Lekker Braai!

Last weekend, in honor of the upcoming World Cup in South Africa, I went to my very first braai and had a blast! My South African friends are extremely fun-loving and laid-back, and the same vibe could be felt throughout the braai. Everyone was there to have a great time and celebrate the South African culture with which I have completely fallen in love. Seriously, all things South African (food, music, dancing, Afrikaans, history, etc) have become my latest obsessions. 

"When I get older, I will be stronger
They’ll call me freedom, just like a Waving Flag"

The smell of all the food on the grills was incredible!

Droëwors...Dit is baie lekker!

(And no, it is not giraffe meat. It is dried beef and pork)

The meat on the T-bone steaks literally fell right off the bone. 

Boerewors (sausage) and Sarmies (sandwiches)!

We were supposed to dress in South African attire, but seeing as it was a Pre-World Cup event, and I already had my Korean football jersey and accessories, I went with Korean clothing on my body, South African tatoos on my face, and America in my heart:)

This was actually a difficult decision for me because it meant saying "NO" to shopping for a new outfit, and the SA Chucks were calling my name! 

The world cup kicks off in SA in three days! My friends Erik and Holly are there now, and I'm extremely jealous. I've only become a "football" fan since moving to Korea, and since I have actually been to a few Korean National games (and, hello, I live here), I will be cheering for BOTH Korea and the USA. Yes, I know Korea has a current ranking of 47, while the US is at 14, but I vow to support them both equally. Plus, I can't seem to chant "Dae Han Min Guk!" often enough. 

This weekend some friends and I are saying goodbye to our friend, Graham, who is returning to England for a bit, by watching England and the USA go head to head.  
Get ready...THE YANKS ARE COMING!

Paradise in a Pancho Part Dugae

"If one cannot catch a bird of paradise, better take a wet hen."
Nikita Khrushchev 


And THAT, my friends, is exactly what we did! Now, grab your pancho, and let's go...

SWIRI HILL

Named after the Korean blockbuster, Swiri, Swiri Hill, even in the sporadic rain drizzles, was a great place to start the day by looking out over Jungmun beach and watching the surfers below. We also re-enacted the last scene of the movie. I take my acting very seriously, and as you can see in the picture above, we nailed it. NAAAIIIIIILED IT!

SANBANGSAN MOUNTAIN

Though I hate hiking, the hike up to Sanbanggulsa Grotto was very nice. It is a Buddhist temple inside a cave with a spectacular view of the ocean.

Here is a cool. fact: Sanbangsan Mountain is the only mountain on the island without a crater on its top. Legend has it that a god in a fit of rage ripped off the top of Hallasan Mountain , which created Sangbangsan Mountain. And it does look like it could fit right into the crater atop Hallasan Mountain.

In actuality, it is a huge mound of lava that was created by a volcano 800,000 years ago.

CHOCOLATE MUSEUM

It is the only chocolate museum in Asia, and it is also the WORST museum in Asia. DO NOT WASTE YOUR TIME. I repeat, DO NOT WASTE YOUR TIME. Don't be lured in like Diana and I were by the word "chocolate." The exterior is very impressive, but it's a stupid, stupid, stupid museum, which makes no sense, except for the one small area in which one can look through a window and see the chocolate being made.

I was hoping for something a bit more interactive, like the Fudgery at the Riverwalk in New Orleans, but no such luck.

The rest of the museum looks like this:

Please don't assume that ANY of the above items are made of or associated with chocolate in any way, not even the flying pterodactyl or Pirates of the Caribbean lunch box. I swear, I felt like I was at a really bad antique store or garage sale in middle-of-nowhere America.

Again, DON'T GO! I can tell you're considering it, but don't do it to yourself! You may never recover from the sheer stupidity of the environment. Did I mention it's a stupid, stupid, stupid museum???

MINIATURE THEME PARK
I like to refer to the Miniature Theme Park as the Korean Epcot. I don't highly recommend going, unless you have children or just have time to kill, but it was a unique place to act silly, and that is always right up my alley.

LOVE LAND

It's against the law to visit Jeju-do without a quick visit to Love Land.  It was absolutely hilarious, even more so because Koreans are so conservative. Unfortunately, we went during the last leg of our Jeju journey, and I was completely exhausted and cranky. (Me? NEVER!) Plus, I had had all of the cold wind and rain I could stand, so I just took a few pics of the statues outside and did some browsing in the gift shop (aka adult novelties store). The art pieces at Love Land, though funny, are also very impressive. They were all designed and built by Hongik University (Hongdae) students.

Speaking of conservative Korea, I was completely shocked, no FLOORED, at the amount of ajumas and ajushis at Love Land! I thought they would find it offensive and embarrassing, but they were having as much fun as the younger visitors. (you must be 18 to enter)

Scandalous news of the day: A Love Land in China was built then immediately demolished before its opening last year.

Alas, all good things must come to an end, but don't worry, Jeju-do, I'll be back one day.

Paradise in a Pancho Part Hana

Well, I FINALLY made it to the infamous Jeju-do, and it rained the ENTIRE time! But I think it just added to the experience. My friend, Diana, and I had a good laugh and sang "Almost Paradise" (emphasis on almost) about a million times. OK, so maybe it was me breaking out into the random singing and dancing, but is it really necessary to keep track? I'm not the one on trial here!
The funniest part of the trip was my lack of planning, Seeing as I decided to go and booked my flight the day before my departure, I didn't have much time to plan and pack, but I was only going to for three days, so I was not too concerned. HOWEVER, any semi-normal person would check one thing. I'll give you one guess...............That's right! The weather!
Did I check the weather? Negative! The day I booked my flight was a sunny 80 degrees, and in my pre-vaca excitement, I forgot that mother nature has the right to change the weather without my permission. Which, I find extremely rude on her part. She will be getting a strongly worded letter, as soon as the post office workers stop looking at me like a crazy person and  actually allow me to mail a letter to mother nature.  But, as usual, I digress....
Ladies and gentlemen, I now present part one of the highlights of my three days in in Jeju-do:

Let's start with the important stuff, shall we? FOOD!

