Jeju Island

Jeju Island bills itself as the "Hawaii of Korea." Like Hawaii, it is a volcanic island. Like Hawaii, it has palm trees and is a little lusher and prettier than the mainland. Unlike Hawaii, Jeju gets cold in the winter. Didn't matter- it just kept the crowds away. Our first trip was a bus ride around the island. We stopped to see Jeonbang falls, one of the few waterfalls in the world that falls directly into the sea (well, almost):













From there we walked over to Cheonjiyeon falls, another pretty waterfall:

That night we found the El Paso restaurant for some Mexican food (yes, there is a theme developing):

The next day we went to Manjanggul cave, which is the longest lava tube in the world:

Inside of the cave. It's dark

 On our way back, we stopped to go through a hedge maze. I was surprised by how much fun I had here:

no, Ranell, your camera will not work as a map

finish!

The day after that, we went to see a famous rock that looks like a dragon head. I had more fun riding the statues:

Later on we went back to the south part of the island (aka where the waterfalls are). These waterfalls are called Cheonjeyeon falls, and they are a string of 3 falls (although the first one was dry):

the upper falls

middle falls- check out the jackass posing on top of the falls

bottom falls

After touring the falls, we made some stops in the Chocolate Museum and the Teddy Bear Museum (you're welcome, Ranell):














That night we lit sparklers to celebrate Ranell's birthday:

I will absolutely visit Jeju again. It's a fun island with a lot of sights. February wasn't the best time to visit, I would suggest the fall, as it would be cool and the waterfalls would still have plenty of water in them. There are 2 main towns on the island, Jeju city in the north and Seogwipo (hooray memory!) in the south. We stayed in Jeju City, but I would strongly suggest staying in Seogwipo instead. All of the waterfalls are there, and the town has more energy and things to do. It is more like a tourist town with fun coffee shops and good restaurants.

Love Land

Ranell and I spent the Lunar New Year holiday on Jeju Island, which is known as the "honeymooner's island." Our first stop was a theme park known as Love Land, which deserves its own separate post. I'll let the pictures do the describing:

this was one of those "claw" games you usually find at an arcade. Except they usually don't have prizes like these!

That's Scooby-Doo!

is this position even possible?

now I KNOW this position isn't possible..

See the little kid in the background?

morning wood makes for great bag hangers

and now for the WEIRD part of the park:

I think I'll pick a different chair..

goodbye, Love Land, I love you!