Frolicking in the Boseong Green Tea Fields

Disclaimer: I'm a little disappointed in my pictures. My phone (which acts as my camera) decided to kick the bucket. I used it for my last month in Korea but it wasn't taking photos well. These pictures don't even come close to how beautiful it was :(

For my last weekend in Gwangju I decided to finally check something off the bucket list. I've been trying to do this all year and it just never worked out. Finally, finally, I made it to the nearby Boseong Green Tea Fields (Daehan Dawon Tourist Tea Plantation). These are some of the most famous green tea fields in Korea and incredibly picturesque.

The fields are only 45 min-1 hr from Gwangju and makes for a perfect day trip from the city to escape from the pollution and breath in some fresh air. I went with my friend and coworker Chia and we hiked most of the trails that surrounded the fields. There were plenty of photo-ops and lots of stairs to climb to explore the plantation. After hiking and lunch, we enjoyed some refreshing (and insanely delicious) green tea ice cream. Then it was  time to head back to Gwangju. All in all, it was a really relaxing afternoon.

Peace!

Super happy to be surrounded by beautiful nature.

Green tea for dayssss

Rows and rows of green tea.

Hiking to a lookout to see the entire plantation.

Green tea noodles in my Naengmyeon (냉면)

Eating green tea ice cream. Worth the stomach ache. 

Long Weekend in Gangneung (강릉)

Two weeks ago I was able to go on a weekend trip to Gangneung with my friends David and Mike. As Korea was about to celebrate the 70th anniversary of its liberation from Japan on Aug. 15th, the government decided to designate Friday, the 14th, as a national holiday. Surprise three day weekend for all!

We left Gwangju Thursday evening (because I still had work until 5) and I slept for the majority of the 4 1/2 hr trip. Once we arrived in Gangneung we got settled into Aark House, one of the best hostels I've ever stayed at (delicious breakfast in the morning). We woke up bright and early to catch an hour bus to Samcheok (삼척). We had heard that it was incredibly beautiful and a great place to go snorkeling. We had also heard that it was a popular destination to visit and we may have underestimated that. It was really, really crowded with families enjoying the long weekend. Initially we were overwhelmed by how crowded the main beach was and found a more secluded rocky area. After a quick swim in the crystal clear water, we made our way back to the beach for lunch and lazing in the sun. That night, we met others in our dorm room and all went out for dinner and drinks. 

Super crowded beach. Families, families everywhere..

Crystal clear water.

Everyone snorkeling and enjoying the beautiful water. 

So many life jackets and inner tubes.

BBQ with people from the hostel.

The following day we had plans to go to Ulleungdo, an island a few hours off the coast, for the day. Unfortunately, we were unaware about how expensive the ferry ride would be (around $65 one way) and decided to opt out. Instead we made our way to the nearby famous coffee street where we enjoyed a coffee before walking to Gyeongpo beach. The beach was absolutely beautiful and we spent hours playing in the water. It's one of the most famous beaches in Korea due to its beautiful 6km long beach and crystal clear water.

Although I didn't think there would be many culture differences between going to the beach in America vs. Korea, I should have known better. I always felt naked compared to everyone else because everyone was covered up from head-to-toe. Long sleeve shirts, long sleeve pants, jackets, hats, and just layers and layers of clothing. Paler skin is considered more beautiful and skin health is very important to most Koreans. It was pretty odd to see a Korean man showing his chest and it was even rarer to see a Korean women in a bikini. So...I stood out even more than usual. Additionally, no one seemed to be just swimming and playing around in the water. Instead everyone and their mother rented inner tubes from shops on the beach. It was so crowded in the water with bright yellow and red plastic tubes that I was dodging tubes rather than waves. 

Making our way to Gyeongpo beach. 

Pretty pretty Korean beach.

No bikini pictures here. We rented an umbrella and mat. David and Mike later gave into Korean peer pressure and rented inner tubes.

After two days in the sun we decided it was time to explore places other than the beach. We took a short bus ride to Jeongdonjin. The area is famous in Korea for its beautiful sunrise. People come from all over Korea to see the sunrise on New Years Day. The quant beach town also has a very nice train station thats right along the beach. Our first stop in Jeongdonjin was Hourglass park (모래시계공원). Its right off the beach and doesn't have much except the worlds largest Hourglass. It takes a full year for the sand to fall and, while not the most exciting thing, was pretty nice to look at. For the New Year, the area hosts a Sunrise Festival and there's a ceremonial 'turning of the hourglass' to signify the changing year. 

From the park we took a taxi to the nearby Unification Park. The park consists of two areas, one along the coast with a display of a North Korean submarine and warship, and the second displaying military planes. The second area was a bit of a distance away and we had heard underwhelming reviews so we decided to skip it. The 35m submarine and gigantic warship were absolutely fascinating to explore. We were able to climb throughout the warship and got a glimpse into South Korean Naval history. The warship was built in America in 1945, saw action in WWII and the Vietnam War, and was donated to South Korea in 1972. The submarine was being used by North Korea to spy on South Korean military operations when it ran aground off of Jeongdonjin in 1996. There were 26 N. Korean soldiers aboard and they escaped onto shore. It took 49 days for South Korea to capture or kill them (except for one who is still missing!). We were able to walk through the submarine and I can't fathom how 26 people fit in such a tiny space. 

Following Unification Park we took part in the ridiculous but fun rail bike ride along the beach. I say ridiculous because you barely needed to actually bike (we were disappointed) and they made us stop at one point at a cafe (unnecessary). It was still fun but I don't think I would do it again.

The largest hourglass in the world?

How did 26 people fit in this thing?!

