Namhaedo Island and Darangee Fishing Village

Aw!! Maaaannn ! I've had such an amazing, fun weekend! We met up at Honkik Subway Station at 8am to catch the Adventure Korea bus and after the next stop at the Express Bus Station we started our very scenic journey down South. There was about 45 of us, Koreans, South Africans, Americans, Canadians, British, a whole mixture of up for a bit of adventure peeps!

We stopped off a few times for dinner, wee breaks and Mekju and Soju shopping and finally after a good few hours (about 6!) we got to the Darangee Fishing Village. As soon as we got off the bus KBS camera crew were there filming! The little place was really striking and pretty and the weather was pretty decent too. The village overlooked the sea and was very green and quite lush really compared to the South Korea Ive seen already. It was nice to meet our Korean Hosts and we got ourselves into a group of 8 and went to drop off our bags. The girls slept in one room overlooking the sea and the front garden and the lads had the back room. The place was really nice and cosy and we met our 'aborgie' and 'armonie' (Mother and Father) and then started back to find the rest of the group who we'd arranged to meet half an hour later.

When we got there we were bundled into the back of an old truck (about ten of us) and driven crazily up the winding paths towards the mini mountain we were going to climb. Unfortunately for me I sat at the back and every minute or two the van grated on the road and I was pretty scared I was gonna fall out. I think everyone got a few good photos of me bagging myself.

We finally :) got out of the back of the van and started up for the mountain. It was quite warm and sunny and a bit hot to walk in so steeply but a really nice little walk and the view was really worth it. We cooled down up there and waited for the others to get up, took some snaps and then ventured down. Thinking we'd taken the wrong path down the mountain we ventured back up to find out that we'd actually been waling on the right path so down we went again. My legs have never felt so toned and the unfit of the group were bright red and gasping for breath when we finally got down. We bundled into the back of the van again and headed to the beach where I paddled and we al chilled out for a bit. It was nice to see the private beach and sea and feel the cool breeze after all the walking and travelling. I had a paddle and enjoyed the view of the dinky island in the distance. It was getting colder though and the sea was freezing so we all walked back to our homestays to get some dinner. Our food that our host cooked for us was a delicious mix of korean side dishes, rice, fried fish (the best Ive tasted in Korea) and good soup and it was nice to get to know so many different people.

After our gorgeous meal we met up with the rest of the group and found the old school where the KBS crew, Korean villagers and children were waiting for us. It got darker pretty quick and soon the games started. We first took part in a relay race. Our group came a close second (my fault we lost :( haha!) and there were wrestling matches which were hilarious ! My mate Asher won the male competition and had to wrestle with the Korean village champion who was about 60 ! Was a pretty hilarious night. Soon the camp fire was lit up and the kids were scarily swinging cans attacthed to string with fire in them. I could just imagine one of the cans slinging off into the air and giving me third degree burns on my face or catching onto my hair. Bald Jo. I was pretty scared but couldnt say no to the challenge and Ive got to say it was pretty fun ! Just a bit scary watching the little tiny kids wanging them about in the air close to the other children. We were all like....' Whoa !

After the fun and games and the korean womens cooking and giving out samples we played some drinking games with Gem's cards and enjoyed the heat of the camp fire. It was a hilarious night and we had to be back to our homestays for 12 ish but had plenty of time to enjoy the chatter and games. We had a right laugh on the way back and I dont think Ill ever forget this trip or the people Ive made friends with.

The next day I was up at the crack of dawn to try to catch the sunset with a slight tinge of a head ache but the sky was so cloudy and muggy that there was no chance so I waited in line for the bathroom and slowly got ready for the fishing trip. We had breakfast which was exactly what we'd eaten the night before but not as quickly! Most of us couldnt stomach the huge meal in front of us from being a bit hungover but I ate loads coz of my new male appetite! I seriously cant stop eating coz of all this exercise Ive been doing recently! After the 'brekkie' more like dinner (! ) we went to catch the bus to the fishing village which was about half an hour away and said goodbye to our hosts and the others who came to wave us off.

The weather was pretty dull and it started to rain pretty quickly but we got an introduction and met the captain of the village and then went to get into our groups and got into our little fishing boats. As soon as we set off I felt a bit queasy and hung over the boat for most of the journey. When we eventually stopped though in the middle of the choppy sea I nearly fell in due to the weight at that side of the boat. The thought knocked me sick and from that moment I felt even worse and hung over the boat for most of the trip after that. It was funny though and we didnt really catch that much! It was raining and was really beautiful and we caught some amazing little brightly coloured starfish, one flat fish and some odd shaped poo like things ! haha !

We rode back in the boat and soon were on land looking and comparing at what the others had caught. Ive never been deep sea fishing before and it was really good despite the motion sickness! One group caught some octopuses and my mate Gem had a good bite of one of the legs while it was still alive. Yummy. She was a bit scared as she could feel its suckers on her throat on the way down. Serves her right. hee! ;) We then had a huge meal of raw fish and other korean side dishes and the noraebang singing (kareoke) got started. It was a really funny day and some of the group started back on the evil soju and were pretty drunk by the time we got back on the bus. We had planned to do some ox farming and rice layering in the fields but the weather was that bad by the time we'd finished eating the gorgeous raw fish that we said goodbye and thankyou to the women who had prepared our food and started back off for Seoul.It was a long trip but a great one and I dont think Ive laughed so much like that for a long time. It was nice to experience something like that with so many cool people! Dont think Ill ever forget the walk home guys or me and Gemma falling by the old, abandoned school ;).All I can say is wet patch ;) She'll know what I mean when I send her the picture (hhaaaaaaaaaa) Good times.

Gotta just add.... Asssssaaaa ! (thats for you Asher ;) )... Vapid! (for the British)...Svarted! (Rhys you minger) .... Yekshemesh!!!!!!!