Our last day on Jeju was a busy one, starting at 11:15am when the always-prompt Mr. Kang drove up. The first stop wasn't reached for 90 minutes: the Gimnyeong maze. I felt like a little kid discovering a new toy; I had never done a maze before, and I LOVED it. Ransom and I separated and he reached the exit 10 minutes ahead of me. Twice I came upon him but couldn't get to him -- "you can't get there from here," to quote an old Firesign Theatre line.
Next we stopped at the Manjanggul Cave (lava tube). Fascinating, cold and dark -- but very cleverly and just-sufficiently lit. I enjoyed it, but I must say, once you've walked 100 meters of a lava tube is there really any need to do the remaining 900?
Back in the sunshine we ate lunch at the cave's entrance and it was, as it has been every single time in Korea, excellent! Dim sum, Korean pork and vegetables, kimchi and side dishes galore. After a quick stop at a disappointing folk mart we were back in the car for a trip to Dragon Head Rock. It's called that, honest it is, though I'm not sure why (see picture).
The highlight of the day was Loveland, a mostly-outdoor exhibit of erotic sculptures. As comic as they were erotic; check out my MobileMe gallery if you want to see it all (email me for the location). We then stopped at Mysterious Road where the car seemed to roll uphill with the engine off; I say "seemed to" only because I can't truly believe it, but I do think that's what happened.
Finally back to the hotel after seven hours, too much of it in the car. But we saw a lot, did a lot and came away with a deeper appreciation of Korean culture, both the silly and the beautiful.
And as I post this I am back in Seoul. Korea has just scored as the first half of their match with Argentina ended. Gonna be a nail-biter maybe.
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