A day trip to San Pedro: The Korean Bell of Friendship!
Often times, in a metropolis like Los Angeles, we like to discover new and exciting landmarks that are often not written about in the local LA times. Case and point, my day trip to the city of San Pedro where you can visit Angels Gate Park and tour the breathtaking Korean Friendship Bell. My husband and I went down this past weekend as I had seen the place in photos but never had spent time there. San Pedro, located just south of LA, is a small city that borders the Pacific Ocean with it’s coastal cliffs and astounding views from all around. Many people visit here on the weekends when the weather is lovely and the sun is shining. Now that April has officially arrived and spring is in full swing, it is the perfect time to go. It took us about 1 full hour to get down there by vehicle and it was definitely a breath of fresh air to say the least.
The Korean Bell of Friendship
This massive and intricately-decorated bell and pavilion was donated in 1976 to the people of Los Angeles by the people of the Republic of Korea to celebrate the bicentennial of the U.S. independence, honor veterans of the Korean War, and to consolidate traditional friendship between the two countries. The bell is patterned after the Bronze Bell of King Songdok, which was cast in 771 A.D. and is still on view in South Korea today. It took them ten months to build this amazing structure and cost over $500,000 to build. There are twelve pillars that hold up the structure, each one containing the twelve beautiful designs of the Oriental zodiac. From the top of the hill where the pagoda stands, you have a magnificent view of Catalina Island and the Port of Los Angeles, which, with Port Long Beach, receives 25% of all shipping containers coming into the US. This bell is still in use today and is rung on a few different holidays including July 4- Independence Day, January 13 - Korean-American day, and August 15 - National Liberation Day for Korea. It is so colorful and such a sight to see!
How gorgeous is this structure! Rocking my cute dress from Anthropologie!
It was such a windy day! Loved it!
Clearly my hair was having a blast :) LOL!
ANGELS GATE PARK
Housing the Korean Bell of Friendship, this park is the perfect place to come for a picnic and bring the entire family. There is a gentlemen here that sells everything from refreshments to kites. I purchased a kite because why not! To be honest, I don’t think I have assembled a kite since I was a kid so it brought back so many memories for me. It was quite windy the day we went but perfect for flying. Roaming around and seeing all the beautiful wildflowers was absolutely fabulous. I felt like a child all over again. Definitely worth checking out and if you time it right, it’s the perfect place for views of the sunset!
Let’s go fly a kite, up to where the air is bright!
I haven’t flown a kite since I was a kid!
Flying away in this cute dress from Anthropologie!
Spring is in the air! So happy that it’s April finally!
How cute is this purse!
Purse: Zara:
This dress is the perfect for spring!
Dress: Zara: