Your bucket lists for Jeju Island-episode2-Beautiful crystal Beach, South Korea

Who dare can resist this beautiful emerald color of beach in Jeju Island? Nobody can’t help falling in love with white sand, crystal emerald sea water and blue sky in there. The biggest island in South Korea, Jeju Island(제주도), is located in the southwest and far from one hour by plane from the capital Seoul. 

It is said that it was made by several times of volcanic eruption ever since made 700 to 1200 thousand years before. Thanks to mild and warm temperature all the year and specific volcanic activity results, this island has boasted diverse flora, dark gray volcanic rocks and ash soil, clean and awesome emerald color beaches. One reason for the island located far from main land added to result in present culture and nature. It has been well preserved till now and maintained as perfect stunning nature. I’m very pleased to let you introduce these top5 favorite beaches in it. In recent years, 'To live in Jeju Island for a month' has become a popular wish.

1.Hyeopjae Beach(협재해수욕장)                                                             

Hyeopjae, literal meaning is the very place filled with the precious charming natural gems, might be the best of the top beaches in this island. Emerald and cobaltic crystal clear water, shallow sea being good for family visitors, white sandy beach containing the shell powder, in particular, dark gray basaltic rocks zone, brilliant blue sky and the tiny islet(Biyangdo island비양도) in front of beach seems like to be easily touch if I stretch hands. 

Biyangdo island from a distance

With all of these perfect matching, this has been much loved since so long times ago and till now. This is located on the west side far away and twenty minutes from Jeju airport. So it always shows gorgeous sunset. Seasonal strong wind in winter time from the northwest annually, has formed sand dune. It was another pleasure for me to stroll pine forest behind sand dune. Tropical Hallim Park(한림공원)next to this, just five minutes on foot, is another tourist attraction too. Don’t miss it, either.  

2.  Iho Tewoo Beach (이호테우 해변)

This is the closest black colored sand and gravel beach on the west bound far from 20 minutes from the airport. Here is also popular for sunset. Jeju island was the specialized area which provided the war horse about since eight hundred years to modern era. Horse is the specialty of this island. The red and white pony lighthouse facing up each other on this beach symbolized its’ unique old horse. Absolutely. These two are actual lighthouse. To my regret, I had to leave this tiny charming beach before lighting at night due to catch my return flight.     

Your bucket lists for Jeju Island-Episode1-Seongsan Ilchulbong Sunrise Peak(성산일출봉)

Jeju Island(제주도), the most favorite attractions wish to go for Korean as well as foreign traveler inside Korea. According to statistics, there were over 15 million of peoples visited here during last year. In recent years, 'To live in Jeju Island for a month' has become a wannabe life style to Korean. People love its’ unique stunning nature and quite different culture compared with the main land. 

The view of Seongsan ilchulbong(sunrise peak) from the next seashore

Thanks to mild and warm temperature all the year and masterpiece resulted in specific volcanic activity, this island has boasted diverse flora, dark gray volcanic rocks and ash soil, clean and awesome emerald color beaches. This is treasure box of geo-nature. It is said that it was made by several times of volcanic eruption ever since made 700 to 1200 thousand years before. I dare say that the best attractions spot among spectacular beautiful views in this awesome island must be the very right Seongsan Sunrise Peak(성산일출봉,Seongsan ilchulbong). This is situated in the eastern seaboard of Jeju Island. For this reason, spectacular sunrise always was given to the early morning hikers. On each New Year’s here is crowded with lots of people who meet the first sun of the year and make a wish while see the wonderful sunrise.

When I arrived at the morning around 9AM, there were already many peoples in ready to hike this peak. In particular, in spring and fall season, here is always crowded with groups of middle and high school students because they consider this destination as the essential course of a trip for educational aspect together with the Mount Halla. The group youths visited for the experiential learning were busy bustling to take a group picture with peak as the backdrop. There was pleasant and vibrant noise. Temperature of this island is much higher than as main Korea. When I visited there in the beginning of September, the temperature was rather close to the end of summer due to the strong sunlight. I headed for the peak step by step as if I was forced by the power of magnet.

Downside view from almost top
The youth passing me ran just like rocket with loud laughs. They said it takes 50 minutes to one hour enough to climb up and down this small peak. But not me. But not me. My poor body strength. So, I had to stop several times to get my breath back again. To be fortunately, there were proper brief rest zone in the many points. Thanks to break, I'm sure that I could put the beautiful sceneries filled with fine beaches, waves and winds surrounding this peak, unique rocks and diverse flora into my eyes and mind much more than those who went to the peak. The joy of life comes from unexpected moment sometimes.

