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Traveling mainland Korea complements an expat's island lifeJeju-based English teacher Jessica Sicard gains a greater appreciation for the country she currently calls home |
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Island living, especially on a Hawaii-like island, is a fantasy for many and a reality for few. As a Seogwipo resident, I couldn’t be happier with my decision to be here, but every now and then I get an itch to go somewhere bigger. With limited vacation time, it’s important to choose wisely. My EPIK (English Program in Korea) friends have seen a lot of Asia during their school vacations, but with my five precious days off, I chose to see more of South Korea.
My first time off the island was a brief weekend trip to Seoul in December of 2011. It was a cold Friday night, well below zero Celsius, and as I traveled by subway to meet friends in Seoul, I noticed a clear difference between the Koreans I had come to know on Jeju Island and the Koreans I was encountering for the first time in Seoul. The difference is probably what most people would see when it comes to the city folk versus the country folk, but what was immediately evident was how Seoul women wear miniskirts with bare legs in freezing temperatures while Seogwipo women embrace being warm during the cold months. The wise words of my childhood babysitter, “it hurts to be beautiful,” echoed in my head.
I found Seoul to be a never-ending city of neon lights, shopping, eating and socializing galore but with very little nature to be found. I’m a bit of an environmentalist, so this left me with an empty feeling when I wasn’t heavily engaged in conversation with the friends I was visiting. But big cities have their purposes because they provide a vast array of opportunities.
For example, Itaewon is a wonder to behold. I chose to visit this area due to the popularity among Westerners, and as I exited the subway, I was immediately confronted by a Taco Bell and predominantly non-Korean pedestrians. It was as if I had teleported to an English-speaking country, and I suddenly recognized everything and could speak the language properly. I’ve perfected my skills in tuning out Korean, but it was impossible to not listen in on the English spoken on the streets simply because I knew I could understand. Yikes, eavesdropping to the extreme. On average I see Westerners on the street about once a week on Seogwipo, and usually I know them. In Itaewon, there are hundreds, if not thousands of non-Koreans walking around, and I didn’t know anyone.
The overwhelming nature of Seoul made me consider visiting other places in South Korea with my sacred five days of vacation in mid-April. Busan has a fantastic reputation, so I decided to go there and mix it up with some hiking in Daejeon and Suncheon. Flying roundtrip Jeju to Busan, my trip started and ended in South Korea’s second largest city.
I landed in Busan and proceeded to take the metro into town, experiencing the seemingly infinite reaches of Busan in route. While Busan is much smaller than Seoul, it was still massive and overpowering coming from Seogwipo. The time it took to travel from the airport to my desired subway stop took longer than what is required to travel from Seogwipo to Jeju City, and I was in the same city!
That day I enjoyed a day hike with friends in a place called Igidae, a supposed “forgotten” hike with few hikers that provides fantastic views of the city. Due to the large crowds of fashionable hikers and city folks looking for a brief escape, I didn’t find this hike to be “forgotten,” but it did follow through on the fantastic city views.
Perhaps the most interesting parts of Busan for me are Haeundae Beach and Gwangalli Beach. As a native Californian who also spent her Peace Corps service living on a beach in Madagascar, I have an idea of what beaches should be like: peaceful, quiet, isolated and tranquil, and it’s possible to visit Jungmun Beach under most of these conditions. As beach season is not in full swing yet, these beaches are currently somewhat quiet, but as they are surrounded by tall buildings and the Korean bbali bbali (“hurry up” culture), it provided a distinctive contrast that made these places very interesting and fun, but not a place I’d like to curl up with a book for relaxation.
Gwangalli Beach was particularly amazing at night as the city lights and Gwangan Bridge reflected magnificently on the ocean water providing an amusement park for night photography enthusiasts like myself. If I had packed a proper jacket that day, I would have stayed out there all night taking in the views of florescent lights dancing on the sea.
My journey continued north to Daejeon where I hiked the Sinwonsa Course in Gyeryongsan National Park. I saw the Nammaetap pagodas and a famous temple, Donghaksa, the oldest temple for female monks that also provides stunning views of Munpilbong Peak. I serendipitously visited during the Gyeryongsan Cherry Blossom Festival, so the temple’s beauty was enhanced by spring colors and enjoyed by many spectators. I found the temple to be more picturesque than the hike itself though as the hiking trail to the pagodas was somewhat strenuous, dry and brown.
