Saturday, October 25, 2008

TOURING JEJU

After a week of meetings here on Jeju Island, I decided yesterday that it was high-time to do a little exploring. So I grabbed a map, got a little advice from the concierge and jumped into a taxi. My first stop was the Seongeup Folk Village Museum, a recreation of Jeju Island life in the 17th and 18th Centuries. The Village contains more than 3,000 thatched roof cottages, all moved from their original locations throughout Korea, along with rare artifacts and cultural exhibits. Life in the early Jeju villages wasn't easy. For example, before there was indoor plumbing, the average native would construct his own "Tongsi" or "Traditional Toilet" out of Lava Rocks. After a brief stop for some "refreshment" -- a package of freeze dried Octopus Meat from a local cafe -- I continued on my journey, stopping at the Seongsan Ilchulbong or Sunrise Peak, a giant Lava Cone rising more than 182 meters above the island like a giant punch bowl on steroids. Created by an underwater volcanic eruption more than 5,000 years ago, Seongsan Ilchulbong today offers visitors a birdseye view of the island. I climbed to the top and wasn't disappointed. I ended my tour at Manjang Cave, the world's largest Lava Cave created centuries ago by the eruption of the Hallasan volcano. As the lava pushed outwards, it created a network of underground tunnels that extends for miles. My next stop: A plane to Tokyo ...!

7 comments:

Traci said...

Great touring! Looks fascinating!

Dawn said...

Great pics! Thanks for taking us along on your wonderful tour!!! You get to visit some very interesting places on business, Marty, but I bet you are looking forward to getting back home! :-)

be well...

Saltydawg said...

Thats a biiiig village with 3000 cottages. We call that a town ;-)
Lets hope they didn't build their lava toilets over their kimchi pots.
Gaz

garnett109 said...

You kill me, you won't go near a apple fritter but you will chew on a slimey octopus, yuck

Beth said...

Wonderful pictures, and some of your captions were hilarious! I'll look forward to more world news from Tokyo!

All my best,
Beth

emikk said...

Great Stuff,...do those primitive toilets, the stacked rocks have the same icons they use today? (you know, the squatting woman icon, the urinating man, etc.)?

Lynne said...

Thank you for sharing. I don't ever see myself traveling to that part of the world, so its nice to see it from someone that has actually visited!