When I reached the peak, many people were making their memories in their own way. To be frank with you, I was a little disappointed when I saw the peak. It looked like a small football ground slightly hollowed land as if the spaceship touched down there. It was unusual for the top edge to be as sharp as the end of the crown. I came up with my mind for a while that I wanted to run down to that wide ground. This peak was an island at first. As times go by the sands and gravels were flown from the neighboring seashore into this islet and it had resulted in the connection to the main land of Jeju Island exquisitely. As I descended from the summit, it seemed that the narrow and slender beach on the far left of this peak is evident of its' formation. The descending wooden stairs made a harmony with the greens and I had to wait because the pure and marvelous nature were providing the fantastic shooting points to visitors.

FACTS: This is the typical soft tuff cone in the world and provides important formula text about the eruptive and depositional process of hydro-magmatic volcanoes. It said, this was made by the hydro-magmatic eruption of volcano under shallow sea bed, just under the sea about 120 meters in depth, five thousand years before presumably. This peak has vertical cliffs showing diverse inner structures in three sides except west side of it formed by erosive action of the strong winds and waves since ever made. In 2007, Jeju Volcanic Island and Lava Tubes became the first site selected for its natural significance by UNESCO. It ranked top 7 in the world superb natural landscape in 2011.

TIPS: The best time to visit Jeju Is. is in the spring or in the fall. Jeju Island has lots of tourist attractions to see and feel. Segmenting it into east, west, south, middle and neighbouring islands is also one of the ways to save your time.

The museum in nature, National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Gwacheon (국립현대미술관 과천관)

Art museum beside the Zoo???

Absolutely, it is unusual combination that doesn't fit at all in general cases. To be interest, the both are situated to each other next to in a short distance from Seoul. The zoo and botanical garden moved to the current location from Seoul, in 1980s, and became unusual neighbor by building the museum on next to. It is operated by the Ministry of Culture, sports & Tourism. 

This museum, despite of some distance from Seoul, in quality has undertaken main role for last over 30 years in many sides of cultural primary duties to collect, preserve, study, exhibit. They offer free admission in case of permanent exhibition among the eight galleries all round year except Monday off. There were some controversial at first during construction because the location shall hinder its accessibility. However, the problem could be solved clearly by the opening of the Seoul subway line 4 one year before the opening of museum in 1985. It is true that this museum boasts international-sized facilities and the important role as cultural platform especially on the modern & contemporary architecture, design and crafts field.The beacon shape of center part and the fortress shape of both side part of this building were originated from the traditional Korean architecture.

The More, The Better

The prominent artwork must to see in here is the video tower artwork ‘The More, The Better’ which is by Namjune Paik who was world-famous video artist. Of course, you are able to get a chance to appreciate it free of charge. He was Korean American video artist and made it by using the 1003 television instead of canvas. He created this masterpiece to celebrate the coming 1988 Seoul Summer Olympics in 1986. The quantity 1003 means the 03 Oct, the National foundation day of Korea and it reach as high as the three floors. As it stood on 28 years, over 300 televisions didn’t work well. Although there were several times repair, the condition has not improved much since whenever I saw. To be fortunate! They had it total rebirth in celebration of the 70^th anniversary of Korea’s liberation (15 Aug 2015) through perfect and clean repair process. There were controversial whether to keep on going to the old original ones or replace them with new electric components inside when it was recovered. After long discussion, It was exactly reproduced the original form and elements. The repairing cost in some cases was higher than to buy a new one as I heard. It took so long time for the public to gain the original magnificent art. The unique spiral-formed ramp core had such a wonderful structure matching with this artwork that I could appreciate this masterpiece in every angle by walking this slope way.

 It is also true that one of the favorite charming points of this art museum might be the huge outdoor sculpture park on the green boasting superb natural landscape. Thanks to diverse artworks, It is just a kind of picnic event for me to visit this museum. Museum in the forest, this is the exact wording for here, maybe. Don't wait.

TIP: Zoo next to, as you can see in the image, is very lovely place to visit also. It is the one of top 10 Zoo in the world. It is recommendable for you to drop by on the same day as one day course.

How to get there :

Take off at the Seoul Grand Park station (Seoul subway line 4, exit)

>>walk backward in three minutes to take the shuttle bus

.  (every 20 minutes run, free ride, Monday off)

The Herbal Kingdom, Herb Island in Pocheon, South Korea(포천 허브아일랜드)

When the Herb was unfamiliar to the public 20 years ago in Korea, it is said she started to plant herbs in small green house in desolate land, this was registered as specialized Herb Plant Museum in Korea and became landmarks in Pocheon city(포천시), where is located in the northern of Seoul, a little far from around 2 hour drive from Seoul. Herb Island, it's not a real island but just the name only. I used a tour bus that only goes on Saturdays. I didn't want to drive my car because the road of suburbs on weekend are always jam packed with lots of car.  As I looked over the people waiting bus, more than half of them were young couples hand-in-hand. Aha, romantic date attractions?

