---

This is Part 2 of my '15 trip to Korea. Part 1 is available here.

---

I got to Gimpo Airport (김포공항) early in the morning after what amounts to maybe five hours of sleep; the Lotte City Hotel offers a free shuttle service to the airport, but it is also possible to walk there by using the subway access inside the Lotte Mall. The flight was really short, less than two hours, but it was enough for the entire plane to hear me snore my way to Jeju.

I stayed at the Lotte City Hotel in Jeju City (롯데시티호텔 제주); while my room was on the last floor and was touted as offering “ocean and city views”, I really had to squint to see the ocean...

After a quick nap, I jumped into the Jeju Golden Bus, one of its stops being right in front of the Lotte hotel. The bus stops conveniently to several touristic attractions of the city. I purchased my bus ticket the first time I boarded the bus. The driver is assisted by a guide who sells and checks the tickets as one ticket can be used to board several times during the same day.

My first stop was at the Halla arboretum (한라수목원), aka me reconnecting with nature for the first time in forever… It was a little bit early in the year to see colorful flowers or whatnot—not that I care a lot—but the site was high enough to take pictures of the mountains and the city.

Once my communion with nature was over, I hopped the bus back to the city. I stopped at a grocery store to grab snacks that I did not know existed, attracted by Muzzi’s irresistible face luring me into buying the delicious Kakao cheese balls (and officially announcing the end of my diet).

Other attractions that I visited during my first day in Jeju include Gwandeokjeong (관덕정), the 2002-rebuilt administrative center for the Joseon (조선) dynasty; the Dongmun Market (동문시장) with their hallabongs (한라봉), which are essentially pumped-up mandarines; and the underground mall, which has really nothing to itself.

After this very long excursion outside, I went back to the hotel to luxuriate on the fancy Korean toilet with the water jets and dryer as much as I could and, secondarily, enjoy a warm bath while sipping some fresher-than-fresh Coke® from Korea.

Later in the evening, I got together with my friend Seokbin with whom I had my first real Korean dish, a chicken kalbi (닭갈비) that was just beyond words. You can make this at home with this video.

The pictures and story of my second and last day in Jeju island are available here!

---