The cutest friends.

We had planned to catch the last bus back to Gwangju that evening (yay work in the morning) but we missed it. We ended up having to catch a bus to Seoul (3 hrs turned into almost 5 hours thanks to traffic) and from there we caught a bus to Gwangju. I rocked into my apartment at 2am and felt pretty well rested in the morning thanks to be amazing ability to immediately fall asleep on buses. 

The beaches were absolutely beautiful. Really happy I was able to go on such an amazing trip in my last few weeks in Korea.

Peace!

Vacationing in El Nido, Philippines

This may have been the most relaxing vacation I've ever had. 

After a hellish flight to Palawan, I was picked up at the airport by a van I had pre-booked to take me to El Nido (5-6hrs). I was the only foreigner in the van and befriended the older couple sitting next to me. We had a break around 11pm and they treated me to my first meal of chicken adobo (chicken marinated in vinegar, soy sauce and garlic). The roads were really rough and curvy so I didn't get much sleep. We arrived in El Nido around 1:30am, I immediately caught a tricycle to my hostel (Hakuna Matata), and passed out. 

Just kidding. Life isn't that easy. 

I made it to my hostel but no one was there to check me in (yes, I had emailed them my arrival time). Some people had just returned from drinking and we all hung out for 30 minutes talking before someone finally arrived. That's when things starting going really well. 

When I get to my room, the other person happened to be awake. It turned out that Vera, a nice German girl who had been teaching English in China, wanted to do the same tour as me the following day. Bright and early, we both booked Tour A- the most popular island hopping tour. 

Tour A takes you to 2 lagoons of Miniloc Island- Small Lagoon and Big Lagoon. It also goes to Secret Lagoon, Shimizu Island, and 7 Commandos Beach. We had a beautiful day and the sights were magnificent. The water was crystal clear, the coral was amazing, the sun was shining, the beaches were beautiful and the lunch they served was amazing. By the end we were tired and ready to get out of the sun. We had befriended more people at the hostel and ended up going out to dinner on the beach with a large group. Beautiful sunset and people. Have I mentioned it was beautiful? Also amazing?

View from the beach before getting in the boat. This was maybe 10 steps away from the hostel.

View from the boat. The water was always such a pretty color.

Big Lagoon: gorgeous corals but you couldn't get out to swim.

Swimming in Small Lagoon= heaven on earth. 

Sunset while waiting for our dinner on the beach.

Dinner with people from the hostel

Vera and I had talked about kayaking the next day and we befriended 2 more people at the hostel who wanted to join: Jeremiah (from Texas) and Jurrien (from Amsterdam). The four of us ended up kayaking to our own private beach. We spent the morning swimming and patting ourselves on the backs for finding such a great spot. 

That afternoon, the boys and I took a tricycle to Nacpan Beach. It took around 45 minutes to get to and, although bumpy, the ride there was really pretty. When we arrived, the beach was almost empty and we spent the remainder of the afternoon there. I can't stress it enough- it was breathtakingly beautiful.

Jurrien and I kayaking to a private beach

Nacpan beach near sunset. So empty and wonderful.

The following day the boys and I decided to hike to a waterfall. We made a new friend (Erin from Canada) and the four of us hiked to Nagkalit-Kalit waterfall. We decided not to get a tour guide and ended up befriending (and following) two nice Philippino women who sorta knew the way. After a refreshing swim, we hiked back and grabbed lunch on the side of the road. It was some of the best food I had in the Philippines. After eating too much, we made it to Las Cabañas beach (nicknamed Sunset Beach) and spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing. We stopped by the nearby market on the way back to town for some coconuts (we were all super dehydrated), went for dinner and then went to bed early.

Swimming at the waterfall.

Eating lunch on the side of the road. We rode around in that tricycle for 2 days straight. We liked the driver.

Taking in the sights and enjoying the water at the beach.

Another picture of the beach in town before eating dinner.

I was originally going to leave for Puerto Princesa the following morning but I decided to change my plans. Instead we rented a private boat and got dropped off on an abandoned beach. 

------ multiple words for beautiful------

We spent 5 1/2 hrs frolicking, swimming and, unfortunately, burning. Having the entire beach to ourselves was mind blowing. It felt like we were all constantly pinching ourselves. We all returned to El Nido as bright red versions of ourselves. After dinner, I fell asleep really early (too much sun). 

On our private boat.

A view from our beautiful private (for the day) beach

The group

Wrote on the wall of the hostel before leaving.

In the morning I wished my new friends farewell, walked to the market to buy some snacks, and caught a van back to Puerto Princesa. There was only a short delay this time around. 

Then I slept in the airport before catching an early flight to Seoul. Considering how last time it took almost 2hrs to get a taxi to leave the airport, I decided to just forfeit sleep for peace of mind. 

Here's some bonus info for anyone interested in traveling to El Nido. 

Prices: Low Season (as of August 2015) 

Meals- 
       60php- 200+ (dinner on the beach was always above 150php). 

Hakuna Matata Hostel- 
       350php a night for a dorm. 

Tour A Island Hopping Tour- 
       900 (plus 200 for environmental fee)

Private Boat (5 people)- 
       300php each

Tricycle for a day (4 people)- 
       300php each

Tricycle to Nacpan and back (3 people)- 
       333php each

Kayake rental (2per kayake)- 
       200php each

Van to and From Puerto Princesa-El Nido - 
       950php

Other than Hakuna Matata, everything was booked same day. There are a plethora of shops lining the streets offering the same tours. We booked our island hopping tour 40 minutes beforehand. 

Not including my airfare, I spent just about $300 for my entire trip (including Manila).