We had planned to travel to Chuja-do Island, about 1.5 hours by boat, to walk Route 18.1. Concerned that the strong winds might delay or even cancel the return ferry we decided to spend the extra days in Jeju City instead.
Day 1 – R&R
First thing we did was head to the market for freshly made sweet pancakes
Dakgalbi – stir fried chicken, cabbage, sweet potato, rice noodles and spices
Day 2 – Jeju Stone Park
A Korean lady told us “Jeju is known for 3 things – wind, rocks, and women (divers)”. Jeju Stone Park was constructed on reclaimed land (opening in 2006) to display Jeju’s cultural heritage in rock. They’ve done it well on a massive scale – it took us a couple of hours to work our way around the 3 sections sprawling out through the forest. The Park is 40 minutes by bus from Jeju City.
This tower commemorates the opening of the Stone Park in 2006
Dolmen – stone tomb – from Western Jeju, possibly 1st century AD
Traditionally pigs were fed on human excrement – in bowls like this
Stones used for foot placement in traditional toilets
Dongjaseok, simple child like stone images …
… placed around graves …
… reveal what Jeju people thought about the afterlife
Traditional villages had high stone walls and …
… thatched-roof houses
Sublime simple beauty of Jeju earthenware
Day 3 – Lava Tubes
UNESCO World Heritage Natural Monument Manjanggul Cave is one of the finest lava tunnels in the world. It’s 13.5 kilometers long but only 1km is open to visitors.
Manjanggul lava tube is huge but only 1km is open
In places it’s nearly 30 meters high
Also known as the Snake Cave, it winds around
At 7.6 meters high this is the largest lava column in the world