Getting tickets to jeju over the spring “honeymoon period” proved to be extremely difficult but Giuli and I managed to get flights from Wonju on Friday and back to Busan Monday morning. This means that we are left with two full days on an island that we could easily spend a month on. We were desperately trying to find accommodation and things that we should definitely do. Language barrier turned out to be the biggest problem. We were becoming so frustrated at something that we should have been so excited to plan.
I went to a co-worker of mine and asked his advice as his family is from Jeju. He referred me to a Russian Tour Guide named Victor who speaks English. I was super skeptical about a package tour as you never really know what you getting. I contacted Victor and the itinerary that he gave us looked something like this
http://jejueco.com/special_trips/eco.htm
It all sounded really great and Giuli and I decided that we should go for it. We arrived on Friday and before our arrival Victor gave us details on how to get to the accommodation and he told us to be ready at nine in the lobby. These guidelines turned out to be true and Victor did exist! We arrived at spectacular accommodation (Crystal hotel) which was situated near Seogwipo City Center. It’s not like every other city. The people are friendly, the city looks green with vegetation, its clean, there are tons of things to do and the local food in the area is incredible.
We found a pasta place which was absolutely phenomenal. It was called ‘Promise’ and it was owned by the kindest Korean man in the world. He tried to speak English and accommodate us as much as he could and he put great care and effort into preparing our food. When we went to eat at promise for the second night in a row he responded to us by saying, ‘you, my house, second time, I’m so happy’. It was an experience, not just the average supper and I would recommend that anyone who visits Jeju Island, visit and eat at “promise”. Promise contact number: 01196648588
The next morning Giuli and I woke up and had our breakfast at the hotel. The conversation revolved around questions, what would Victor be like? Is it like a big buss with a person on a speaker phone talking to everyone in a million languages? Would we actually do what he said we would do? These questions were all soon to be answered.
While waiting in the lobby, we got a call from Victor stating that he is extremely sorry and he is going to be late. This to Giuli and I was hilarious because in South Africa everything is late and it is often more than a few hours late. This being said he was only two minutes late. We already had a good feeling about him because he had the decency to call and let us know even though one or two minutes is not really that late (AT ALL).
He arrived in a Hyundai minivan which was awesome and he greeted us with a big smile. He explained to us what we would be doing for the day and that three others would be joining us. So far all our questions were answered, we had a small intimate group, a good guide, a good itinerary and everyone spoke English.
On the way to pick up the others, Victor took the scenic route past a few places which he could explain. It’s so great to hear him talk about different areas as he is fluent in Korean and knows all the myths and legends which have been told to him by the Korean people of Jeju.
The weather in Jeju was not the best as it was rainy, overcast, sunny, you name it and we still managed to do all the activities on the itinerary drawn up on the Jejueco website. When it was not a good idea to do an activity, he would have something else for us to do which was just as spectacular as the activity that we were expecting to do. I would really recommend Jejueco to anyone that plans to go to Jeju.
Ill let the pictures do the talking about what we got up to on the island.
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| The jeju statue which gives a first born male to any couple who rubs his nose (hence the flat nose) |
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| The bridge on the way to the falls which has statues of woman who bath nakid at night in the pools below |
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| Game face |
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| The falls with unbelievably clean water AND NO ONE SWIMMING, I know right WTF |
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| When we visited the crater it was extremely misty but we still got the eerie feeling associated with being around something so un-man-made and strange. It was also nice to go on a walk where there was no music playing at the top which is one of the few things I dont enjoy about hiking in Korea. |
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| Our Guide (Victor) and tour group having a gander at where we are on the map |
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| No one swimming again WTF! Prepare to swim in cold water in Jeju or feel the regret of not swimming in it afterwards |
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| Many formations which match that of Burks Luck Potholes in South Africa except on a smaller level |
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| I want a son :) |
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| Green tea plantations which I must say were more unbelievable than I thaught they would be |
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| Learning how to make and drink green tea the proper way |
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| There are 80000 of this mini Budas in the temple. They come from people donating money and getting a Buda in their name |
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| The bridge to an adjoining island. It mimmics the look of a ship |
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| Playing in the fountain at the cave open for tourists on Jeju |
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| A worrier turned to stone. If you look carefully you can see the face of the worrier in the stone. It is said that when he turned to stone, he scared his enemies so badly they all committed suicide |
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| A Korean dam |
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| Ancient Korean houses. People still live in these today and in return the government gives them taz grants and free water and electricity |
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| The awsome minivan we rolled around in |
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| Old school meets new school. Kind of reminds me of the informal settlements in South Africa which have all the modern technology any modern household would desire |
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| Adding to the abalone depletion in the world. I must say that it is absolutely amazing |
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| On our way home we visited busan and we made a mission to the aquarium which I must say was spectacular |
For those of you that know me, you know how I feel about shopping and it is for this reason that I will not be talking about shopping at the biggest some kind of shopping centre in the world.
