 hours for praying and continues its practice Buddhism religiously everyday.


Seoul(Mapo-gu) , Yeouido・Yeongdeungpo・Mapo

Korea Etiquette Institue is dedicated to observing, researching, developing and passing down Korea's etiquette. Education programs are also available.


Seoul(Yangcheon-gu) , The Western Part of the Seoul

The International Seon Center, operated by the Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism, is a global templestay center where both local residents and foreign visitors alike can experience Korea’s Buddhist cultural practices. The seven-story building with three basement floors is equipped with various facilities including the Seon (Zen) practice hall, templestay hall, Great Dharma hall, and education and culture halls. The temple offers opportunities to experience traditional Korean Buddhist culture through such programs as Ganwha Seon (meditation classes), Templestay, Seon Culture Class, and temple food lectures. The regular Sunday ceremony provides a dharma talk both in Korean and English.


Seoul(Jung-gu) , Seoul City Hall・Gwanghwamun

Background Information: The Chungdong Church, having being completed in 1898, is Korea’s first Protestant church. The church was 115 pyeongs when it was first built, but as they added some extra buildings to each wing in 1926, it now stands at 175 pyeongs.The Church has been declared the 256th greatest achievement, displaying a North American style Gothic architecture. Inside the church grounds stands a bust of the founder, Minister Appenzeller, and a 50th year commemoration memorial. In 1889, the church appeared in a monthly publication magazine called ‘Church’ as having Korea’s first summer Bible studies and also one of the leading churches who does missionary work. Chungdong Church is located in the center of the beautiful Chungdong Street, and is especially beautiful in autumn, when the leaves fall from the trees that line the street. Chungdong Theater, Deoksugung Palace, and Seoul Museum of Art are also in the vicinity, making it a great place for tourism.


Seoul(Jongno-gu) , Samcheongdong・The Northern Part of the Seoul

Seoul is enveloped by mountains, consisting of Bugaksan, Namsan, Naksan, and Inwangsan to name a few major peaks surrounding the city. Bugaksan, the mountain located to the north of Seoul, is the highest among these and is a southern offshoot of Bukhansan Mountain. It is also referred to as Baegaksan. Seoul Fortress Wall runs along the mountain ridge and Changuimun (also called Jahamun), one of the four small gates surrounding the castle town during the Joseon Dynasty, is on the west side of the mountain near Inwangsan Mountain. Running between Changuimun and Arirang Hill in Jeongreung, Bugak Skyway is a scenic road overlooking downtown Seoul; it also passes through a variety of attractions such as Changuimun and Bugak Pavilion. Another attraction is Samcheong Park at the southern foot of Bugaksan Mountain. Inwangsan Mountain (to the west of Bugaksan) and Naksan (to the east) were considered ideal locations, according to the philosophy of Feng Shui. Known for its rugged granite, Inwangsan Mountain was the site of many tigers attacks during the founding of the Joseon Dynasty. According to legend, the king entreated the mountain deity to send the tigers across the Yalu River. Even though the tigers were banished from Inwangsan, one female tiger bearing babies was allowed to remain on the mountain. The babies, subsequently multiplied and made Inwangsan a feared place, full of tigers. Inwang Skyway connects the east of Inwangsan to Bugaksan. The eastern side of Inwangsan was turned into a posh residential area while Guksadang (literally "National Shrine") was moved from Namsan to an area west of the mountain in the 1920s. Even today, shamans perform exorcisms at the shrine, as well as rituals honoring the mountain deities.


Seoul(Gangdong-gu) , The Eastern Part of the Seoul

Riverview 8th Avenue is the only cultural area in Korea located beneath a bridge. Not just a performance venue, the building also houses a gallery depicting the 100-year history of the Hangang River and a Hangang Renaissance Project Promotion Room, which provides a glimpse of developers’ plans to further revive the river into a prime leisure spot for citizens and tourists.Thanks to its location under the Gwangjingyo Bridge in Hangang Park (Gwangnaru area), Riverview 8th Avenue affords a scenic view of the river as seen from its glass observatory. Live performances are held on Friday or weekend nights; applications can be made online and a few winners are chosen at random to watch each performance.


Daegu(Buk-gu)

Upon first glance, visitors may notice the Daegu Opera House is designed to resemble the smooth curvy lines of a grand piano. The four story glass-walled performance center, is a fantastic work of art in and of itself. A total of 1,490 seats in a horseshoe layout along with modern stage facilities create an impressive venue to enjoy performances.The opera house also holds a wide range of programs that are fun and affordable. There are also special performances for international visitors to ensure all that spend a night out at the opera have an enjoyable evening.Since 2004, the facility has offered an opera class to learn theoretic studies and practical techniques of opera ranging from how to enjoy opera, what is aria, operas in movies, to stage make-up skills and so forth. The venue has become a cultural centerpiece of Daegu as it holds not just the ‘Daegu Opera Festival’ but other performances of diverse genres such as concerts, musicals and ballet performances.


Seoul(Jongno-gu) , Insadong・Jongnon

Opened on April 1, 1981, Arko Arts Theater’s mission statement is to “boost performance art, obtain performance space to promote its popularity among the public, and support stages to pure art organizations facing financial difficulties."Over the last 24 years, it has made immense contributions to the development of Korean performance art. By the end of 2004, the theater offered 20,581 performances and attracted over 4 million visitors.As the center of performance art, the theater also began to attract a slew of small theaters and has played a pivotal role in promoting performance art and populating Dongsung-dong with artist. Currently, Daehakro (College Street) is home to over 58 theaters that offer colorful performances every day, making it the focal point of performance art in Korea.Large performance hall, children's playroom, small performance hall, practice room pianos, visual equipment (TV and VTR recording), audio equipment (recording, music/effects editing), stages (revolving state, elevated state, and orchestra pit), lobbies (first and second floor of large performance hall and small performance hall) 


Seoul(Jongno-gu) , Insadong・Jongnon

Located inside Changdeokgung Palace, Nakseonjae Hall is a one-storey structure built in ikgong style (bird wing-shaped eaves placed on top of the pillars) with a hip tiled and gable roof. It has 6 kans in the front and 2 kans to the sides (kan: a traditional unit of measurement referring to the space between two columns; roughly 2-4 meters). It originally belonged to the nearby Changgyeonggung Palace, but came to be considered a part of Changdeokgung Palace in more recent years. The hall was constructed in 1846 (12th year of King Heonjong’s reign) and it is collectively called Nakseonjae together with the adjacent Seokbokheon Hall and Sugangjae Hall. The main gate of these three buildings is known as Jangnakdang, which consists of 12 kans of namhaenggak (south corridor building) at Nakseonjae. Upon entering the gate is an extensive yard leading to Nakseonjae. Of the 6 front kans, a single kan on the far right side protrudes out to the front to create a balcony-like loft. Meanwhile, the main building features an ordinary housing style with square foundation stones and pillars placed on top of a rectangular stone base. The furnace and the surrounding areas beneath the loft are marked by unique mosaic decorations of irregular lines and the kitchen doors feature diverse design patterns. At the back of the building is a flower garden made by stacking large stones. The chimney, the flowers, and the oddly shaped stones harmoniously blend into one another to create an outstanding landscape gardening. The interconnected Seokbokheon Hall also has 6 kans in the front and 2 kans to the sides and it is a part of ansarang (inner reception room). The outer corridors skirting the building lead to Sugangjae Hall, which is 15 kans in size.


Seoul(Jongno-gu)

Gyeonggyojang House is located in Pyeong-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul. It is regarded as a historic site, and used to be an office and place of residence until Baekbeom Kim Koo, a leading figure during the Korean provisional government, was assassinated on June 26, 1949. He had previously returned from China in November, 1945. The house is one of three locations where activities critical to the foundation of a democratic government took place, prior to the government’s establishment (the other two are Lee Seungman's Ihwajang House and Kim Gyusik's Samcheongjang House).Choe Changhak, who gained money from a gold mine, built the Japanese-style Gyeonggyojang House covering a ground area of 5,237 ㎡ (1,584 pyeong) and a total floor area of 876 ㎡ (265 pyeong) from Basement Level 1 to Ground Floor 2 in 1938. Choe Changhak offered the house to Kim Koo as a place of residence at the time of Korean Independence on August 15. Its original name was Jukcheomjang, a Japanese name, and Kim Koo changed it to its current name, which derives from a nearby bridge. The Gyeonggyojang House has been owned by Kangbuk Samsung Medical Center (Formerly Goryeo Hospital) since 1968.