Daejeon as a city reminded me of my hometown of Fresno, California: it’s a large city with very few places of interest except the surrounding nature and easy access to other large cities. Daejeon and Fresno are both places where it’s possible to buy anything you need, including Costco items. They are mostly safe and great places to grow up, but ultimately it becomes challenging to stay when other cities provide more opportunities.
My final destination before returning to Busan was Suncheon, chosen solely based on Google Images, my knowledge that South Jeolla province is the greenest province in South Korea and the recommendation of a Couchsurfer who insisted that one cannot leave this country without experiencing Suncheon Bay. As this person has been in Korea for several years, I took his advice seriously and decided to spend three days experiencing the grandeur of this beautiful wetland. I must say I was not disappointed.
My visit began with a bike ride to the Suncheon Bay Ecological Park with my Couchsurfing host, Kristi, where we enjoyed a stroll through the vast reed bed and took in iconic views of Suncheon Bay. The rest of my trip was shadowed with rain, but I still made it out to the Seonamsa, one of South Korea’s oldest standing temples dating back to 529 AD where monks have continued to preserve the old fashioned ways of life. This temple is tucked away in a forest, requiring a 30-40 minute bus ride from the Suncheon city center and a short, easy hike through the forest. The isolation of this temple combined with the rainy weather provides complete serenity. Before I knew it, I had already spent half the day exploring the temple grounds and soaking up peace and solitude after my busy week. I can’t think of any large temples like this on Jeju Island that are tucked away, fully immersed in nature and have few tourists groups.
I continued on to the Nagan Folk Village, the best preserved fortified folk village from the Joseon period (1392-1910). Once I got out there, I was pleased that I had done so on a rainy day as blankets of fog perpetually rolled over surrounding hills giving the entire visit an eerie and mystical feeling. This was my first visit to a folk village ever, and I couldn’t help but to feel as though I were on an elaborate Hollywood movie set. Incredible.
On my final day in Suncheon, Kristi took me to visit one of her favorite Korean friends, Kim Seong Nim, a middle aged Korean woman who paints for a living. I was not familiar with Mrs. Kim’s work before meeting her, but now I am in love with it. A Gwangju native, Kim moved to the Suncheon area several years ago with her husband who is also an artist, and the major theme in her art is the Suncheon area. Mrs. Kim and her husband reside in a gorgeous cottage on the outskirts of Suncheon that is surrounded by green rolling hills where wild herbs are plentiful. As Mrs. Kim showed us into her house, she picked a few herbs and shortly thereafter served us Korean pancakes with said herbs. Delicious.
Kim does not speak much English, but Kristi is fluent in Korean. I’ve only seen one other native English speaker speak Korean like that, and this time was just as impressive and motivating as the first. When I meet Korean people like Mrs. Kim, people who are instantly warm, welcoming, kind and a great cook, I think about how sad it is that I have minimal skills in speaking the language. While I’m enjoying my time in Korea, I think about how much better it would be if I could communicate with amazing people like Mrs. Kim without a translator. I was, however, thankful to have Kristi there to translate, and I had an unforgettable afternoon where Mrs. Kim treated Kristi and me to exotic teas and some of the best food I’ve had in Korea. Mrs. Kim expects to show her art on Jeju Island this December, and I’m pleased I’ll have the opportunity to see her again.
I returned to Jeju Island being grateful for my decision to live here but a little bit sad about leaving Suncheon. Suncheon seems to be a place where people and nature can coexist harmoniously, but Jeju Island also has a lot going on: Mt. Halla, Olle trails, fresh fish, chill people and a slower pace of bbali bbali. In the end though, I’m glad I seized the opportunity to find more places to love in Korea. |
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ⓒ Jeju Weekly 2009 (http://www.jejuweekly.net)
All materials on this site are protected under the Korean Copyright Law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published without the prior consent of Jeju Weekly. |
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Copyright ⓒ 2009 All materials on this site are protected under the Korean Copyright Law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published
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