[Fourteen] Teddy Bear Museum (Jeju Island Part II)

Dear readers,

I hope that you're having a great day, wherever you may be. 그리고, 좀 있으면 벌써 2011년이네요!

모두들 새해 복 많이 받으세요! The new year is just around the corner! I wish you many blessings for 2011!

I never had the chance to do a part II for my blog entry on Jeju Island, so I thought that I would share some pictures that I took at the Teddy Bear Museum there. It's an amazing place, if you like teddy bears. :)

So, apparently, this  teddy bear museum is one of a kind in Korea

This place was really fun to go to. And, don't worry, it wasn't just for kids. I think I saw more adults in there actually :) don't we all love our teddy bears?

When you first enter the museum, you are introduced to the history of teddy bears. Did you know that "teddy" got its name from the US President Theodore Roosevelt?

You are looking at how some of the earliest teddy bears looked like!

After some history, it's just teddy bear madness. Basically, teddy bears in every setting and scenary that you can imagine :)

at picnic

LV bears

Korean (?) teddy bears getting married haha

and... no way... it's that famous painting by Michaelangelo!

Yes, recreated with bears!

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They also showcase famous bears such as the one pictured below.

Do you remember this little fellow?

He was featured in the drama "Princess Hours" (Goong/ MBC 드라마 궁)

Ta-da! Isn't he adorable?

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The really cool part of this museum is that, after going to the gift shop, there's even more to see outdoors.

Outdoors, there are various fountains, statues, etc. featuring (what else?) bears! The fountain pictured above was interesting because at every hour bears come out of it and give a mini performance. It's kind of like those cuckoo clocks.

polar bears!

I hope that you'll have a chance to visit the museum one day :) I had a great time there with my family!



Once again, happy new year to you and I will meet you once again through another post!

Yours truly,

Sunflowerchocolate

-sunflowerchocolate-

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[Thirteen] Jeju Island Part I

 Dear readers,

Today I will begin introducing you to some of the beautiful places I visited in Korea. For this entry, I will focus on one place I visited while I was in Jeju Island.

Jeju Island is the biggest island in South Korea located at the Southern tip of the penninsula. The Jeju Volcanic Island and Lava Tubes was designated as a UNESCO heritage site in 2007. (Don't worry folks; although the island is covered by dark-brown volcanic rock and volcanic soil, the volcano is dormant)

A couple interesting facts about Jeju:

1) Many couples go to this island for their honeymoon

2) Jeju is well-known for its 감귤 (gam-gyul) tangerine

3) If you go to Jeju, you have to go see a 하루방 (ha-roo-bang) In Jeju-island dialect, 하루방 means 할아버지 (ha-ra-bur-jee) grandfather. You can see statues of 하루방 and souvenirs all over Jeju!

**Important Note about the pictures: These are all pictures I took while I was at Jeju! I don't mind if you save them for your own private use. But, if you would like to re-post the photos or copy it, please cite your sources! You got these photos from http://www.chomsongdae.blogspot.com/ Or, you can ask me for the photos!

4) There is an old saying: 사람은 서울로, 말은 제주도로 보내라 translated, this means, "Send people to Seoul, and send horses to Jeju island". Basically, this saying represents the fact that there are many horses in Jeju Island and how the island is an ideal place to raise (사육) horses.

So, specifically, what can you do at Jeju Island?

Well, in this entry, I would like to recommend for all of you who love moderate hiking to visit 선상일출봉 Seongsan Ilchulbong Peak. (Please click here if you would like more information in English about this Peak and how to get there)

This Peak has also been designated as a UNESCO heritage site. (separate from Jeju island's recognition by UNESCO)

 I was too tired to hike up the peak. But, from what I heard, its only a 40 minute hike. There is a small entry fee, but for the view you'll see up on the peak, it's worth it! I only went to the entrance of the peak, but even going there was really nice. The ocean. The peak. Green grass. Horses. Mmm...nature! I loved it!

Make sure you go there on a sunny day to get the best view. But, even on a cloudy day, 선상일출봉 Seongsan Ilchulbong Peak is a beauty.

Stay tuned for Part II on Jeju Island!!

Until then,

Yours,

sunflowerchocolate