+0 @ Jeju ™
Came back from Korea for almost 2months, but not a single post on the trip. Haha.. Sorry to keep you waiting. I really have difficulty to start writing on it. Anyway, now I start. :)
The whole trip was OK. Ate a lot of kimchi, and bought a lot back as well. Inside my fridge still have 2 big containers.
Jeju - an amazing and interesting island.
Why I say amazing is because of the Sea Women (Haenyeo, in Korean) on the island. They are also called The Mermaid of Jeju. The tour guide telling a lot about Sea Women, describing what they do on the island, why it's so famous in Jeju, but I can't feel the greatest of them. Because to me, he is telling the history, how the Sea Women living in the past. Then, I saw a few on the roadside walking, carrying their tools. I was like "Wow". They are exactly like scuba diver to me. However, they do not fully equipped like a scuba diver with tank.
They wear lead-weighted vest and goggles ONLY. Then, each of them have a float, weeding hoe, and a net. And that's all. Float is to mark their location in the sea. Weeding hoe is to dig the abalone/shells under the sea, and net is used to keep their catch.
After visited the Sea Women Museum, I really respect Haenyeo.
According to an article from Korea tourism, in 2002, there were 5,600 female divers, and more than half are over 60yrs old. In another 10yrs time, the number will likely decreased by half.
If you happen to visit Jeju, look around in the sea. If you see floats, there is where you can find them, Mermaid of Jeju. And it can be your lucky day. ^^
Came back from Korea for almost 2months, but not a single post on the trip. Haha.. Sorry to keep you waiting. I really have difficulty to start writing on it. Anyway, now I start. :)
The whole trip was OK. Ate a lot of kimchi, and bought a lot back as well. Inside my fridge still have 2 big containers.
Jeju - an amazing and interesting island.
Why I say amazing is because of the Sea Women (Haenyeo, in Korean) on the island. They are also called The Mermaid of Jeju. The tour guide telling a lot about Sea Women, describing what they do on the island, why it's so famous in Jeju, but I can't feel the greatest of them. Because to me, he is telling the history, how the Sea Women living in the past. Then, I saw a few on the roadside walking, carrying their tools. I was like "Wow". They are exactly like scuba diver to me. However, they do not fully equipped like a scuba diver with tank.
They wear lead-weighted vest and goggles ONLY. Then, each of them have a float, weeding hoe, and a net. And that's all. Float is to mark their location in the sea. Weeding hoe is to dig the abalone/shells under the sea, and net is used to keep their catch.
After visited the Sea Women Museum, I really respect Haenyeo.
According to an article from Korea tourism, in 2002, there were 5,600 female divers, and more than half are over 60yrs old. In another 10yrs time, the number will likely decreased by half.
If you happen to visit Jeju, look around in the sea. If you see floats, there is where you can find them, Mermaid of Jeju. And it can be your lucky day. ^^
