Jeju #2: The Northeast Coast

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I had set my alarm to get up early, but I decided to ignore it for a little bit and sleep on. I still managed to make it down to breakfast at a reasonable time. The hostel kitchen was really nice, it was big and clean with plenty of seating. The breakfast is make it yourself, but is included in the price. There is juice, tea, coffee, eggs, bread, peanut butter and jam. I made sure to have plenty of coffee and some scrambled eggs, and toast with peanut butter. When I left the hostel, the weather outside was pretty miserable and I was too cold in my shorts and t-shirt, so I headed back inside to put my jeans on. I thought it was meant to be summer...

It was raining, so I popped into a mart to buy an umbrella, and then continued on to the Jeju Folklore and Natural History Museum. I think because of the terrible weather, every single group tour that was taking place were also at the museum. I bought my ticket and then walked through the grounds to the main museum building. If the weather had been better I would have liked to take a wander around the garden. The museum was heaving with people, predominantly Chinese tour groups, so it wasn't really a very enjoyable experience. I preferred the Folklore side of things to the natural history part, as it was a bit dry. The folklore part was interesting as they had a big centrepiece which showed traditional fishing boats. There was also some small houses and information about the Haenyeo. Also they has some plastic mock ups of traditional Jeju cuisine, I definitely don't want to try the raw pig embryos.

The rain was slackening off a bit, so I decided to walk to the bus terminal. It was about a fifteen to twenty minute walk away. I had stayed next to the bus terminal last time I was in Jeju and found the location convenient for getting about the island, but there wasn't a great deal around the hostel, there. I prefer my location in the downtown area of the city. I bought a bus ticket to go the Haenyeo Museum. The lady behind the counter told me where I needed to get off. The bus journey took over an hour, Jeju is a big island and the bus makes a lot of stops connecting all the small villages. I was pleasantly surprised that I remembered the places we drove through from my last visit all those years ago. I thought I had to walk from the nearest village to the museum, but there is actually a bus stop by the museum, announced in both Korean and English, very convenient.

Haenyeo are a unique part of theculture of Jeju Island. They only exist there and in Japan. Haenyeo are women divers, who collect seaweed, abalone, and other shellfish. Haenyeo are really unique, so they receive a lot of attention both in Korea and around the world. I would liked to have visited the museum the last time I was here, but I didn't know too much about he Haenyeo and didn't have time. The admission fee was 1,100 won, so cheap. The museum looked brand new, it was obviously well cared for. In the foyer, there were some wire mesh statues of the Haenyeo. There was one of a woman in all her diving gear, heavily pregnant. It shows how hard these women work. I went into the first exhibition hall, which displayed the typical lifestyle of the Haenyeo. There was a mock up of a traditional style hanok, which was nice to look at. The house was set up with all the objects that would have been found in a real house. The second exhibition hall showed the workplace of the Haenyeo. There was a buteok, which was the resting place of the Haenyeo, where they would return to from the sea, change, dry their clothes and relax. There were also a lot of displays that show the clothing they work to dive in and the tools they used.

I headed upstairs and there was a nice observatory. You could see out over the small village, and Haesindang Port, where the Haenyeo go out to work from. The last exhibition hall focuses on the life history of the Haenyeo. There are lots of videos, that have different Haenyeo describe their lives. The Haenyeo were not confined to Jeju Island, they moved about to other arts of Korea to diver there. They even went as far north as Baeknyeongdo. The women divers also contributed a lot to society. There was a picture of a school class, and there was an explanation underneath. It said that the Haenyeo donated part of their salary each to build and maintain the school. Upon leaving the museum, I took a look around the gardens. There were so old boats moored up and a bulteok. There was also an Anti-Japanese Movement Memorial Tower. The Jeju Haenyeo Anti-Japan Japanese Movement was in January 1932 and was the only women-led anti-Japanese movement in the country.

