Jeju (Cheju) Island South Korea.
Jeju, a small island off the coast of Korea, hosts travelers of Asia for a relaxing portion of their trip. Filled with exotic plants animals and topography. Jeju Island also known as the "Island of the Gods," is a popular vacation spot for Koreans and many Japanese. It remains one of the top honeymoon destinations for Korean newlyweds. The island's mixture of volcanic rock, frequent rains, and temperate climate, make it very similar to the Hawaiian Islands in the U.S. The island offers visitors a wide range of activities: hiking on Halla-sann (South Korea's highest peak), catching sunrises and sunsets over the ocean, viewing majestic waterfalls, riding horses, or just lying around on the sandy beaches.
Although tourism is one of the main industries on the island, many of the hotels and other tourist areas are run by mainland companies, so much of the income never gets put back into the local economy. Also, since the attractions are geared towards tourists, many of the entrance fees can be hefty (although the locally owned and operated ones tend to be cheaper). Similar to Gyeongju and some other areas, local residents can enter most places for free or for a steeply discounted price.
Free Falls
In the midst of thick forest, the ChunjeyunWaterfall falls out of nowhere into a deep calm pond. Feel free to take a guided tour packed with other bits of information and history, or take a bus from Cheju City and then partly hike to the waterfall yourself. This magnificent space astounds visitors. Another popular waterfall in a very different topical setting is the Chungbang Waterfall. It falls over the edge of a cliff high above the beach and ocean waters. The nearby Chungbang Cave can fill the day with natural wonders. To truly spend your day with Mother Earth, the Sugnsan’s Sunrise Peak has been noted as the best spot to watch the sunrise. The east-most point of Cheju can be reached by bus in an hour and 20 minutes from Cheju City. Be sure to plan accordingly and allot time to get settled before the sun starts to rise.
Geumneung Beach in Jeju Island
Geumneung Beach shares the same views and surroundings with Hyeopjae Beach, which is Jeju Island's most famous beach, since they are located just next to each other. Since Geumneung Beach is relatively less known than Hyeopjae Beach, it is the perfect place for people who want to enjoy a quiet and more private environment, but still want to enjoy the beauty of Hyeopjae Beach.
Geumneung Beach has an emerald color ocean, which can be found in tropical regions or famous resorts, a beautiful long beach with palm trees, white sand, shells, beautiful sunsets, and the scenery of Biyang Island located in front of the beach. It is perfect for families with children, since the beach has a gentle slope and shallow depth during ebb tides.
Jeju Glass Castle
Jeju Glass Castle is a large glass art theme park with glass arts produced by professional glass artists from such places as Italy, the Czech Republic, and Japan. It was created as a project team consisting of glass specialists over several years. Each entertainment inside the theme park is a subject with glass. Visitors can enjoy the experience of making their own glass products (with an extra fee separate from the entrance fee).
Jeju Glass Castle is divided into two sections: indoor modern glass model center and outdoor theme park. Inside the modern glass model center are a large beanstalk from the "Jack & The Beanstalk" fairy tale, a large glass harubang created with Pyrex glass, a Mirror Room that is like a fantasy universe using mirrors and presenting constellations using 5,000 pieces of Pyrex glass, a Magic Mirror Room where visitors can see separated images themselves through mirrors in a triangle-shaped mirrored room, and glass books and bean sprouts made of glasses.
In the outdoor theme park are glass fish made from recycled soju (Korean liquor) bottles, thousands of many-sized convex mirrors, a mirror lake consisting of white rocks, a glass pyramid with spectacular colorful night lighting, a large glass coffee set floating on the lake, many colored flower beds made of glasses, a mirror maze, a glass fall, and a glass bridge, all made into an outdoor theme park. Each one of them is beautiful and provides a wonderful photo spot for visitors.
Buddhist Temples ( Cheonwhang-sa)
Ch'eonwhang-sa Temple is what remains of a formerly very proment temple on Jeju Island. Only a few buildings have been rebuilt, including the main prayer hall, a small hermitage up a short climb, and a small residence hall for the monks living here. Very few people visit here, so apparently the is little incentive to recondition the existing buildings.
The main prayer hall includes hundreds of small Buddha images. Although the outside of the building is in disrepair, the inside has been maintained well.
Folklore and Natural History Museum
The whole island can be seen through the museum's exhibitions of folklore relics and indigenous plants and animals. The musuem also contains information on the natural history of geological features and marine organisms and recreates the traditional lifestyle of Jeju islanders. At the entrance to the museum, large stuffed marine animals welcome visitors. The stuffed fish such as bone shark (length 8.6 meters, weight 4.5 tons), stingray (length 4.7 meters), and whale shark (weight 4 tons) are the most popular among children.
The museum is divided into four exhibition halls: natural history, folklore, special resources, and an audio-visual room. About 3,000 various folklore relics are exhibited. The natural history exhibition hall shows geographical and petrological features, marine vegetation, and animals and insects native to Jeju Island. In the folklore exhibition hall, one can experience the traces of Cheju's ancesters with traditional thatched houses, Taeu (wooden boats), traditional Jeju working gaments (such as Kaljungi and Kaljoksan), agricultural tools, and a variety of other implements used by Haenyos (female divers).
Bija-rim Forest
This forest contains 2,500 Torreya cunifera, aged 300-600 years old, and is said to be the best area in the world for this single species of trees growing so densely together. Because the trees are evergreens, people can enjoy the dense forest all year long. Several rare parasitic plants grow within the trees. The trees blossom around April and fruits ripen in autumn. The fruits are widely used for medicinal purposes and food. The quality of the wood is excellent and is used for high-class furniture and stone checker boards.The Pija tree has been designated as Natural Monument #374 for protection.
Jeju City
Jeju City is the main gateway to the island, as it contains the island's only airport, and the main port terminal. The inter-city bus terminal runs buses all over the island, making the area a good basecamp for exploring. Shin (New) Cheju, across Hanch'eon Stream and to the southwest, has many new tourist hotels.
In and around Jeju City you can find numerous sites to visit. Along the seaside are Dragon Head Rock. the boardwalk area with many seafood restaurants, the Jeju Seaside Art Center, Top Land amusement park, and the fish market; Cheju Port Terminal; and Sara-bong, a scenic cliff-top area from which to watch the sunset. Nearby, you can also find Kwandeokcheong, Jeju Island's oldest pavillion, and next to that lies the remains of the old government building. In the center of the city, near the KAL hotel, Shinsan Park contains Samseonghyeol (the legendary birthplace of the Jeju islanders), Jeju Folklore & Natural Museum, and Olympc Monument. On the southern outskirts you can find the Jeju Education Museum.
Food and Drink:
As a tourist area, all types of restaurants can easily be found here. Many fresh seafood restaurants are located along the boardwalk near the seaside, on Hoejip Street. Given the area's close proximity to the main port, the fish will usually be very fresh.
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