My Korean Life #55: 제주도 (Jeju Island) - 성산일출해양도립공원 & 우도

The second day of the trip took us to 성산일출해양도립공원 (which roughly translates to Seongsan Sunrise Marine Provincial Park) & 우도 (Udo - supposedly shaped like a sprawled out cow). These two places are located on the east side of Jeju and since we didn't have a car, we made use of buses to get to the far east end of Jeju to start sightseeing. But before heading out, we enjoyed the hotel breakfast buffet which was included in our room rate. There were A LOT of families staying at the hotel. But luckily, the dining area was quite large and even had an overflow banquet room. The buffet featured many hot dishes, cold dishes, fruit, breads, a pancake station, and an egg station. Beverages included water, juice, and a coffee machine.

Breakfast - the hotel buffet, trust me they had A LOT of selections, this was toward the end of our meal

After quite a long bus ride we arrived at 성산일출해양도립공원. There were a lot of different people visiting the area that day. Some of the visitors looked like high school or middle school students on a field trip. Many other were traveling with family. Below I have a series of pictures as we hiked up to the top. I remember reading that there are some unique species of flora and fauna at the top of this formation.

After hiking to the top we made our way back towards the bottom and checked out the cove near the base. The women that fish in this cove are somewhat famous. You can eat some local seafood down near this cove as well.

For lunch we enjoyed another food that Jeju is known for. This time it was 고기국수 (Gogi Guksu). Noodles are made of wheat and slices of pork accompany a few vegetables and, in this case, a spicy chili paste.

Lunch - 고기국수 (Gogi Guksu), Delicious!

After visiting 성산일출해양도립공원 we took the ferry to 우도 (Udo).  Roundtrip, the ferry costs less than KRW 10,000. You can put a car on the ferry as well however, if you have a Korean driver's license or an international driver's permit you can rent all sorts of scooters and other motorized transportation to see the small island. Bicycles are also available for rent. Be mindful of the ferry schedule so you don't get stranded on the island. There are some nice beach areas and look out points to explore. There are also a few guesthouses and such scattered around just in case. I'll let the photos speak for themselves:

Snack - Soft serve ice cream with crushed peanuts on top. Famous on 우도 island.

For dinner we had more Jeju black pork in Seogwipo:

Dinner - More Jeju Black Pork!

I have one more post about Jeju remaining! Stay tuned!

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My Korean Life #55: 제주도 (Jeju Island) - Waterfalls (폭포)

For the first day of my Jeju trip, the weather was not ideal. It was quite rainy and cloudy and not exactly the best weather for sightseeing. However, after arriving at the airport, taking a bus to the hotel, checking in, and dropping off our luggage - we were off to see waterfalls. I snapped a few pictures of the hotel before we headed out:

The bed was huge and comfortable

Sitting area in the room

Lobby sitting area

Lobby sitting area 

Another lobby sitting area

Suspended stone sculpture art

More lobby art

Jeju island is known for its many scenic waterfalls and we were determined to see some of the famous ones on this trip. We had originally planned on doing a bit of walking as well but after walking in the direction of one of the falls and getting quite damp in the process we hailed a taxi and got a ride to our first destination. The pictures from the first set of waterfalls that we visited are below:

For dinner we had Jeju black pig pork belly in Seogwipo (서귀포시). It was delicious, they say the taste is different from your normal pork belly. Below are some pictures:

The second set of falls we visited at night. Below are the pictures, apologies for the quality as lighting was low and my camera isn't all that great:

The links below are the two sets of waterfalls that we visited, I've also included maps of the two areas for reference:

Cheonjeyeon Falls (천제연 폭포)

지도를 클릭하시면 위치정보를 확인하실 수 있습니다.

Cheonjiyeon Falls (천지연폭포) (Night)
지도를 클릭하시면 위치정보를 확인하실 수 있습니다.

After visiting the waterfalls and having dinner, we visited the Saeseom Island Saeyeongyo Bridge (새섬 새연교). A map and picture are below:

지도를 클릭하시면 위치정보를 확인하실 수 있습니다.
Stay tuned for more about my Jeju trip!
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