Jeju Island: the Hawaii of Korea

Last week my boyfriend and I took our vacations to the honeymoon destination of Korea- don't worry, I didn't elope.
We both had [somewhat] coordinating schedules for summer break and since a lone trip to Thailand wasn't looking ideal, we took the 6am bus to Seoul to catch a 1 hour flight to Jeju. It was a bit ridiculous that we had to travel 4 hours north to fly 1 hour south, but when someone ~cough~ Diego ~cough~ doesn't book the ferry soon enough, you have limited options. It worked out for the best because we tried a new restaurant in Seoul that we both loved.

We were graced with first-class seats to Jeju. My 1st "prestige class" experience, which I'm thinking is the way to fly home (16 hours in first-class... oh I wish). We arrived on the island around 4pm and took a taxi to our guesthouse. We stayed at Spring Flower Guesthouse, located on the southwest part of the island. It's owned by a British man and his Korean wife. They were very nice and the layout was comfortable. We met a lot of people (Koreans and English speaking teachers) and everyone was so friendly and helpful.

They hosted a bbq the first night we arrived.

They rented us their scooter for 25,000 won/day (little under $25). It was a great way to see the island. Diego mostly drove, so I got to sit back and stare at the scenery that is Jinju.

Jeju is the most tropical parts of Korea. I found Florida to be more tropical, but for Korea it was very nice. Jeju is famous for it's tea production, fruits (especially oranges) and fruit filled chocolates (delicious!).
Our first day we spent riding around the island. No really, we biked around the whole island on our first day. It took us 11 hours- granted we stopped for beach breaks, museums, food and touristy sights. But my butt was so sore after that day. The island is 175 miles across from end to end.

We saw 2 different beaches, checked out Love Land- a popular sex museum where I got to peoplewatch and observe all these older Korean couples giggle to each other as they take pictures next to huge naked statues- stumbled upon a fruit market and saw the Mysterious Road where everything rolls uphill. Seriously.

The lighthouses got nothing on Michigan's.

Hyeopjae Beach, with a view of Biyang Island

Samyang beach, known for its black sand

Fruit market (and nasty smelling fish market). But notice all the oranges? They are very popular here.

Love Land

A less risque picture to post :)

We went to bed early that night so we could get up at 5am to go hike Hallasan Mountain, the tallest mountain in Korea. When 5am hit, the severe thunderstorm brewing outside our window was the deciding factor to sleep till 9 and check out the waterfalls instead. We went to Cheonjeyeon Waterfall, a 3-tier waterfall surrounded by lush forestry. It was beautiful,  just a shame the sky was overcast all day.

Standing on a bridge, you can see the three waterfalls. The view was breathtaking.

We really wanted to do the 9 hour hike up to the peak of Hallasan Mt. But the morning of Day 3 also brought in thunderstorms, so we settled for the 4 hour hike instead. It was only 3.7 km, but 2 km were at a 90 degree angle... okay not really, but at times it did feel like that. We could have easily kept hiking for another 6 hours, but at about the 3 hour mark we just wanted to enjoy our last last few hours on the beach. So down we went for another hour and headed to Hwasun Golden Sand beach where we basked in the sun for a few hours and were gawked at by Koreans for showing so much skin while swimming... I guess I forgot to bring my jeans and t-shirt to go swimming in, perhaps next time I won't be so forgetful ;)

Diego had the camera, so most pictures are of my backside since I am such a fast hiker...

ugh, these 2 km were brutal.

At the top of the first checkpoint, there were all these Koreans eating Ramon noodles. There was a spout with hot water for all to enjoy their Ramon at the top of this mountain. And we were the odd ones munching on apples and trail mix.

The 4th day we headed back to Seoul, on economy seats.
We had an amazing vacation and I'm ready to head back to Jeju to see more. But for now it's back to the grind of teaching 4 and 5 year old's how to say their ABC's. Oh the life of a teacher in Korea :)