~~Seoul-iloqy~~: Nature

Jeju Island has always been representative of the sunnier side of South Korea, boasting of the most pristine that their beaches could get. The country calls the island their very own Hawaii, so summer is what’s supposed to define anyone’s vacation at the place. For mine ‘though, it was all rain and hospitality. It was a complete yank out of what’s typical and supposedly more enjoyable, but I may well pride myself of creating my intimately-crafted trips that are downright fulfilling.

I purposely went on the June 25 to 27 weekend because a friend who lives in Jeju will be spending her summer vacation on the said dates and offered her home to me. I therefore decided to bug her as she spends time with her family (haha, bad!). Her house in Jeju City is just fifteen minutes away from the airport, so the travel wasn’t that hard except that it rained as soon as I arrived in Jeju.

June 25 (Friday)

I sure woke my friend up at 10am when I called from down the porch of their apartment. But being the kind and hospitable Korean that she is, she welcomed me to her family’s house. My friend even offered me her very own room to sleep for two nights.

We immediately talked about how to go about my weekend trip, since the rain has sure wrecked my supposed trip to the beach and the famous Halla Mountain. I suddenly had no choice but to feast on the MANY indoor museums that the small island has. Anyway, my friend booked my Saturday on an official bus tour, thanks to her mom’s friend who helped us. The friend works in a local travel agency in Jeju City.

While my Saturday has been fixed, I still had the rainy Friday afternoon so off we went to the Jeju National Museum. Jeju, which by the way is the only special autonomous island province in South Korea, has a very interesting story. I found it amusing how my friend said that Jeju came about from a series of volcanic activity from under the sea, with lava pushing its way up, freezing and forming that island that is now Jeju. She said it also explains the famous black-holed rocks that can be found only in the island.

We then had snack in a tea shop where I got to eat 수제비. It's a Korean traditional soup made out of dough flakes torn by hand. The dough was very chewy and a bit heavy on the stomach. It's a soup normally eaten during the rainy days. I ate this with hot tea, of course.

A dinner and a yoga class came after the rainy historic stroll and tea shop visit. My one-hour primer on stretching proved how futile my body has become and how it will eventually take a toll on me if I don’t live more healthily. My friend was of course amazing. She might turn out inspiring for me, when I finally decide to take yoga classes, too. I am still thinking about it, though.

June 26 (Saturday)
My friend’s mother woke up extra early for me today so she could send me off to the White Beach Hotel where the tour bus is waiting. As I have mentioned, she helped me book a tour package in Jeju. It still rained this day so it became easy for me to give up on seeing a beach or the Halla Mountain. How the itinerary went was generally fine, I must say.

1) A Souvenir Shop. I ended up buying myself a sepia-dyed summer hat. I love!

2) A mini-horse track. I think this was solely meant to generate money from any tourist’s supposed exhilarating experience of riding… a donkey (toinks!). I didn’t buy the gimmick, though. A picture riding on horse shells out 30,000 won, apart from the riding fee. It’s a guided ride, since the track is pretty small. I found it too boring, and come on, it was raining.

3) A horse show. Pretty interesting, I must say, considering that it’s my first time to see one. The performers were Mongolians and it was nice seeing Genghis Khan’s descendants. The horse skills of these performers must be genetic. I’ve always had this picture of Gengis Khan mounted on his horse and holding his shield.

4) Ilchul Land. It is a family resort complex that owns a tropical botanical garden theme. One of its main attractions is the Micheon Cave. I will never forget how chilly it was inside. South Korean caves are actually cool, because they literally are. Haha. It’s a bit different from how caves are in the Philippines. There, the caves may not be “air-conditioned”, but the rocks and formation are as raw as it gets, and my, they can be genuinely beautiful.

I then worked on a solo flight to the famous Jeju Love Land, an outdoor, sex-themed museum. The sun finally showed up by the late afternoon (around 5 pm) so I was able to stroll in the said museum park. It’s a naughty place. I mean, it should get that way.

My friend then had to call me in the middle of the stroll to remind me about our dinner appointment with her aunt, who wanted to see her niece on vacation. I rushed my way back home and had eel for dinner.

The dinner was then followed by a night stroll by the beach. My friend’s father was kind enough to drive us to the sea and let us get some fresh air.

July 27 (Sunday)
The rain resumed today, but the family still went out do their Sunday service. The father who drove us the night before is a Protestant and invited me over this day. I said yes to the invitation. It was a solemn service that I just lip-numbed all throughout, but what I especially loved about the Protestant service is the intimacy of the whole ceremony and genuine fellowship that comes afterwards. I was the only foreigner in that particular service, so it was a little uneasy, but I hope I did justice to my lack of knowledge on the solemnity of the occasion by being quiet. I did not understand a single word because the readings were spoken using the Korean language.

After the service, the family treated me out to lunch in a buffet restaurant. It was fun eating with them and seeing their amazement with the rambutan fruit. They sent me to the airport afterwards.

It’s not always that we meet extra-ordinarily good people who would welcome us into their homes-- send us to the bus stop and drive us to the seashore. I may not get the summer sun that I wanted from Jeju, but I sure got the warmth from such genuine kindness and hospitality.