Jeju Island | Sweet and Spicy Dominates the World: A Visit to Dongmun Market

Every trip, no matter how full the itinerary, includes a visit to the local market. So this time in Jeju Island, after watching the sunset at Hyeopjae Beach, we hurriedly took a taxi🚖 to this traditional market that stays open until after 10 pm. We didn't plan our visit and just randomly picked an entrance on the taxi app. Unexpectedly, we hit the jackpot with entrance 11. Not many people were there, it wasn't the popular entrance, so we took our time looking around and buying some snacks, then made our way to the bustling, famous entrance 8. The whole experience was very smooth! It felt similar to the local markets I've visited in Japan, but the difference is that the night market here is really lively. (In Japan, markets are mostly morning markets, and by noon there are fewer shops, so there's rarely a night market experience) We bought pork stir-fried rice cakes, fish cakes, and Korean dumplings from different stalls, and took them back to the hotel to eat. The market was crowded, with shops packed tightly together, and there was hardly any place for the four of us to sit down and eat leisurely. The types of products in the market are as shown in the picture, basically: - 🍊Oranges: They look similar in appearance, but the prices are quite high. We didn't bring ourselves to buy any, as the average price was about 15-25 RMB each. However, at the airport, a stranger sitting next to us shared a few slices, and to be honest, they were a bit dry and not as tasty as the Baba mandarins from Sichuan! - 🥟Snacks: Dominated by the sweet and spicy flavor, I've always liked Korean food. I was worried that my companions wouldn't be used to it, but it seems that after a day of significant activity and cold wind, everyone had a high acceptance of this sweet and spicy taste, and we finished everything after returning to the hotel. - 🎁Souvenirs: Some pumice stones (?) which seem to be made of volcanic rock here, look like the foot scrubbers used for removing dead skin in China, shaped like the totemic little figures that are common here. There were also some orange woolen hats and such. Didn't buy any, always feel like I could just order them on 1688 and receive them when I get back to China 😂 Walking to the side, there were some seafood stalls, and some shops had long lines of people waiting to buy grilled seafood skewers. After some quick calculations, it seems that a skewer of grilled meat (like the big meat skewers in China) costs between ¥45-60, and a skewer of grilled shrimp costs between ¥70-90. Although travel is about having different experiences, I don't want to be taken advantage of!