Jeju (Pt. 4): Yongmeori Coast, Western Jeju and Jeju-si

With the 'biggies' out of the way already we finally let our guard down and got a bit of extra sleep Thursday morning. Even so, once awake I quickly hustled Laura out the door and into the steaming hot Avante. A note here on check out procedures. At each of our hotels (motels and minbaks included), check out consisted of no more than either leaving a key in the open door or tossing it on an unattended front desk, that is, if there was one.

Day 4's goal was simple and that was to make our way to Jeju-si by way of the western coast. Our only planned stop for the day were the surreal landscapes of the Yongmeori Coast, other than it, it was smooth sailing. . .or so we thought. For some reason, likely because I was trying to do so while driving, I was unable to correctly convey to Navi that we'd please like directions to Yongmeori. Thus, we decided to simply hug the small coastal roads that shot off highway 1132 and look for, well, a 'promenade of soaring cliffs,' as they're described by LP.

The Cliffs of Insanity!

Shortly after pulling out of Jungmun we found ourselves in a harbor surrounded by cliffs. A number other parked cars in the area indicated that there must be other tourists near by. Upon parking our vehicle, we soon learned that we were not at all alone as a huge gang of middle schoolers had taken over the area on a school trip. By the way, almost all Korean students (or at least all of mine) get to go to Jeju at some point on a school trip. How awesome is that!? Work like a slave for 240 days a year and maybe once you'll be lucky enough to take a 2 day vacay! Sounds like a deal to me.

Assuming, but wholly uncertain, that the cliffs ahead were in fact Yongmeori, we decided to follow the throng of students as they made their way up a trail. While the grade was much more manageable then our previous day's climb up Hallasan, the terrain was much more rugged and overgrown. I at first questioned whether we were in fact where we wanted to be but soon put aside any reservations I had figuring that if a troupe of kids on an educational trip were making the hike then certainly there was something worth seeing. Boy was I wrong. . .

After an hour or so of climbing the path eventually leveled out but, to my dismay, we were no where near the cliff edge where I had hoped we would end up. Rather, we found ourselves in a sprawling field that seemed to be sectioned off for cultivation. While some of the areas obviously had crops growing, others were left to be taken over by weeds. None of the vegetation was easily recognizable though some of it greatly resembled wheat. . .or at least, what I think wheat might look like.

Fields of Joy

Although there seemed to be no obvious trail, we continued to follow the little ones as they, only partially aware of the growth underfoot, marched across the fields. Eventually we found ourselves pack on a wooded path where blue ribbons seemed to steer up towards our eventually destination. This small recognition of a known path again got my hopes up for something grand at the end of this journey. Again, I was wrong.

My alarm went off immediately as we turned a corner and began the descent down a dirt path on the opposite side of the cliffs from which we began our journey. I'm no professional hiker but I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that it's never a great idea to go down the opposite way you came up. Especially when you have no clue where you are.

Even so, we pushed on, praying that these little brats, guided by their teachers, had some sort of interesting destination in mind. When we finally broke through from the trees and the ground again evened out, we were treated to a beautiful view of a rocky beach, and, a water treatment plant right in front of it. Stepping out on to the rocks we were able to look back at the cliff and see where we had just managed to walk up, over and back down again on the wrong side.

King of the Mountain!

This is where we were forced to make a choice. Having hiked for almost two hours in order to see the same view that we had from the place where we parked the car, our first inclination was to simply leave as quickly as possible. The issue with this is that doing so would, at first glance, require us to go back over the way we came. Another two hours of all-ready-been-there-done-that-bought-the-t-shirt scenery. So, we started to brainstorm.

Looking out at the point which separated us from our vehicle (go back to the top and check out the picture), I remembered seeing people fishing out on the rocks on the 'car-side' of the cliffs. I then posited that perhaps we could simply walk along the beach towards the point where we would miraculously turn the corner and BAM, be right back at our car!