I then took the bus to Seongsan Ilchulbong Peak. The bus journey didn't take too long, maybe 20-30 minutes. The bus drops you on the main street of the village, and I walked for about five minutes to reach the peak area. It is definitely a huge tourist draw. The small street leading up to the peak is lined with cosmetic shops, coffee shops and souvenir shops. They are definitely trying to maximise their chances of getting every last tourist dollar. Ilchulbong was heaving, there were a lot of tourists about. I paid my entrance fee, and headed in. The selfie sticks were out in force. I got some photos of the peak from the bottom, and then started the climb up. The trail is one way, so it isn't a clusterfuck of bodies. There were too many people for my liking, huge groups of Chinese tourists, high school groups and regular families all heading up. The walk up wasn't too strenuous and only took about 20 minutes. The peak was formed over 100,000 years ago, when a volcanic eruption occurred under the sea.

On the walk up, there were gorgeous views of the surrounding area. It was a bit cloudy, so I bet the views would have been even nicer on a sunny day. There is a big viewing deck at the top, where you can see the crater at the top. The crater is about 600 metres in diameter. My photos of the crater weren't very good, it looks a more impressive in real life. On the way back down the path forks, and instead of going to the entrance I took the path to the right, which lead down to the sea. There was a small building down there, and it is a restaurant. I think it is run by the Haenyeo. There were some of the women divers selling shellfish. I had a bit of a meander along the beach and then headed back to the entrance. There is a small temple, Dongamsa, so I had a look around there. it had a cute little garden with some beautiful flowers growing in it. I was starving by this point, so I went to Lotteria, the Korean McDonalds for lunch. Then I headed to the bus stop. I was gutted when I reached the bus stop, as there was a fish and chip shop there. I wish I had known about it and eaten there instead.

The bus dropped me off at the nearest stop on the main road. It was about a 2.5-3 kilometre walk to the cave. There is a bus that goes to the cave, but it would have meant backtracking quite a bit, and so I decided it would just be easier to walk. The walk didn't take too long and although there wasn't any real path for pedestrians, there wasn't too much traffic, so wasn't dangerous. In fact it was a lovely walk in the country. I passed the maze park, that would be cool to do, but unfortunately I didn't have time. There is another lava tube before Manjanggol and there are some instructions on wikitravel about how to get in there. It sounds like quite an adventure, but I'm too chicken to do it alone.

The admission to the cave was about 2,000 won. I love that the entrance fees to all the attractions are so cheap. Manjanggol is a lava tube. Lava tunnels are formed when lava that was deep in the ground spouts from the peak and flows to the surface. Manjanggol Cave is about 13 kilometres long, but only 1 kilometre is open to the public. It would be cool to go on further and see what the rest of the tube looks like. The tube is large, 23 metes wide and 30 metres high, so it doesn't feel claustrophobic. The walking course is set out nicely, and is well lit. The cave would be great to visit in summer, as it is cooler than outside, with a temperature of 11-21 degrees Celsius. There are plenty of interesting things to see along the way, there are lava rafts, lava toes, stalactites, stalagmites and columns. At the end of the trail there is a 7.6 metre high column, which is the largest known lava column in the world. I enjoyed my walk through the cave, it was interesting, with all points of interest well signposted. The walk back to the bus stop was lovely as the sun was now out, and after all the rain this morning, it had finally turned into a nice day.

Back in the city I headed back to the Cheonguk to have some dinner I opted for Budae Jjigae, which is army stew. It is a real mishmash of stuff, and became popular after the Korean War, when food was scare and it incorporated many ingredients that were surplus foods from U.S. army bases, such as hot dogs or spam. Budae Jjigae is a bit nasty coz of all the processed ingredients it contains, but sometimes it's nice to eat a load of crap, and I knew I work it all off tomorrow. This one was really fiery and good. I also picked up some kimbap to sustain me on my hike the following day, and other supplies from the convenience store. I headed back to the hostel to try and get an early night as I would be up sharpish in the morning.

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Photos

Sounds Delicious!
Jeju Folklore and Natural History Museum

Haenyeo House
Jeju Haenyeo Museum

Bulteok
Jeju Haenyeo Museum

School Picture
The school was built and maintained by the Haenyeo donating part of their earnings.
Jeju Haenyeo Museum