Ullengdo Island- Part 3
The Last Day and the Departure-
We woke at dawn to catch an early-morning gondola ride to a mountain peak overlooking the island’s south side. It was an up-hill hike just to get to the loading point, but we passed some neat looking shops full of wood carvings and Buddhist goods that I hoped would be open by the time we got back. The 20 minute gondola ride was worth the uphill trek, and we unloaded at a deck that gave a 365 degree view from the peak. It took me a while to take in all the views it had to offer. It was cool seeing the ocean from up above, it had a different shade of blue all over again. I also never realized how big the port town was until I saw it from above. Megan and I walked around the overlooks and balconies built into the peak and took a load of pictures.
The shops that I had hoped would be open graciously were- One of my favorites was this Aromatic Wood shop that was filled with carved artifacts from Ullengdo’s Aromatic Wood Forest. They could have charged you just to smell the store and I would have paid because the aroma of dark wood inside of it was so good. They should bottle it up and call it Essence of Ullengdo. No, they should call it Ullengdo Wood, because Essence of Ullengdo would be pure squid festering in the sun on a hot day. I bought a bracelet of wooden Buddhist skull beads, and it had that subtle wooden scent to it.
We were given 3 final hours to do what we wanted to until we had to board a ferry boat home, and I wanted to spend every minute of those 3 hours in the ocean at the swimming spot. (A hopefully jelly-fish free spot.) Megan and I packed up all our stuff from the hotel room so that we could swim at the last possible second, grabbed lunch on the way, and ran to our favorite bridge for more swimming and bridge jumping. I went on giant-jellyfish watch every few minutes to make sure the day would be sting-free.
After 3 perfect hours of bliss passed, I hugged the ocean good bye, told it that I would return when it warmed itself up again next season, and reluctantly climbed out of the water. I was sure the ocean had hugged me back.
Megan and I boarded the vomit comet again for a turbulent boat ride back to Daegu. Then we boarded a bus back to Seoul with our fellow Adventure Korea tourists and I mentally prepared myself for the return of 10 hour work days, crowded subways, and wiping kimchee off 6-year-old Korean faces. It was another excellent South Korean Adventure. I would go back to Ullengdo in a second.
We woke at dawn to catch an early-morning gondola ride to a mountain peak overlooking the island’s south side. It was an up-hill hike just to get to the loading point, but we passed some neat looking shops full of wood carvings and Buddhist goods that I hoped would be open by the time we got back. The 20 minute gondola ride was worth the uphill trek, and we unloaded at a deck that gave a 365 degree view from the peak. It took me a while to take in all the views it had to offer. It was cool seeing the ocean from up above, it had a different shade of blue all over again. I also never realized how big the port town was until I saw it from above. Megan and I walked around the overlooks and balconies built into the peak and took a load of pictures. 
After the gondola ride, we visited another Buddhist temple that was stunning- brightly colored sashes and painted buildings that shone like jewels. There was a giant steel bell with a dragon on top of that I loved.
The shops that I had hoped would be open graciously were- One of my favorites was this Aromatic Wood shop that was filled with carved artifacts from Ullengdo’s Aromatic Wood Forest. They could have charged you just to smell the store and I would have paid because the aroma of dark wood inside of it was so good. They should bottle it up and call it Essence of Ullengdo. No, they should call it Ullengdo Wood, because Essence of Ullengdo would be pure squid festering in the sun on a hot day. I bought a bracelet of wooden Buddhist skull beads, and it had that subtle wooden scent to it. 
We were given 3 final hours to do what we wanted to until we had to board a ferry boat home, and I wanted to spend every minute of those 3 hours in the ocean at the swimming spot. (A hopefully jelly-fish free spot.) Megan and I packed up all our stuff from the hotel room so that we could swim at the last possible second, grabbed lunch on the way, and ran to our favorite bridge for more swimming and bridge jumping. I went on giant-jellyfish watch every few minutes to make sure the day would be sting-free. 
After 3 perfect hours of bliss passed, I hugged the ocean good bye, told it that I would return when it warmed itself up again next season, and reluctantly climbed out of the water. I was sure the ocean had hugged me back. 
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