These seemed to the both of us a much more reasonable idea then simply backtracking the terribly boring route we had just come, so, off we went. Perhaps our decision was misguided by the wavering light on the horizon, or maybe it was due to the intense heat and our lack of water, but, either way, in retrospect, these are the types of decisions that get young travelers maimed and killed in the far corners of the world. . .

As we moved along the beach, the small rocks under foot quickly grew into massive volcanic (?) formations with razor sharp edges but, on the plus side, really good footholds. I ambled on a head of Laura with the help of my trusty hiking stick, a bamboo pole I picked up along the way. A few steps ahead I was able to help try and guide her along the 'safest' path as she had to be extra cautious of her footing as her feet were protected only by a pair of sandals. . .obviously we did not plan on hiking when we stepped out of the car oh so long ago!

Pushing on the rocks only grew larger, and larger. While they were mostly stable and seemed to be extremely solid, one slip would easily have sent either one of us down into a tight crevice where the waves pounded below. This is about the part where I'm terrified and envisioning myself being stuck, slammed against a rock as sharks nibble on my toes and Laura clamors for help, loosing her sandals and shredding the bottom of her feet like parmesan cheese. Luckily, this isn't how it turned out. But I wouldn't have been surprised if it did!

We made it to just about the tip of the point you can see in the first picture were a man stood atop a giant boulder, calmly fishing by himself. By this point we were moving probably about 20ft a minute, this was, well, not easy. When we eventually got near enough, I asked him if we would be able to make it around the point and towards land. Who knows if he understood me but the motions he made with his hands made it pretty clear that whatever we were up against wasn't going to be pretty. So, what did we do? Well, the only thing we could. Jump in to the water, swim out to see and around into the harbor. . .no, just kidding, but I thought about it! Too bad I brought the camera out with me or I might have!

We turned around. . .to backtrack, along the treacherous rocks, when all we were trying to do was avoid having to backtrack in the first place. I found this slightly amusing. Laura didn't. See below for clarification.

Say, "I'm Gonna Kill You Adam"

Another 45 minutes later we made it back to the safety of the water treatment plant beach. Our students had apparently vanished in to thin air and in their place, a group of elderly climber glad in fluorescent clothing had appeared. They gaily gulped down water and ramyeon while we still hadn't had a drink since leaving the car. Oops. Can you say, prepared?! Hey, at least we made it off the rocks!

Victory!
(For the sake of the story this picture is placed here, though an intelligent reader should easily surmise from our general expressions that this is not in fact a victory shot from our failed attempt at rounding 'The Point.')

Still not wanting to take the stupid hike back up and over we tried to walk along a small access road running parallel to the big plant. It didn't take us long to run into a swarm of angry flying insects which sent us back the way we came. At this point it became obvious that someone was sending us a message to just do the stupid hike already and get it over with. We had run out of lifelines.

hour 'n a half or so later we made it back to the car and immediately took off, wanting to leave all memories of the morning's climb behind. Neither one of us were happy but hey, at least we're a bit more experienced now when it comes to rock climbing! I think author Laurence Gonzales would agree with me here as he once wrote that 'the word 'experienced' often refers to someone who's gotten away with doing the wrong thing more frequently than you have.' I'm just glad we got away with it!

Still not entirely sure what we had just climbed or why, we continued to drive aimlessly heading west along Jeju's southern coast. It wasn't long until we came across a sign pointing us to the Yongmeori Coast we had initially set out to find. . .great, if only we had driven on another 5 km instead of getting out to oogle at the first cliff!

At the next big turn off we followed a number of cars in to a parking lot surrounded with bustling vendors and activities. Walking down a long flight of stairs we came out long a quaint promenade of stores and, um, a horse 'track', and um, carnival rides, and um, a giant sailing vessel? Apparently, Yongmeori is not only celebrated for it's beautiful natural landscape but also for its ability to sell the story of a Dutchman, Hendrick Hamel, who was the first westerner to 'discover' and subsequently write about Korea.

