We stayed at the Hyatt Regency (opting for soft Western beds instead of hard Asian beds this time), which had beautiful grounds. We spent part of the first day walking around and seeing all of the big volcanic stone statues unique to Jeju called dol hareubang. These statues are considered to be gods and offer protection. Usually they are placed outside gates and doors to ward off demons traveling from one realm to the other. Pretty cool, huh?
Near our hotel was a beautiful three tiered waterfall called Cheonjeyeon Falls. Before you walk across the bridge over the falls, we happened upon a fountain that we could throw coins into (one of Teddy's favorite pastimes). You stand in front of one of the five blessings - a turtle for longevity, a mandarin duck for love, a boar for wealth, a dragon for honor, and a carp for sons. Shana chose wealth and hit the mark on her second try, Teddy chose love and hit the mark on his second try, and Michael chose longevity but didn't hit the mark!
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| Michael throwing his coin into the stone bag at the top of the fountain. |
We then wandered over to solid ground and took a look at the second of three waterfalls. It was a beautiful day!
After all of the excitement of waterfalls and wishes, we walked across the street to the Teddy Bear Museum. When you have a child named Teddy this is just something you HAVE to do!
The museum featured the history of the Teddy Bear as well as a history of the modern world as if humans were actually Teddy Bears. Don't ask questions!
Here are some of the stranger displays from the museum.
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| The Terra Cotta Warriors. |
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| Einstein. |
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| Teddy pretending to be a mythological warrior bear. |
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| Ghandi Bear. |
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| Shana and Teddy with the traditional Korean Hanbok bears. |
