Jeju

Jeju is an island off the southwestern coast of Korea. It's often referred to as the 'Hawaii of Korea' and it is easy to see why. It contains Korea's tallest mountain, Halla, volcanoes, caves, and a plethora of beaches. I chose to spend my one week vacation here in July. It was the hottest week of the summer, and I spent most of the trip drenched in sweat...but it was still pretty awesome. I spent the first part of the trip in the southern part of the island near Seogwipo and the latter part in the north near Jeju City. I traveled to Jeju alone, but I wasn't alone for long. I met many other travelers.

     

 Seogwipo Area Waterfalls

 

We had a bit of trouble finding the Olle trail, a series of trails that follow the coast (for the most part) all the way around the island, but we located it eventually. It led us to the first and smallest waterfall. The waterfall fell into the sea and was small enough that you could shower below it.

Can you see the ajumma? She is wearing full rain gear under the waterfall and letting the water message her back.
 

We hiked along the Olle trail and were treated to gorgeous views of the coastline.

The trail led us to Jeonhbang Waterfall, which was bigger and also dropped directly into the ocean. The wind was blowing and when you stood within 10 feet you were refreshed with a cool mist from the waterfall.

Along the hike we came upon a small garden blossoming with beautiful flowers.

We wound up taking a taxi to the Cheonjiyeon waterfall as we were getting burned no matter how much sun block we put on. To get to this waterfall you had to walk over a bridge(grr!) and below there were fish that are bigger than my torso!

 

 

 

 

 

We ended the day at Jungman beach where we got in trouble for not swimming in the roped in area. A lot of Koreans can't swim so the designated swimming area was sworming with tubes and vairous floatables. We didn't stay long as they were charging 20,000 won for beach chairs and 10,000 for umbrellas.

 

That night our hostel host came to the porch where we were all hanging out and said 'cold swimming, beer, let's go'. So without knowing exactly what we were getting into we all changed into our swimsuits, piled into the host's van, stopped at the 'supermarket' (aka 7/11), stocked up on beer, and went to the sea. It was a really cool swimming spot. There was a small ice-cold fresh water swimming hole that flowed into the ocean. Even when we were swimming in the ocean, we cold still feel cold fresh water drafts. Before we left, we were told to wash up in the fresh water pool because it was too late to shower when we got back. Another girl and I were the only ones who were able to stay in the fresh water for more than a few seconds. I found the cold water to be refreshing and it did amazing things for my throbbing injured foot.

 

Manjanggul and Gimyeong Maze

The next day my new buddies and I headed out to the east side of the island to see Manjanggul which is apparently the world's longest system of lava tube caves. They're 13.4 km long but it only took about 40 minutes to walk through them. The caves are dimly lit and cool, providing a much welcomed break from the hot humidity outside. You can't tell but we are standing in front of a 7m lava pillar.

Nearby is Gimyeong maze, a hedge maze created and owned by an American expat. Getting lost in the maze was SOO much fun. It made me feel like I was in the Triwizard Tournament from the Goblet of Fire--- and what's more? The people I was with knew and appreciated the reference! We did, or course, eventually find our way out and rang the bell to signify our success.

My first real Irish coffee, made by a real Irishman. There is a scientic process to creating the perfect Irish coffee, so I learned. First, heat a glass coffee mug. Then add one spoonful of brown sugar, add a shot of coffee and dissolve the sugar, add a shot of Jameson, then pour more coffee until it's 3/4 full. Shake whipping cream vigourously. Pour the cream over a spoon so it sits on top of the coffee. Ta-dah, you now have the perfect Irish coffee. And I must say it was delicious--and I don't even like whiskey.

 

 

Saesom Galbi

I had an epic fail of a day in which I tried my darndest to go parasailing, but to no avail. I even got lost on the way back from my unsuccessful outing just to rub it in. Nonetheless, the evening proved to be a treat. We all went out to the famous black pork restaurant that night to eat and it was amazing. The server brings the meat and you cook it yourself on the grill at the table (pretty common in Korea). When it's finished you add all the yummy side dishes and/or sauces, wrap it in lettuce, and devour it. We also played some soju drinking games that I'd never played before...and I lost almost every round.

 

 

Loveland

Korea is not the place you'd expect to find an erotic theme park, but lo and behold Loveland. There are over 100 different sculptures in the park and diaramas in the exhibits. It was certainly an entertaining way to spend the afternoon. It's a bit strange to be surrounded by ajummas and ajashis while taking goofy pictures with these statues.

 

 

 

 

Dragon Rock and Dino Land

2012 is the year of the black dragon and so why not go see the black dragon rock? The black dragon symbolizes hope and bravery. It's good luck to make a wish.


 

Because it was raining, we decided to go to the dinosaur museum...however, the museum was outside.

Hookah and Brewery

We dried off at Bagdad Cafe where we ate delicious Indian food, drank chai tea, and shared a hookah.

