한라산의 한라봉 - Hallasan's Hallabong

오랜 만이에요 여러분! 잘 지냈어요?? ㅋㅋㅋ

As usually seems to be the case...it has been awhile hasn't it? ^^;; My sincerest apologies for that, but hopefully this post will placate you.

So last weekend, I was lucky enough to be able to spend a weekend at 제주도--Jeju Island!

The view from our hotel room--you wouldn't believe how intense those waves were!

Now Jeju Island is supposedly known for three things--roaring winds (I was almost blown over at one point!), magnificent rocks (most definitely), and women (해녀!). Food-wise however, Jeju Island is known for its green tea, chocolate, and tangerines. The green tea and chocolate I did not know about, but the tangerines I did, and there were literally rows upon rows of tangerine trees growing everywhere, and I mean everywhere. It was pretty amazing and I wish I had gotten a picture of the multitude of trees with their vivid orange tangerines gleaming brightly under the sunlight--I repeat, it was pretty amazing and I really should have gotten a picture of at least one tangerine tree.

But, as you can tell from the post title, today's entry is not about tangerines but about the 한라봉 (Hallabong). Now what, you might be asking, is a 한라봉?

This, folks (on the left), is a 한라봉 (with our oh-so-familiar tangerine on the right):

Common Name: Dekopan (デコポン)

Native to: Japan

(Actually developed in Japan in 1972, it is a hybrid between the Kiyomi and ponkan)

In other languages: 한라봉 (hallabong)

Distinctive traits: Protruding bump at the top, large size, sweet taste

Usually picked: November-December

Source of information: Official Site of Korea Tourism, Wikipedia

As mentioned above, the 한라봉 is actually native to Japan (does it count as being native to a place if it was developed??), but for our purposes we shall be referring to its Korean name. 

The 한라봉 got its Korean name from the 한라산 Hallasan Mountain (the tallest mountain in all of South Korea) from which it is mainly grown. However, throughout our tour of Jeju, we actually saw a lot of 할머니 (or 할망 in the Jeju dialect, meaning grandmother) selling them and our professor was kind (and awesome) enough to get some for us to try. True to word, they were actually quite sweet (and tasty)!

If you recall, tangerines are one of three foods that Jeju is known for, another being chocolate! Along with all the tangerines and 한라봉, chocolates were also being sold. And not milk chocolate or dark chocolate, but tangerine chocolate, green tea (the last of the three famous foods) chocolate, cactus chocolate (that's right--cactus), and of course, 한라봉 chocolate. Many places were selling 5 or 6 boxes (with about 15 chocolates per box) for ₩10000 (approximately US$10) and there were usually free samples too. Living up to their reputation, the chocolates were delicious and I really regret not buying any boxes of chocolates, if not for myself then at least for my friends and family. ㅠㅠ

So what is the takeaway message? If you are ever in Jeju Island, make sure to try the chocolates, try the 한라봉, and don't forget to buy some to take back with you!

잘 가요! Until next time~~