Foulks' Tales From Korea: Sea Parting Festival

I had plans to go to Jindo for a festival with a group of people, but the plans were cancelled the night before due to probable difficulties getting to the island. As it turns out, my neighbor, Alex, was planning on going so she knocked on my door around 8:30 Saturday morning to see if I wanted to join her. Since there was a 9:45 bus, I had to get ready and pack my backpack in about 15 minutes and then off we went to Masan to catch the bus.

To our disappointment, there was no direct bus to Jindo from Masan but we were told to go to the other bus terminal in Masan. (Why a small town like Masan has two bus terminals is beyond me!) After some difficulty communicating with the taxi driver and eventually having to call our boss to translate, we arrive at the other terminal to catch a bus to Gwangju. We just missed the 9:40 bus and the next one wasn't until after 11:00. Alex said there was a 10:20 bus to Gwangju from Changwon so we hopped in another taxi and told him to take us to the Changwon bus terminal and to step on it! Three hours later, we arrive in Gwangju and had an hour until the next bus could take us to Jindo. The ride to Jindo was 2 hours and it was the first time I have been on a bus in Korea where foreigners outnumbered the natives.

After arriving in Jindo, an island town on the southwest coast of Korea, we were able to take a shuttle to the festival. It was at this point that I noticed a trend. We had to present a ticket to board each bus and at the end of the journey, the driver wouldn't let a person off until he or she showed a ticket again (you know, just in case someone snuck on the moving bus as it was traveling along the highway!)

The festival (also known as the Jindo Miracle Sea Road Festival) is scheduled around a natural phenomenon. I still don't quite understand the science behind this, but once a year, the difference between the high and low tides causes the sea to "part" for a couple hours and, as a result, opens up a 2.8km walkable path between mainland Jindo and a small island out in the water. Many people come out to watch the sea split and Koreans come out in numbers to dig in the muck to collect abalone. Unfortunately, we did not make it in time to see the actual splitting occur.

A group promoting awareness of the hearing impaired

in Korea set up a tent. Notice the one Korean sign

symbol is an upside-down middle finger. I wonder if a

deaf person has ever been punched because someone

thought he or she was flipping them off!

I have no idea what the meaning of this dance was...or the guy

with the sword for that matter!

The Jindo Miracle Sea Road

I don't think those boats are going anywhere for awhile!

We still were able to walk along the road. There was a hut renting out neon colored rain boots so Alex rented a pair. I did not as the largest size they had was the equivalent of a men's 11 and since I wore my supposedly waterproof hiking boots, I didn't think it was a big deal. Off we went walking along the sea path taking in the sights and sounds. As I mentioned, there were hundreds of Korean women with nets, baskets, or bags digging in the mud looking for abalone. The disappearance of the water left starfish and other creatures stranded. If a creature was lucky, some sympathetic person would move it back into the water. Others were not. We saw a crab (still alive) that was missing a claw presumably because someone stepped on it. And of course, the day would not be complete without a Moses sighting!

Yes, we did walk through that...

and that!!!

Korean women digging for abalone

A nice score of abalone!

I don't think this starfish made it. He was thrown back in

the water, however, just in case.

Moses Impersonator (with some random people)

Those crazy Koreans!!!

Alex and I made it about halfway across when we noticed that the water was starting to return at a rapid pace. This was a sign for us to turn around and head back to land. Less than a minute later, we heard a whistle telling people the water is returning. We make it back in plenty of time but continued to watch the water rapidly fill in around people trying to make it back. It couldn't have been more than 15-20 minutes for the sea road to all but disappear. I don't know how deep it eventually will get, but it is deep enough for boats to travel over most days.

Uh Oh! The water is coming back!

The "road" is disappearing.

Somebody didn't make it back in time! She better hurry!

Anyway, since the sea returned to its normal state, it was time for the 5+ hour journey back home. We debated staying overnight in Gwangju but in the interest of saving money, we took the last bus back to Masan which arrived at 1:00 A.M. Only on the last bus were we allowed to depart without showing the driver our ticket.

Overall, it was a fun day that was well worth the time spent. Some people may say I am crazy for traveling over 10 hours round trip for this event but I will respond with this:

1) I used to drive over 5 hours one way to go to a college football game and then come right back afterward, and...

2) The alternative would have been to stay in Changwon all day and maybe go to the bar at night. At least this was a once-in-a-lifetime memorable experience.