Jeju-do, Part 3

On Monday we decided to head back to Udo. We hadn't gotten to explore much of the island, but really liked what we had seen of it. But, we took a different route to get there. We stopped by a traditional village and took a few pics, then stopped at a bakery and convenience store for pastry and coffee. From there it was a beautiful drive along the coast to Udo. This time we got there earlier and we took the car across with us (well, truck, really. It turned out to be a Ford Explorer that Young-Gin had brought over from the US). We took the road around the island to see what else there was to see. We stopped a few times to take pictures of a lighthouse and the ocean. Then we reached the end of the coastal road where there were seaside caves to explore. That was really neat. There is one that is really easy to get to where all the Koreans were stopping for their picture. But if you went into that cave and out on some rocks you could get to another cave. They really made me think of pirates or something! Very, very fun. After the caves we got some food (ordered a couple random things on the menu- ended up with noodle soup and a sort of bibimbop with snails in it), and went back to the coral beach. We finished our time at Udo there (this time in proper beach attire ;) ). After taking the ferry back to the mainland, we set off in pursuit of a sunset-watching spot again. This time we wanted to get up a hill or something. On the way, we ran across "The Mysterious Road," so we had to give it a try. The story goes that a taxi driver discovered it one time when he put his car in neutral in this certain spot. Now there are signs indcating where to start and bathrooms and a food stand. What you do is stop your car at one spot, put it in neutral, and let it roll. Because of the surrounding land features or something, it appears that your car is rolling up hill! It's pretty weird. Anyway, we tried to get to the western side of Hallasan and up a hill, but traffic was in our way. We ended up at a public cemetary. It was actually really pretty, though. We had a great view of the city and the sea. It was neat to watch it all light up as it got dark. From there we headed to Jeju-si to get some food, and then smoothies, and then we went back to the hostel. Because it was out in the country and on a hill, it was a great spot to see the stars when it was clear out. Tuesday morning we got up early to meet Young-Gin for breakfast. We got a traditional Korean beef-bone soup with rice and kimchi. We thanked him again profusely and headed to the airport. The trip back went smoothly. Our time in Jejudo went way too fast, though. It was tough to get back to teaching that day :).