I hate oranges and its juice, especially with pulp (gag). But I love, love, love the two types of Jeju-do oranges, well tangerines, hallabongs and gamgyul. I'm also a big fan of Jeju's various types of chocolate, especially the orange chocolate and cactus chocolate. It's sinful.

While in Jeju, I also had the best sashimi of my life, and I was introduced to seaweed pancakes (I think they are actually Japanese), which I'm hoping to find here on the mainland, but no one seems to know what I'm talking about. See pic below:

I was EXTREMELY shocked to learn that horse meat is considered a delicacy in Jeju-do, which also comes from Japan.

I saw many horses in Jeju, and the island has it's own breed of horse, the joranmal, which is a national treasure. It's illegal to kill these horses, so at least they are safe from becoming dinner.

DOL HAREUBANG (STONE GRANDFATHER)

These are the fertility and protection statues found all over the island. I bought a small one carved out of volcanic rock. (Did I mention Jeju-do is a volcanic island?)

JEJU HIKING INN

This is a great hostel and highly recommended. It's only 22,000 won per night for a private room, which includes a private bathroom, free wifi, bicycle rental for 10,000 won, and the owner is fluent in English and SUPER nice and helpful.

YONGDU-AM (DRAGON HEAD ROCK)

Like the Tower of Pisa, I'm glad that I've seen it, but after five minutes, you've seen it, taken pictures, and you're done.

NANTA

I was very excited to see the Korean hit, Nanta my first night in Jeju. I was lucky to get a ticket at the last minute. I arrived early, as you can see in the picture, but soon the theatre was completely full. The show was supposed to start at 8pm, and at 8:05 an usher walked on stage and made an announcement in Korean. Everyone in the audience quickly started talking to one another angrily (although sometimes in Korean it is hard to tell), and some stood up and began walking out of the seating area.
Now, Nanta is an audience participation type show, so I immediately thought "Calm down, everyone. It's just part of the show. Jeesh. Get a clue!"
Soon I was one of the only ones left in the theatre.
"Um. OK. So maybe it's not part of the show?"
I spotted a teenager, and since they are usually one's best bet in finding an English speaker, I asked about the situation. He was very fluent in English, which I soon found to be the case with most Jeju natives, and informed me that the show had been canceled because a performer had been injured. Considering the fact that the performers use knives in the show, let's hope the performer still has all 10 fingers intact.

SEOGWIPO

Jeju-do has two cities, Jeju city (green) and Seongwipo city(pink). We stayed in Seongwipo, which I think is the best choice because there is so much to do in the area, especially at the Jungmun Resort.

SEOGWIPO SUBMARINE

It was definitely not worth 45,000 won. I'm told that when the weather is better, the fish viewing is better as well. But it was a nice escape from the rain, nonetheless. PLUS seeing a group of pushy ajumas almost push themselves right off the boat almost made the price worthwhile.

JEJU TEDDY BEAR MUSEUM

I originally saw the Teddy Bear Museum as just another means to escape the weather, and I thought it would be a bit boring, but I thoroughly enjoyed it! And thanks to one of my Grandad's MANY stories (most of you know what I mean), I was able to tell my South African friend, Diana, the story of Theodore Roosevelt and the bear, which is how the the teddy bear got its name. Thanks, G-Dad!

CHEONJEYEON WATERFALL

I think this was my favorite part of the island. The Cheonjeyeon Waterfall has three different tiers, which lead into the ocean. We hiked the area for a couple of hours, and it did NOT seem like we were still in Korea.  And I can definitely see why Jeju-do is considered the Hawaii of Asia because I felt as if I were smack dab in the middle of an episode of LOST. I kept waiting for my good friends Jack, Kate, and Sawyer to come out of the forest at any moment. Not to mention the fact that most of the time Diana and I had no idea where we were going as we wandered through the tropical rain-forest. I just kept repeating to myself "Live together. Die alone."

SEONIMGYO BRIDGE

Still in part of my favorite area, the Seonimgyo Bridge crosses the second tier of the Cheonjeyeon Waterfall. In English, it is referred to as The Seven Nymphs Bridge because it is covered in carvings of seven nymphs playing musical instruments. There is a legend that nymphs descend from heaven at night and bathe in the waterfall. I am fascinated by mythology and folklore, so this is yet another reason I loved the area so much.

JUNGMUN BEACH

After walking up and down the trails which lead through the Cheonjeyeon Waterfall Valley, we ended up on  Jungmun Beach. It was a beautiful beach with the most interesting sand I have ever seen of felt. It was multi-colored, black, white, and orange. It reminded me of a calico cat and appeared rough, but it was very smooth and soft.
We then wandered down to the Hyatt and pretended to be guests by using their outside showers to wash the sand off our feet. Next, we grabbed cappuccinos and muffins at the hotel's cafe, where I attempted to show off my VAST *clears throat* knowledge of the Korean language. Sadly and embarrassingly, the waitress replied in English that she was from Malaysia. (Racist American, party of one, your table is ready.)

YAKCHEON TEMPLE

This was one of the most beautiful buildings in which I have been, and it is the largest temple in Asia. It's quite new, being built in the 1990's. Others may argue, but I found it comparable in intricate details to most of the ancient cathedrals in Europe.