Today we're off to Jeju Island. It was the part of the trip that I'm so excited about. We woke up late and ate at a nearby Korean restaurant before noon.
Since we have divided our clothes the night before, we were able to leave our Seoul luggage to Dongdaemun Inn and proceeded to the subway station with just our Jeju backpacks and luggage.
Since the purple line runs in Dongdaemun History and Culture Park, we had direct access to Gimpo airport, our gateway to Jeju Island.
We took Eastar Jet to Jeju and landed around 4:30pm. It was just a one-hour flight.
We proceeded to exit 10 and boarded the shuttle bus of our car rental of choice, KT Kumho.
We knew early on that we would be driving around Jeju because we have read that it would be difficult to go around without a car. Korea is left-hand drive, but requires an international driving license for foreign drivers. So before we left for Korea, I got Ramir's international driving permit from the Automobile Association of the Philippines satellite office near Gilmore in Quezon City.
We were shuttled to KT Kumho's office. They processed our reservation and told us to proceed to their garage. Our car, a Kia Morning, was waiting for us. The attendant oriented Ramir about the car. He was also given instructions on how to use the Korean GPS. We took photos of the dents and scratches just to be sure that we wouldn't be blamed for them.
We planned on using a map to get to our destinations. Honestly, it didn't work for us. It was very difficult figuring out the map that we got hold of. We were very glad to have a GPS in the car. Even if it was in Korean, we were able to navigate. We just inputted the telephone number of our destination, and the GPS directed us. If not for this wonderful gadget, we probably haven't gotten anywhere.
Ramir and I plotted our itinerary from east to west. We plan to tour around the island in four days and three nights. We also estimated our time and motion so by night time we're near our place of stay. It was like backpacking Jeju in a car with two kids in tow.
We travelled to the KT Kumho garage to our first place of stay - Ichulbong Hotel. It was such a scenic drive, a sneak peek of what we would enjoy for the next three more days.
We chose Ilchulbong hotel because it was near the Sunrise Peak - Seongsan Ilchulbong. And sincewe know we can't bring our kids to the peak to watch the sunrise because it's too early, we settled for the next best thing, sunrise as seen on our window.
After we checked in, we walked around for dinner. We found our way to a small Korean restaurant. We love their mung bean sprouts!
We headed back to our hotel afterwards. It was a walk of solitude. The night was chilly, the moon was bright and beautiful and the neighborhood was so quiet.
Since we have divided our clothes the night before, we were able to leave our Seoul luggage to Dongdaemun Inn and proceeded to the subway station with just our Jeju backpacks and luggage.
Since the purple line runs in Dongdaemun History and Culture Park, we had direct access to Gimpo airport, our gateway to Jeju Island.
We took Eastar Jet to Jeju and landed around 4:30pm. It was just a one-hour flight.
We proceeded to exit 10 and boarded the shuttle bus of our car rental of choice, KT Kumho.
We knew early on that we would be driving around Jeju because we have read that it would be difficult to go around without a car. Korea is left-hand drive, but requires an international driving license for foreign drivers. So before we left for Korea, I got Ramir's international driving permit from the Automobile Association of the Philippines satellite office near Gilmore in Quezon City.
We were shuttled to KT Kumho's office. They processed our reservation and told us to proceed to their garage. Our car, a Kia Morning, was waiting for us. The attendant oriented Ramir about the car. He was also given instructions on how to use the Korean GPS. We took photos of the dents and scratches just to be sure that we wouldn't be blamed for them.
We planned on using a map to get to our destinations. Honestly, it didn't work for us. It was very difficult figuring out the map that we got hold of. We were very glad to have a GPS in the car. Even if it was in Korean, we were able to navigate. We just inputted the telephone number of our destination, and the GPS directed us. If not for this wonderful gadget, we probably haven't gotten anywhere.
Ramir and I plotted our itinerary from east to west. We plan to tour around the island in four days and three nights. We also estimated our time and motion so by night time we're near our place of stay. It was like backpacking Jeju in a car with two kids in tow.
We travelled to the KT Kumho garage to our first place of stay - Ichulbong Hotel. It was such a scenic drive, a sneak peek of what we would enjoy for the next three more days.
We chose Ilchulbong hotel because it was near the Sunrise Peak - Seongsan Ilchulbong. And sincewe know we can't bring our kids to the peak to watch the sunrise because it's too early, we settled for the next best thing, sunrise as seen on our window.
After we checked in, we walked around for dinner. We found our way to a small Korean restaurant. We love their mung bean sprouts!
We headed back to our hotel afterwards. It was a walk of solitude. The night was chilly, the moon was bright and beautiful and the neighborhood was so quiet.
Day 6 in a nutshell: Things you might need to know
1. Dongdaemun History and Culture Park to Gimpo Airport
Fare (Adult): 1,250 won
Fare (Children): 550 won
2. Gimpo Airport to Jeju through Eastar Jet (other airlines we considered are: Jeju Air and Jin Air). It would be better if you book your flight in advance. Flights are cheaper if booked ahead of time.
3. It's really best to drive. Just get an international driving license. We paid P1,500 for Ramir's at the Automobile Association of the Philippines - http://www.aaphilippines.org/
4. We were able to get around because of the Korean GPS. The key to getting from one place to another is the phone number of your destination. If you know this, you wouldn't get lost. Just key in the phone number and the GPS would navigate for you. It is so precise that it would inform you even of humps, speed detectors and cameras.
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