Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
placed in front of villages to ward off disease and evildoers. They are found nowhere
else in Korea.
The women—and this may prove disappointing to the young single men out
there—is a reference to Jeju's renowned women divers. Carrying on a centuries-old
tradition, these formidable ladies plumb the depths of the ocean surrounding the is-
land for seaweed and shellfish without the benefit of standard scuba gear. Though
they're now a major tourist draw and have even been named potential candidates
for United Nations heritage status, their numbers are dwindling as fewer young wo-
men set out to learn this difficult and daring trade. Recent government surveys have
counted around 5,000 women divers on the island, a third of the numbers seen in the
1970s, and over two-thirds are in their 60s or older.
Jeju is South Korea's largest island, a rough oval of about 1,800 square kilometers (695
square miles). Situated where the South and East China Seas meet, it is nearly as close to
Shanghai as to Seoul. The by-product of a series of volcanic eruptions, the island is a place
of lush forests, plunging waterfalls, and wave-battered cliffs, dominated by the snow-dus-
ted crater of Hallasan at its center.
The north half of the island is home to Jeju City, the largest settlement in the province,
and with the nearby international airport and ferry terminal, its main transportation gateway.
Many of the island's more well-trammeled attractions, including major museums, botanical
gardens, and the odd lava formation of Yongdu-am (Dragon's Head Rock) are also in the
Jeju City vicinity.
