Many foreign students are in POSTECH and many foreigners come to Pohang for sightseeing. One of the first places that they visit is Homigot. Yeongil beach is also popular. In addition, there are many historical places where visitors can experience history of Pohang. However, it is questionable whether foreigners know about these historical sites. For example, there are Janggieup Castle and Ilwolji Pond in Nam-gu, and Bogyeongsa and Oeoji in Buk-gu.
Janggi-Eup Castle, is located in Eupnae-ri, Janggi-myeon, Nam-gu, has military and administrative roles for Pohang citizens’ safety. Yeongil Janggi-Eup Castle was first constructed to prevent invasion from the Japanese and Yeo-jin tribe during the Koryeo Dynasty. Its first structure was made of soil and then it was replaced by stone during the Joseon Dynasty. The government office within the castle was almost destroyed by Japanese soldiers during the colonial period. Only Hyanggyo, a Confucian school, has been recovered and maintained by the residents.
Another historical site in Nam-gu is Ilwolji Pond, which is located in Ocheon-eup. The ‘Il’ and ‘wol’ each indicates the sun and the moon, which was derived from a love story. During the Silla Dynasty, there lived a couple who made their living by fishing. One day, the husband was sitting on a stone to pick up seaweed. Suddenly the rock started moving toward Japan. He arrived there and became the king of the island. His wife was looking for her husband, and as soon as she stood up on the stone, it moved to Japan again. She became the queen. The story is awkward. Afterwards, the sun and the moon did not arise in the sky, so the people of Silla asked the couple to comeback to Pohang, but they could not. Instead, the people performed ancestral rites with a fabric queen weaved in Ilwolji, which made the sun and the moon shine again.
Bogyeongsa is a temple located in Jungsan-ri, Buk-gu. The temple has splendid Mt. Jungnamsan at its back and is surrounded by a chain of small mountains from Mt. Naeyeonsan. It also boasts a clean stream flowing from a deep valley, which is famous for 12 waterfalls. In the reign of King Jinpyeong in Silla, there was a Buddhist high priest who told King Jinpyeong to bury Palmyeonbogyeong (a scripture) and build a Buddhist temple to prevent Japanese pirates from invading Silla and unify the Three Kingdoms. According to the priest, the king really did so and established the temple named Bogyeongsa.
Oeosa, located in Ocheon-eup, is a temple with beautiful scenery. Its name came from an interesting story of two Buddhist masters Wonhyo and Hyegong. One day, the masters made a bet that after swallowing a live fish and releasing it on the edge of a rock, the one whose fish is alive will win the bet. They each swallowed a fish, then only one of the fish was released alive and went up the stream briskly. Simultaneously, the two priests said, ?here goes my fish”, and both roared with laughter. “O” and “eo” represent “I” and “fish”, meaning “I saved the fish”. Oeosa has Daewoongjeon (Buddhist temple), Beomjong (Buddhist bell), and other relics.
In addition, so many historical sites contain the ancient life of Pohang. Even Hyoja has ’Yeonil Hyanggyo Daes- eongjeon’ and it is very easy to find temples, Confucian schools, and old houses in Yeongildae. Yeongildae and Hyoja are close enough to POSTECH for the foreign students to go to refresh themselves with antique structures.