A summer holiday to the beautiful island - Day 4. (part 2/2)

5. 광치기해변 (Gwangchigi Haebyeon Beach)

After having a short break at the Starbucks cafe near Seongsan Ilchulbong Peak, I headed to Gwangchigi Haebyeon Beach(광치기해변). It took about 5 minutes by car from Seongsan Ilchulbong Peak. If you take a bus(no. 722-2 or no. 201), it will take about 15 minutes to get there.

 

 

Carrot Camembert Cheese Cake (left) / Jeju Hallabong Black Tea Blended (middle) / Jeju Forest Cold Brew (right)

Jeju Starbucks's merchandise

 

Gwangchigi Haebyeon Beach is spread between Seongsan Ilchulbong Peak and Seopjikoji Coastline. It is the spot where the first course of Jeju Olle Trail ends and the second course starts. Its unique geological features, a body composed of basalt topped with green moss, makes for a beautiful scene. Additionally, the views with Seongsan Ilchulbong Peak in the background are magnificent.

 

It becomes more popular at the year-end and New year's in particular because people congregate on the beach in order to see the new year's sunrise with Seongsan Ilchulbong Peak. I couldn't see it in person, sadly, but at least could enjoy the beautiful sceneries and vibes it offered.

 

 

There are some horses you can hop on for an experience

Rating

4.0 / 5.0

Location

224-33, Goseong-ri, Seongsan-eup, Seogwipo-si, Jeju-do, Republic of Korea

 

 

 

 

6. 섭지코지 (Seopjikoji Coastline)

Koji(코지) out of Seopjikoji (섭지코지) means nose-shaped terrain as it actually looks like a nose. It's one of the popular destinations for tourists because of its beautiful scenery in which you can see Jeju ponies graze, coastal cliffs, and especially canola flowers every Spring. With that being said, many films and K-dramas were filmed at 섭지코지 due to its beautiful views.

 

At first, it was a bit hard to find a way there even with a navigation system on my phone. So, I parked the car by the roadside and walked along the coast to find where 섭지코지 was. Thankfully, I found the car park shortly after. Knowing that the car park charged you 1,500 won for an hour-parking, I thought parking by the roadside was a good idea.

 

Living up to its reputation, there were so many people visiting 섭지코지 and the views were beautiful. The most impressive thing there was the biscuit-shaped house on the hill. It made me feel as if I were in the story, Hansel and Gretel. I didn't go inside the biscuit house (so as not to be eaten by the witch) because it was just closed. I still don't know what the house was for.

 

 

 

While walking along the trail, you will get to see a beacon, which was used to alert to invasions of Japanese pirates. It's also famous for being featured in the K-drama, All In(올인).

 

Not only that, you will see Seondol Bawi Rock, which was formed through coagulation of magma a long time ago. It has a legend in which the last son of the Dragon King had a crush on the fairy from heaven but failed to marry her due to his lack of sincerity that he had to display for 100 days. He waited for her to descend again down to earth but became a rock in a standing position there. So, it led to another legend in which the Dragon King who felt sorry for his son blessed any couple who made a vow of love in front of the rock to have a wonderful child.

 

 

The beacon (left) / Seondol Bawi Rock (right)

Wishing stones. You can see many of them piled by visitors

The white lighthouse on the peak

Rating

4.3 / 5.0

 

 

 

 

7. 온평바다한그릇 (Onpyeong Bada Hangrut Seafood Restaurant)

I weighed up whether to mention this restaurant or not and I decided to bring it up on the post.

 

I headed for the restaurant for dinner and I was very excited about having 딱새우(Ttaksaewoo, prawns with hard shells). Before going to Jeju, I mapped out what restaurants to visit and given the many videos I saw on Youtube and Instagram, 온평바다한그릇 seemed perfect for seafood. It had good reviews as well. So, I went there, not knowing that it would be the worst choice on my itinerary.

 

 

The exterior of the restaurant. A grumpy-faced and pretentious octopus is glaring at you in the sign.

The first impression was ok before I got into the restaurant. The basalt wall, being used as like a balcony in front of the restaurant, looked nice and instagrammable.

 

As I got in, the husband-and-wife owners saw me. But, I didn't hear any greeting from them. Although I couldn't help but think they were a bit unkind, it wouldn't matter to me as long as the food was good.

 

 

The husband owner, wearing a blue T-shirt, kept playing a game on his phone

 

I ordered 활전복 문어 해물라면(Hwaljeonbok Moonoe Haemulramyeon, Ramyeon with seafood, octopus, and live abalone) and 딱새우찜(Ttaksaewoo Jjim, steamed prawns with hard shells). My friend with me who especially loves seafood was excited about 딱새우찜 because the prawns were one of the Jeju's specialities. 

 

'Will it be as tasty as it looks on Instagram?'

 

 

활전복 문어 해물라면 (left) / 딱새우찜 (right)

Look at that. How pretty those are. That shy crab emerging and blushing in the pot, the live abalone, and the 딱새우s in the basket. I kept saying 'Wow...', taking pictures. I was happy until then.

 

In order to eat them easily, I had to peel the prawns, cut the octopus, mussels, and the abalone. It was much harder than I expected. The 딱새우(prawns), in particular, took me ages to peel. The shells were SO HARD that I thought they could deflect bullets if someone had shot them with a gun. To that extent, the shells were really hard; I took up so much time just peeling them.

 

Being a bit annoyed, I asked the blue t-shirt guy for some tips to peel them. He, who was still playing a game on his phone, finally came to me and showed me how to properly peel it. I don't want to sound fussy, but couldn't help but notice he performed the peeling demonstration with his unwashed hands, which were dancing on the phone even a second ago.

 

'What the...'

 

While peeling the prawns and seeing his peeling performance, the ramyeon cooled down and went puffy. In addition, my hands and lips were messy while peeling and eating the food. In that very moment, there was nothing clean or fancy. I couldn't be more upset due to the thought that my last meal in Jeju had been ruined.

 

'딱새우, never again.'

 

Rating

1.0 / 5.0

Location

Just don't go

 

 

 

 

Thank you for having enjoyed my posts about Jeju.

I'll be back with more and better posts ASAP!

 

 

 

 

If you enjoyed this post, and then give me some help,

I'd really appreciate it!

 

WORDS BY

Minsu Kim - koreaonthescreen@gmail.com

PHOTOS BY

Minsu Kim - koreaonthescreen@gmail.com

PROOFREAD BY

Gabriela Enriquez

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