Taejong Dae-Suicide Cliffs

Taejongdae is a rugged stretch of coastline, crowned by a 250 m-high cliff face. It is named after King Taejong Muyeol, who used to practice archery here. Inside the park, you can look down from an observation deck at the fishermen perched on the rocks below. The cliffs are nicknamed the Suicide Cliffs because of the number of young Koreans who have leapt off of them. Koreans live in a very stressful society, with lots of pressure on their young people. For many teenagers and young adults, it is to much for them to handle.

On the hike around the park we stopped at one observatory deck over looking the Sea of Japan.

View of the steep cliff face.

Here is the midway point of the park's loop. It serves as an observatory with a few telescopes and a small snack bar.

The view looking down the cliffs.

In order to prevent future suicides, the local government erected a stature of a mother watching over the cliffs. The Statue of Mother and Children was built in 1976. It helps remind those who about to commit suicide of their mother's unconditional love for them and will hopefully encourage them to not give up on life.

Video of the cliffs.

All of the nature and trees made us feel a bit more at home. It was nice to get a break from the busy and noisy city streets.

Being a Recreation and Parks major, Alaina LOVED these water faucets!

Taejong Dae is an island, so you have to take a bus to get there. Along the way you could see the bustling container port of Busan Harbor. Here we passed huge ships, warehouses, and more massive boats being constructed. Since it is the farthest point south of Busan, there are a lot of industries in this area.

We are heading back to the city. Alaina is sitting on a bus, with plenty of room everywhere around, yet this woman decides to stand as close as possible to my side, forcing me to stare out the window for the remainder of the ride. Koreans have no idea or understanding about 'personal space'.