I was immediately intrigued by the small horses, referring to them, apparently incorrectly so, as ponies. By this point Laura and I had already discussed her reservations about riding horses as one didn't take kindly to her in her youth and decided that it preferred Laura on the ground, rather than on its back. I however don't recall ever having ridden a horse and couldn't think of any better time then the present. So, I forked over 5,000 won to a dusty ole' cowboy and he helped me up on the back of one of his finest ladies.

A good kick in her side and off I went around a big dirt track. Here are my observations from my brief ride. Horses are really strong. Riding on one immediately makes you feel like a cowboy. Cowboys must have had terribly calloused backsides. It is obvious why jeans, tight in the crotch, were, are, and always will be preferred by horse riders. Anyways, my short ride was actually great fun though I was certainly glad when she finally came to a halt! Not sure if I ever need to do it again but if I do, I won't be wearing shorts with boxers, that's for sure.

Giddyap Cowboy!

The most beautiful ladies on Jeju!

Dismounting and making sure that everything was still in one piece, we headed out towards the elusive Yongmeori coast. While we debated paying 2,500 won to walk amongst a bunch of rocks, as we had done so earlier in the day for free, we eventually caved in and coughed up the entrance fee based on the presumption that we wouldn't likely ever visit it again.

Hanyeo displaying the day's catch

The the short walk around the 'cliffs' are in fact beautiful, they aren't quite the National Geographic must have that LP made 'em out to be. Maybe it's because I was already fed up with geological formations, or perhaps the lighting was a bit off, then again it might have been my terrible sunburn setting in from walking along day on bright white rocks with no shirt on. It was beautiful, but, not awe inspiring. Worth the 2,500? Sure, but not more than once!

Where in the World is Lars!?

The 'cliffs' at Yongmeori simply held nothing on those that we had just finished tackling. Even so, the eerily clear water that filled the pockets of volcanic rock made some pretty interesting tide pools. The only thing I regret is not eating at least one thing from a Haenyo though if we were to, who knows what we would order and how we would go about eating it. All I know is that it would likely be the freshest kill of the day, if not still squirming. The best view of all came just before heading back to the board walk where we could see both the cliffs and Sangbansan in the background. LP swears that its only a 10 minute walk up this 'craggy' mountain but neither of us were willing to test this hypothesis!

Sanbangsan from the Yongmeori Coast

Back on dry, flat, solid, man-made land, we began searching our refueling options. Trying to make out the Korean on a number of different building, I was intrigued by one that offered a 'couples burger.' This sounded both big, and interesting, so we went to investigate. Remember that giant hamburger Laura mentioned earlier (Day 2), well, we had finally found it! It didn't take us long to order and as the ajumma pulled out a giant bun from Red Pond Herb Farm I knew that we had finally found this long awaited treat!

Though it wasn't the best burger I've ever had I couldn't argue with a single bite! Especially not after the day's numerous mishaps! We quickly wiped the plate clean of a meal that LP suggested could feed up to four people. Koreans, maybe, but greedy hungry westerners pissed off at the difficulties of the day, no way! Two tops!

Laura and the Giant Burger from Red Pond Herb Farm

Flora at Yongmeori

After lunch we did a bit of souvenir shopping before deciding that any more walking around would certainly be detrimental to our health. Thus, it was again time to eat. While in Korea, I have frequently been faced with the task of having to consume dried cuttlefish, or squid, known as ochingo. This popular treat is served at numerous bars to accompany drinks and is also a favorite street snack of Koreans. I have only really tasted it a few times and found it to be somewhat similar to a very fishy tasting jerky after I finally got over the smell which I initially found to be absolutely repulsive.

