Seongsan Ichilbung

So this is my second day on Jeju Island. The first day comprised the ferry trip (nothing special), the taxi ride from the ferry terminal to the hotel (usual cockup) and browsing around Jeju City. I went to a Mexican place for dinner and ordered a drink that included Somersby apple cider! So they CAN be found.

Today I'll be taking 7 buses, giving my travelcard a thorough working over. The first bus takes me to the bus terminal. From outside the terminal I take a bus that takes me clockwise around the island about 90 degrees. After one of the stops (Gimnyeong) I notice a sandy beach so plan to stop off here on the way back.

I disembark at Goseong-ri junction and walk to the bus stop across the road. This is where I take a local bus that goes to near Seongsan port. The weather is excellent today, the best that I'll experience on the island. I walk around some of the coastline as far as The Cloud Hotel (so THAT'S where it is, IT humour 😁). There's a good place nearby, overlooking the water, for a spot of lunch.

After lunch I take a small trail to the base of Ichilbung, where I buy a ticket and join the masses for the walk up to the 180 metre summit. Simply spectacular views on a fine day, as my photos show. At the summit I drink in the view, it's Rio-esque on a smaller scale.

On the way down there are some great views of the local area and Mt Hallasan, which is a volcanic peak and S Korea's highest mountain. Further on it's possible to detour down to the beach, which I do. Just rocks, no sand. There's a stall selling live seafood, octopus anyone? I wander around the rockpools for a while before heading back to the bus stop.

Soon there's a local bus that takes me back to Goseong-ri junction. Surprisingly the intercity bus arrives within 5 minutes, I usually assume that I've just missed the bus. Lucky as there is a 50 minute interval between these buses. It drops me off at Gimnyeong and I walk to the beach.

Weather's still decent, so I take off my hiking boots and paddle barefoot in the water for around 15 minutes. Noone else does this, ofc, but I find it very therapeutic. A photographer is nearby shooting either a fashion spread or a commercial. His model is wearing a robe and walks into the water (no disrobing) until her head is fully submerged. Then she walks out a minute later (freezing). The things we do for art (or money) 😦

Back to the bus stop, I backtrack to Jeju Bus Terminal and then the hotel. It's been a LONG day.Read more