It has certain charming point that makes people visit here up to million visitors all the year. In the beginning, It is said, it reached just 10,000 square meters only in width and was barren land being overgrown with full of weeds and gravels. At that time there was no road, water and even electricity was not linked at all. They pulled up out the weeds, sow the seeds and planted the trees of Mediterranean herbs. But it was so difficult to get a success that there were several attempts and failures to fit it in the soil of Korea. Most of all, there is big difference in the amount of sunshine as compared with the one of Mediterranean. It is insufficient in Korea.

Inside of Herb plant Museum

The huge herb green house (Herb & Plants Museum) was considered to be the most valuable place of this place. It boasted several hundred type of herb and seemed like to show long cultivation history. I felt the green house is not only the simple cultivation area of trees but also each tree was treated with care. This herb plant museum has been played its’ role for as the matrix of this herb island absolutely, as I thought.

The Santa Claus village, composed at the back side of these herb greenhouses, gave me another pleasure, too. How sweet and cool it was by the fresh flavor of herbal aroma in this hot summer! It was holding cooling event of aromatic herbal showering on the path during these hot summer days till end of August. Both Visitors and Santa Clauses lined on this path were soaked fully with foggy herbal vapor. It was very pleasant and something special aromatic experience.

Aromatic herb showering

Tiny church where we can send the Christmas card in advance

Summer Santa Clauses wearing in blue, small box houses decorated with items related on Santa Claus. People could feel the early Christmas mood on August and send their pre-card for Christmas at the tiny church on the hillside. With all of these in fairytale-like village, people were busy taking photos and enjoying early arrived Christmas day.

In the Herbal crafts exhibition hall

At the Herb Museum

It's under distilling the essential herb oil

The herb museum exhibits all about the herb in the side of food, flavoring, medicine and others. History of herb, herb related goods like oils, wines, liquors, vinegar and teas, making herb candles and soaps, handicraft corner, distillation corner of essential oil, many kinds of herb details helped my knowledge of it. What’s more, tiny items situated each corner added us aromatic pleasure, too. Recommend not to miss here. As time had gone so fast, we felt hungry. We enjoyed herb dishes in the Athens hall restaurant which is decorated in Greek style. How was the taste and price? The mood in there was very good but the price and taste didn't impress me enough.

Inside restaurant

When the sun went down, this place became the more beautiful, stunning and romantic site than daytime with millions of starlike lights and gave me wonderful shooting time. The live show on weekend at square and to see the youth who boarded mini gondola circling this square made me happy even though I didn’t ride it. For a while I sat and took coffee break. Well, the two guys’ singing ability on the stage was not good enough. They had trouble hitting the high notes and some portion of notes was stretched more longer. I was eavesdropping on the next person said to funny when was passing me " What makes them sing just like crying?". Whatever it was, it didn't screw up my romantic feeling at all. Surely, the night has powerful strength to make everything looks beautiful. This light festival of night goes on all the year.Don’t wait to meet the beautiful night time in there. 

Let's have free herbal teas & aroma therapy experience at this Fragrance Shop

Aroma tester

There were two accommodation zones on the back side, Herb healing center and experience building prepared various experiences like herb hydro therapy, herb & hay therapy, aromatherapy, tea therapy, stone therapy and others. Some rooms boast whirlpool bath in herb essential oil. It looked like have high grade and didn’t look cheap just to see it from a distance.

Herb Healing and experience center

D. I .Y. Experience Field

Flames for herb candle at D.I.Y Field

How to get there

1.          Shuttle bus run by DOOREBUS co.: Seoul city hall>Sport complex>Herb Island (running duration: 2hours). 
       Night course is available only on Saturday. Day courses are available on Sat/Sunday. 
        Send email to dooretourkorea@gmail.com for your booking.

2.         Midweek:to Subway1 Soyosan st.#1>transfer to bus 57-1 across the street, not sure about the duration because the bus runs every 2 hours. 

Semiwon Botanical Garden(세미원) , Heavenly views in Yangpyeong, South Korea

The most beautiful blooming time of Lotus in a day is in the morning rather than in the afternoon, as I heard. So I started my home early morning with my family. Usually it starts blooming in late June, matures in July and lasts till around mid-August. I always wonder how it blooms flower and seed at a same time, to be surprised.

