Jeju-do Vacation, Day One

I didn’t sleep much last night. I left my apartment around 5 AM and took a taxi to the bus stop and then the bus to the airport and caught a 7:30 flight to Jeju-do, an island off Korea’s southern tip. I had a window seat. Actually, I had the whole row to myself. Here's Seoul from the airplane.As the plane approached Jeju-do, the view was quite beautiful—crystal clear blue waters, green fields, and I could see Hallasan, the long-extinct volcano and South Korea’s tallest mountain, towering from the center of the island and through the clouds. I didn’t have any checked baggage, so as soon as I got off the plane, I was set. I stopped at the tourist information booth in the airport for a map of the island. I decided that my first destination would be Mara-do, a tiny island south of Jeju-do and the southernmost point in South Korea. To get there, I’d have to take a ferry from the little village of Daejeong on the southwest corner of the island. I took a bus down to that region and then a taxi to the ferry terminal, but when I got there, the man at the ferry terminal said the ferries weren’t running that day because the water was too rough. It was a crystal clear blue, sunny day, but it was very windy, and even though I was disappointed, one look at the waves reminded me of my stomach’s aversion to boats, and I didn’t feel too bad about not being on one today.

I asked the cab driver to take me to Sanbangsan, a mountain that juts up abruptly from the otherwise flat coastal land. First I visited Sanbangsa, the temple at the base of the mountain. Then I walked up the pathway to a natural grotto halfway up the mountain, turning around periodically to soak in the beautiful view of the coast behind me.The grotto at the end of the path has been made into the temple Sanbanggulsa. It has an altar and a pool to catch the water that seeps down from the ceiling. Supposedly, the water is medicinal, so I took a drink. I was surprised by how cold it was since it wasn’t a very cold day.Then I walked back down the path and all the way to the Yongmeori Coast. There were a couple brilliant yellow fields of rape flowers, a.k.a. canola, with lots of other camera-laden tourists. Below the fields was a replica of Hendrick Hamel's ship and museum detailing the first European encounter in Korea. In 1653, Hendrick Hamel and 36 surviving crew members from the Netherlands were shipwrecked at about this spot and were forced to remain in Korea for the next 13 years. In 1666, 8 men, including Hamel, stole a boat and escaped to Japan and then returned home to the Netherlands. The Korean portrayal of the encounter was much different, however. The exhibits in the museum talked about how the men enjoyed their lives doing manual labor in Korea’s vegetable fields. It did admit, however, that when the Korean government transported them from Jeju Island to Seoul, they had to restrain them for fear that they might try to seize the boat during the journey.

From the Hamel boat exhibit, I walked back up to the base of the mountain and waited at the bus stop for a while, ready to continue my journey by heading east along the southern coast of Jeju-do. A man came over, and in half-English-half-Korean, asked me where I wanted to go. I answered, also in half-English-half Korean.

“No bus,” he said.

“Where does the bus go?” I asked.

“No bus here,” he answered. I knew the bus stopped there, because the bus I was on earlier that day stopped in that very spot, but the man kept insisting that the bus wouldn’t stop there. He kept telling me I’d have to take a taxi.

I pointed to where I wanted to go on my map. “How much is a taxi?” I asked.

His face brightened. “For you, 10,000 won!” At that point, it dawned on me that he was a taxi driver! I told him no, 10,000 won (about $10) was too much and I’d wait for the bus. He kept harassing me to take a taxi, so I crossed the street and went to the temple entrance, where there were a lot of other tourists.

A man who was about 70 came over and in almost perfect English asked if I needed help. Apparently he had been watching the taxi driver talking to me. When I told him where I wanted to go, he said I could ride along with his group in a couple hours. I thanked him and told him I’d take him up on the offer if the bus hadn’t come by then.

Just after the old man left, two women about my age came over and asked me in Korean if I’d take a picture of the two of them. Then they asked where I wanted to go. When I told them, they said they were going to the same place and offered me a ride. I decided they looked like more fun than the taxi driver, old people, or questionable bus, so I hopped in their car, and off we went.

I spent the rest of the day driving around the southwestern part Jeju-do with them. They could speak a little bit of English, and with my little bit of Korean and the help of a phrase book, we could have some simple conversations. Their names were Mi-jin and In-shil. They grew up in Jeju City in the northern part of Jeju-do. They’re both nurses. Mi-jin now lives near Seoul and In-shil still lives in Jeju City. There were just being tourists today, driving around and taking pictures at all the popular tourist destinations. Since that’s exactly what I wanted to do with my day, it was a perfect match.

First we went to Cheonjeyeon waterfall. We walked along the path that went past a natural pool (legend says that nymphs bathe here--we didn't see any) and down to the waterfall.Then we walked across the bridge that goes over the gorge that the waterfall is in.From the bridge, there was a great view of Hallasan in the distance.At the waterfall park, we saw some of the stone grandfather figures that are all over Jeju Island. Supposedly, if you touch the grandfather’s nose, your first child will be a boy. Mi-jin and In-shil thought this was great, but I wasn’t so sure. At their insistence, I touched his nose, but I’m just superstitious enough to wonder if that was a good idea. As you can see, I really wasn't so sure about touching his nose.
From the Cheonjeyeon waterfall, we drove to the Jungmun resort area and walked along this beautiful, pristine, sandy beach.It was so windy that walking was a little difficult at times, and sand would periodically be blown up into our faces.After walking along the beach, we stopped at a lookout where the final scene of the popular Korean movie Swiri was filmed.

Here's the movie scene: Here's our version: We walked back up through a kumquat orchard next to one of the resorts . . . and sampled a few. Yum.After the Jungmun resort area, we continued to the Jusangjeollidae rock formations where I came across the strangest sea creature I've ever seen.The Jusangjeollidae rock formations are columns of hardened lava rock that have a hexagonal shape because of how quickly the lava cooled and hardened when it plummeted into the sea.From there we stopped at a huge temple called Yeokcheonsa. We went inside, and Mi-jin and In-shil taught me the correct way to bow.Then we walked around the temple grounds, which are covered in groves of citrus trees.
We then drove on to Seogwipo City, pop. 80,000, the second biggest city on Jeju Island and ate dinner together.Mi-jin and In-shil dropped me off at my motel before they went back north to Jeju City. They thanked me for spending the day with them and allowing them to practice their English. They had never just hung out with a foreigner before. I thanked them for not only giving me a ride but showing me a great day! I was sad to say good-bye. We exchanged email addressses, and I hope I see them again one of these days.

After dropping my things off at the motel, I walked around town for a while. I saw the Cheonjiyeon waterfall (different from the Cheonjeyeon waterfall that I saw earlier today).I then walked up to the town center to check the bus schedule for tomorrow and back to my motel for a good night's sleep. It was a fantastic day. Perfect weather. New friends. I have much to be thankful for. Now that it’s 8 PM, though, I’m exhausted and ready to call it a night. Tomorrow I have to get another early start to hike Hallasan, South Korea's highest peak, in the center of the island.