K-Pop Destinations: Discovering Jeju, South Korea's Island Paradise
This past November, the KpopStarz Malaysia team traveled to South Korea's island province of Jeju to attend KCON 2015 Jeju with the help of the Jeju Tourism Organization. Located off the southwestern coast of the Korean peninsula, Jeju, with its temperate climate and lush natural attractions, is a popular destination for honeymooners, film crews, and Korean culture fans from around the world. They spent a few days soaking in the sights around the island and hit up the first manifestation of the Hallyu culture convention to be held within South Korea's borders. KCON 2015 Jeju took place Nov. 6-7 following the event's expansion from Los Angeles to Japan and New York City earlier in the year.
See what kind of fun the KpopStarz Malaysia team had on their visit to Jeju Island and get some travel ideas of your own with this travelogue.
Haven for K-drama and K-pop Lovers
While we were out exploring the coastlines, we could see the growing cafe culture on Jeju Island where cute, little coffee shops have been popping up here and there, inviting people to come inside and experience what they have to offer. Being someone who loves to cafe-hop, I wish I could have spent more time exploring each of the cafes, but alas, we only have time to visit two cafes, both of which have something to do with K-drama and K-pop.
The first cafe we visited was Bomnal Cafe (봄날), which was the shooting location for the 2015 MBC drama Warm and Cozy, starring Kang So Ra and Yoo Yeon Seok. True to its name, Bomnal Cafe exudes that fresh, spring-like charm, showing off its own brand of coziness to draw visitors in. I felt happy just being there looking at the burst of colors on the walls and the decorations. It wouldn't matter if you were a fan of the drama or had just simply chanced upon the cafe, it would have charmed you anyway.
Just a couple of minutes of walking from Bomnal Cafe, stood another must-visit spot called Monsant Cafe. Owned by none other than Big Bang's G-Dragon, it is a contrast to Bomnal's cozy charm. This cafe is huge and modern, with glass windows all the way around, giving visitors a gorgeous view of the coast. With ample seating available both inside and outside of the cafe, visitors have the opportunity to experience both the architecture and the natural views.
We also managed to visit Play K-Pop, a huge K-pop museum that had just opened its doors on June 25, 2015. Located in the Jungmun Resort, Play K-pop is not only a museum showcasing Korean music through the years, but also offers visitors a variety of interactive activities involving their favorite stars. Take pictures with idols, get virtual makeovers to look like 2NE1, dance with Big Bang, record songs with well-known producers - you can do all that and more at Play K-pop, where you are (virtually) the star.
The hologram concert was perhaps the best part of the experience, giving fans a virtual experience that is the next best thing to a live performance. If you're a big fan of YG artists, make sure to give this museum a visit! (Note: Entrance fee to Play K-Pop is 15,000 KRW for adults 18 and above, 13,000 KRW for those aged between 13 - 18 and 12,000 KRW for children. The hologram concert pass can be purchased for additional 10,000 won)
Korean Food, A Treat to Our Taste Buds
When in Korea, do like the Koreans do and eat like the Koreans eat! We were lucky that most of our meals in Jeju Island had that yummy Korean touch, rather than being overly Westernized as one finds in other popular tourist locations. And boy, we were totally spoiled for choices! It seemed like all we did was eat and each meal was deliciously memorable.
One of the meals that we really loved in particular was at a restaurant called Rodem Garden (로뎀가든) along the beach in Seobin Baeksa in Udo Island. We were first served squid cooked with red pepper paste (gochujang) and some vegetables and the meal started getting interesting when the chef himself came to our table to cook a special fried rice. The dish, called Hallasan Fried Rice, included the retelling of stories from Jeju and its people and also tourists, like us. With the mixture of gochujang, kimchi, eggs and cheese, he created a meal that was simple yet delectable and we wished we had bigger stomaches because we just couldn't get enough of it.
We also went to Jeju Madang (제주 마당) and were served two unique dishes featuring a meter long hairtail fish. The first dish was grilled fish and the other was a fish stew - with a steel container alone took up the whole table. Ramen noodles were later added to the broth in apparently the best way to finish up, as the ramen soaked up the leftover soup!