This famous lotus garden ‘Semiwon’ (세미원) in Yangpyeong(양평) is located right next to east side of Seoul, surrounded by the Hangang river. So it is so easily accessible from Seoul or the neighboring metropolitan cities of the capital by car, bus and subway. Yangpyeong is also famous for the first officially certified organic cultivation zone in the country. It started as a small lotus garden in May 2004, became larger and larger as times go by and now leads up to 56000 square meters in the size. The government funding aiming for the natural purification properties enabled its’ scale up in wide range of areas. With these steady,elaborate and careful efforts, this now became to end up an tourist attractions where over 400,000 people has visited annually and has increased day by day. 

It consists of various kinds of lotus gardens, fountains, environment learning center, trial cultivation complex, observation pavilion and greenhouse etc. At the entrance wall, it was written ‘the garden of water and flower’ and eye-catching beautiful lotus relief represents the oriental image. Through this beautiful wall, we stopped by the lotus museum on the right side at first  with curiosity. On the 2^nd floor, simple but elegant lotus-themed items were shown.

Semiwon(세미원); the garden of water and flowers

Lotus flower pattern on the Korean traditional roof tile in the lotus museum

As a fact, lotus is very familiar aquatic flower with the Korean by religious reasons related with Buddhism as well as household items in daily lives by the images of cleanliness and nobility since ancient time. People also eat all parts of it-flower, leaf and root. They make a tea with the dried petals of white lotus and dried leaves. Large leaves are used as a wrap for food especially when make boiled rice cuisine. Rhizomes (roots) are very popular cooking material in Korea. In those reasons, this has been very profitably and inextricably linked with Koreans lives and loved through so long time. The cozy stream, water fountains, dazzling lotus flowers, water lilies, upper bridge across this garden which gave us shelter from the strong sunlight.

Each single one enough evoked my admiration to this lovely heaven spots and blew off my awkward thought that why it blooms so this hot day that it will be somewhat hard to see the flowers under strong sunshine. What’s more, thanks to low wooden benches to sit on,benches and pavilion scattered here and there, we avoided early summer heat, drank water prepared ( tip; please carry enough water for your thirst) and took brief break on the low wooden bench.

Have you ever seen the lotus flower? I  was surprised at the big size of flower almost as big as your face and giant leaf as big as enough to be able to sit on it. I did not boring at all because my heart was stolen by the flowers while I didn’t recognize.

fountains being motivated from Korea traditional storage crocks

Cool fountain awaited for us composed of these traditional storage crocks which  have been used for preserving sauces or other condiments. Old times in Korean custom, people put the bowl with clean water on this crock and prayed for their wishes at the night, now recently no more. 

Path for your heart cleaning ,covered by the shape of Korea traditional washboards

Old pine tree in front of Sehanjeong pavilion(세한정)

Painting Sehando in the Sehanjeong pavilion

Newly founded Sehanjeong pavilion(세한정), situated almost last point of this garden, got the copy of painting ‘Sehando’, standing portrait of Chusa (추사 pen name of Jeounghui Kim, 1786-1856) and wish paper to write peoples’ wishes on. Sehando is the most celebrated masterpiece painting of Chusa. His lonely, difficult, sad situation of his exile in Jeju Island was well expressed through the old pine tree and humble house. He was a famous calligraphy, epigraphist and scholar of late Joseon Dynasty of last kingdom of Korea. He got several exiles due to his position of long distance relationship of royal family (He lived under the times four kings) during his life. It was good chance to see his famous painting for me in this unexpected place. However, for all the considering that there was no relation between him and this area through his whole life, it was some strange and totally irrelevant.

Boat bridge connecting between lotus garden and Dumulmeori
People can across this bridge only when  lotus garden opens 

Those traditional flags, standing on the boat bridge, streaming in the air by the winds of river and special reproductive bridge which was connected with 62 ships and floored by the wooden panels, floating bridge of 250 meters in length and 4 meters in width, lead us into Dumulmeori(두물머리), the one of the most romantic place. Thanks to this new bridge, we could reach easily to this famous shooting spot.( possible only during being opening time of this garden. If not, you have to go another way.)

 How to get there;  

1.     Take Gyeongui Jungang subway(경의중앙선)..bound for Yongmun st.(용문역), not bound for Deokso.  >> took off at Yangsu st.(양수역), exit1 >> go straight ahead **Check subway service interval for your return because it operates a half-hourly service in general *** best choice

2.     Take bus no.167 from Cheongnyanggni(청량리역 subway line1) >> off at Yangseo cultural sport park(양서 문화체육공원) in Yangsuri(양수리) 

3.     Take bus 2000-1 at Gangbyeon st( 강변역subway line2) >> off same of above 2^nd point.