Jeju Island? More Like Noah's Ark

Jeju Island is more than just any other tropical island. I haven't been to any other island like Jeju... There are sooo many cats! I found myself taking more pictures of kitties on the trip than of actual moments of our day. Calvin said it would take multiple blog posts to talk about the cats on the island so I won't bore you with the details... but just know they were literally everywhere.

If you know anything about me, you know that I adore animals. Cats, snakes, and any aquatic animal have a special place in my heart. When I found out that Jeju had one of the biggest aquariums in all of Asia, I knew we had to go!

The first exhibit we went through didn't actually have any live animals. It was an art exhibit that showcased haenyeos. Haenyeos ("sea women") are the free divers that inhabit Jeju Island. They are infamous for diving without oxygen tanks and going down 20 meters for their seafood catches.

Next up we had their Aqua Marine Show which is the love child of a Cirque du Soleil show and a live animal demonstration. The first 25 minutes was a story about the granddaughter of a haenyeo that wished to be just like her grandmother. One day she gets swept away to Atlantis to meet real mermaids and mermen (different acobats and high divers).

The next 15 minutes were a demonstration featuring a sea lion and a pair of dolphins! We didn't understand a single word of the program but we knew that it was very educational. There were two mascots that were talking about their aquatic lifestyle and then suddenly turned into the live animals!

Aqua Planet was nothing short of awesome! There were multiple floors with so many different species of aquatic animals. From penguins, to sea otters, to frogs, and fish there were so many things to see.

We ended our day finding out that fish indeed are friends... and food. We had some of the best sashimi that night. Not at Aqua Planet of course! But just a short drive around the island.

I told you how there are cats everywhere, right? Well... I wasn't lying. One day there was a guest waiting for us outside our front door. She was very polite so we offered her a bit of left over chicken.

She must've thought Calvin was a piece of chicken though because she nibbled on him! That or he was stinky and she wanted him to get away. Peeyew! I don't blame you, girlfriend. Try living with him!

On our last full day of Jeju, we took a family field trip to Jepa. Just down the road from us was a reptile shop and cafe. My two favorite words! We got to hold crested geckos, leopard geckos, and bearded dragons. I never knew I needed a crested gecko until this trip.

Thanks for tuning in everyone and coming on our adventures. It means so much to us. We'll try to get better at posting more! If you like these, feel free to reach out and tell us :) We miss you all so much!