We finished the night at Boris Brewery where we drank authentic German beer and played mafia. Mafia is a great card game in which you must figure out who the mafia is before you die.

Seongsan Ilchulbong

Seongsan Ilchulbonmg also known as Sunrise Peak is an extinct volcano on the eastern most part of Jeju. The hour and half bus ride followed the coast and was quite beautiful. Seongsan itself is a quaint little town almost completely surrounded by water.





The sun was blaring down so it took me awhile to cimb the stairs to the summit, especially with my injured foot. When I reached the top, I was rewarded with a remarkable view of the sea, one of the town, one of the crater, and another of the small black sand beach next to it.

Afterwards, I walked down to the black sand beach and happened to catch the demonstration of the Haenyeo. The Haeynyeo are Korean ajummas who free dive. They put on wetsuits and goggles, but don't use oxygen tanks. They can dive up to 20 meters and hold their breath for 2 minutes. They catch any sea creatures they can and bring back a lot of seaweed. I ate this freshly caught sea urchin (I think) for lunch. It was very salty and a bit chewy.



  

Samik Swimming Pool

I've always been rather unobservant, but it's gotten so much worse in Korea. Perhaps it's because I can't understand most of the signs or because it all looks the same. But it's really no excuse for it taking me 9 months to realize that there is a swimming pool right next to my apartment building. To be fair, it is underground. But still. Since it is ungodly hot here and my foot is still injured (tore the ligaments when I was volunteering at the orphanage) swimming is really the only form of exercise that appeals to me right now.

So I joined the swimming pool and it has provided me with so many good stories. And it's only been a week.

When I signed up for my membership I had a very long broken English conversation with the employee about the times to swim. He told me that on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays it is free swim time. But on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays there are lessons. So I asked, "I can't swim on Mondays, Wednesdays, or Fridays?" "Yes, you can." ???? As it turns out I can swim on any of the days and there are always swim lessons. So I'm still not sure what he was trying to communicate.

Then I walked into the locker room and was surrounded by buck-naked Korean women and children. A bit of a shock since Koreans are very chaste in general (a tank top is considered slutty). After my swim I ran into one of my students, Brandon, who came up, held my hand, and said hello. And I thought to myself, 'I'm so glad he's a boy and I don't have to see him in the locker room."

The next time, I ran into one of my female students in the locker room...half naked. Talk about awkward.

The next time, I got run over by an ajumma (Korean grandmother) in the swimming lane. We wear goggles so we don't run into people in the the pool, don't we?

The next time, I got in trouble for having wet feet...in the locker room... at the swimming pool...???

The last time, one of the ajummas was trying to fix me up with one of the swim instructors.

Oh, Korea.

Mudfest

Mudfest is held annually in Boryeong at Daechon Beach. It's exactly what it sounds like. There is an area full of slides, wrestling pits, obstacle courses, and other such fun all full of mud.

The beginning.

The middle.

The end.

Washing ourselves off in the ocean.

Deokjin Park

Deokjin Park is one of the more beautiful areas in Jeonju. Meg, Joe, Chris, and I spent a lovely day there back in June.

Yes, I still haven't grown up.

Paddle boats--- ours was shaped like a dragon!

Yeosu World's Fair

The World's Fair came to Korea this year, so we decided to take a day trip down to Yeosu and check it out.

It was massively crowded and the line for many of the exhibits had hours long waits. We made it into the aquarium and to energy park (an interactive zone about renewable energy), but didn't make it to see the robots.

We spent most of our time at the International Pavilion where many countries had their own exhibits. The photo above is a performance we saw from Congo.

Kazkhstan was my favorite exhibit. It had live music, dancers, and a strange yet enjoyable video.

I got to eat many foods from around the world including Argentinian campanadas and Russian borscht.

Birthday in Busan

A group of my friends and I traveled to the eastern coastal city of Busan for my 28th. We purchased crab and shrimp at the fish market and had it cooked at the restaurant upstairs.

While we were in Busan they were having a sand festival. The sand carvings were amazing.

We spent a lot of time lounging on the beach and soaking up the sun. At night we drank on the beach, set off fireworks and had a 'harry-potter-ish' wizards deul with them.

My hike along the coast line.

My birthday present to myself was to go diving with the sharks at the Busan Aquarium.

All in all, one of the best birthdays I've had in a long time. And certainly my best birthday abroad.

Lotus Lantern

In May, I went to Seoul with 6 other people for the Lotus Lantern festival which celebrates Buddha's birthday. There is a large parade (about 2 hours) at night, and a street fair the next day. It was quite the sight to see.

These are some of the lotus lanterns that we collected. The people in the parade just kept giving them away. I think over the course of the night we had about 30 between the 7 of us. We gave most of them to children or ajummas.

The temple was completely covered by lotus lanterns. It was absolutely beautiful.

Me and my new boyfriend ;P The street fair the next day had performances, demonstrations, and crafts.