Ready to go temple hoppin? Temples in Asia are places where local culture, religion, family, and art meet and are on display, hence we travelers are so attracted to them. I’ve planned entire trips around temples I want to visit (or stay in), so follow along as I share what I’ve found!
South Korea’s second city and largest port, Busan, is home to a surprisingly impressive array of breathtaking temples. Busan’s temples are a varied lot, from sea-facing temple complexes to ancient mountain retreats with Buddhas carved into cliff walls, and everything in between. For this reason, temples are surely one of the things South Korea is …
One of the most enticing draws of Southeast Asia is the abundance of mesmerizingly gorgeous temples dotting the landscape. Shimmering with gold, dominating cityscapes, beckoning the masses to devotion – Southeast Asian temples are testaments the region’s rich colonial history, cultural diversity, religious syncretism, and piousness of its people. In this article I have …
Chiang Mai is one of the top destinations in a country that is one of the most visited in the world. Including domestic tourists, 10 million people visit Chiang Mai every year (pre-2020 figures, of course!) The amazing assortment of temples in Chiang Mai is one of the city’s greatest draws. Chiang Mai was once …
Are you looking to dig a little deeper into Korean Buddhist culture during your travels in South Korea? If so, doing a Beomeosa temple stay in Busan is an experience you won’t soon forget. Recently I took advantage of insanely cheap flight deals (only $200 return!) from Taipei, where I live, to Busan, South Korea’s …
Lion’s Head Mountain (also known as Shitoushan or 獅頭山) is one of the most underrated attractions in Taiwan. Whether you enjoy hiking, are interested in Taiwan’s Buddhist and folk religious culture, want to spend a night in a temple, or simply want to get off the beaten track in Taiwan, Lion’s Head Mountain should be …
Museums have never really been my thing. I lived in Taipei for five years before I ever stepped foot in the National Palace Museum, one of the most important museums in the Chinese-speaking world. But I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed the comparatively small Museum of World Religions Taipei (世界宗教博物館), the only …
Qufu, China is a small but ancient town 550 kilometers south of Beijing in Shandong. This province is famous for three things: Qingdao beer, Tai Shan (Mount Tai), and Qufu, the hometown of Confucius. The Temple of Confucius Qufu is the largest and most important Confucius temple in the world, and together with the adjoining …
In 2018 I visited Wakayama, a remote and wild region of Japan south of Osaka and Nagoya, to walk parts of the Kumano Kodo, a network of ancient pilgrimage trails. These trails are easily accessible, making them one of the best pilgrimages in the world for travelers. Besides these amazing hot springs at the eastern …
Almost exactly 10 years ago as I write this, I left my home in Canada to go traveling and teach English in China. I had traveled extensively before that, but this was the first time I was leaving on a one-way ticket. It was a path that eventually led me to Taiwan, where I still …
On my recent 10-day winter trip to Japan, my plan was to not step foot in a single city, hike parts of the Kumano Kodo pilgrimage, one of the world’s best pilgrimages that travelers can easily embark on, and only stay in traditional minshuku, ryokan, and temples. For the latter, doing a temple stay in …