Well, there weren't a whole lot of snack options available at Yongmeori and Laura and I both wanted to try the Jeju Orange Wine (which is not recommended as it tastes like bad oj, or, bad oj gone bad) we kept seeing everywhere. So, well, you have to have something to eat with your drinks and ochingo is what we went for. After ordering, our dried squid was heated briefly on a rack of hot coals. Then, the rest was up to us. We ate the majority of the 'body' though we avoided the tentacles, mostly for aesthetic reasons! It wasn't great but I'd be lying if I said it wasn't growing on me!

Ochingo and Jeju Orange Wine

After eating we took a quick spin through the giant replica ship of Hamel's that led him and his fated crew to spend seven years in the Hermit Kingdom during the Josen Dynasty. His story was pretty interesting and I can't help but feel bad for him as I've been here nine months and can't wait to get back to, well, anything else! Hamel's story was great but we didn't stick around to ponder life in tight quarters very long. Either he and his crew were shorter than the average Dutchman that I've met or moving about in those boats was not an easy task! I can't imagine that his Korean prison was any better though. . .

On our way out of 'town' I pulled off the road to examine a clothes line covered in, well, something. Turns out it was nothing more than the squid that we had eaten just a few minutes before. Mmmm, it's always good to know where your food comes from!

Out to dry

Working our way along the coastal roads we turned the three corner on Jeju and began working our way north along the western edge. We pulled off the road at random intervals to check out the sea below but didn't find anything to terribly exciting. A bit of cliffs here and some rocks there. This clearly isn't the exciting side of the island but if you're looking for peace and solitude, look no further!

Cliff Hanging
(Thank you to Laura who held on to me as I precariously dangled myself over this drop off!)

I did stop once to try and grab some sunset pictures before turning east towards Jeju-si but unfortunately the sun wasn't quite ready to set and I wasn't about to wait any longer for it! So you take what you can get I guess. . .

Pre-Sunset from Northern Jeju

Making our way into Jeju-si we plugged the LP recommended Bobos Motel into Navi and cruised onwards. As we pulled alongside the airport I noticed a small road rolling around back that Navi seemed to think was accessible. Veering off the highway we rolled down a small hill and over some rocks only to find ourselves on a winding path that did in fact lead just along the outskirts of the airport.

As we drove along slowly I noticed that the giant light towers we were passing under marked the impeding runway. Having never before watched a plane land from the back of a runway I thought this would be a great opportunity to do so. Boy was I right! We got out and waited for a plane to come and when it did, it did! Only a hundred feet or so above our heads roared a giant jet just seconds away from touching down. The noise, proximity and ferocity of its wake was so exhilarating that we decided to wait for another, and then another! While we forgot a blanket and didn't even actually lie on the top of the care, I felt like I was a highschooler in a 1970's coming of age movie. All I can say about this experience is that if you haven't stood under a landing plane, well, you're missing out on something big my friend!

Hello There!

Bobos proved to be every bit the Love Motel that LP said it was. Heck, we were even credited 5,000 won off the room price because I had a 'beautiful smile.' While it seemed that the ajumma was telling me this was the reason, I'm still certain she was talking about Laura but simply looking at me. I am after all not the beauty in this operation!

As for Lonely Planet, well, they've been pretty hit and miss with Korea but surprisingly spot on with Jeju. My only complaint was that the recommended 'Mexican' restaurant, El Paso, should be avoided at all costs. I've had my fair share of Mexican-style food here in Korea but this place didn't even come close. The only decent part of the meal was the taco salad and that's because it was mostly lettuce, there was nothing for the chef, who studied (but it doesn't say what) in Mexico City, to ruin!

Highly disappointed but too exhausted to care we crawled back to Bobos threw on a movie and I can't say that I even remember watching the opening credits. This was an exhausting, exhausting day. Back to Seoul tomorrow but not after first checking out the Mysterious Road (where an idling car rolls uphill) and of course, the much anticipated Jeju Love Land! Don't miss either, but they're going to be for you to find out about on your own.

Thanks for traveling with us!

'Cool, Welcome to Jeju.'