Back in March, when I was visiting Jeju for the third time, I was exploring the island's southwest coast, and as I was going for a coastal walk, I spotted the women diving. A few days later, I headed back with my Korean-Australian friend, and we got the pleasure of talking with three of the ladies. We spotted them tending their restaurant, which is a container tent built on the shore where bypassers can enjoy fresh raw abalone, sea conge and other delicacies caught fresh that day. All three of them, giddy, smiling, happy to chat. The youngest was in her 30s and the oldest had dived for 40 years already.

Back in the days, it was shameful to be a Haenyeo as it wasn’t seen as a “proper” education or something proper to do. These narratives have changed and shifted over time, and now they are recognised by UNESCO as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

We asked about the workload, and they said they were around 6-8 hours in the water, one week on and one week on land to de-climateize. They told us that it was warmer in the water during winter, as in the spring, the snow is melting and the ocean gets colder.  I feel this deep respect for these women, knowing they have provided for their families, raised their kids, holding deep knowledge about the ocean and nature and endured in a profession for decades. Without any oxygen tanks or fancy equipment, they dive down with incredible skills, up to 10 meters to collect seafood. They hold space for shamanism and ceremonies to pray for the ocean and stay together in communities.

I feel honoured to meet the ladies, and hopefully, I get to meet the beautiful Haenyeos again. Just observing the women work, harmoniously and proudly together, helping each other up from the water, to helping take their wetsuits off, to saying goodbye to each other before racing off on their scooters. And because of them, Jeju is one of those hidden gems in this world I would recommend people to visit.

#QUEEN-ENERGY

Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would be on an island south of South Korea. Driving through the landscape surrounded by deep blue and turquoise ocean, pine trees, beautiful waterfalls, a volcano seen from anywhere on a clear day, and local hallabongs (orange), I can’t help but see some resemblance to the Scandinavian nature. The island is home to wild endangered dolphins and one of the last generations of Haenyeo, female freedivers. Since the earliest historic records from the 17th century, these women have dived for seafood in harmony with the ecosystem. Most of the Haenyeos are 50-80 years old, where the current average age is 70years old.

THE SEA LADIES OF JEJU ISLAND

(Photos: taken by myself with several analogue cameras) .

If you wanna explore more, I highly, highly recommend watching this Apple documentary that came out in 2024: THE LAST OF THE SEA WOMEN

Sources and great articles to read:

• https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/south-koreas-female-free-divers-may-have-evolved-to-thrive-underwater-study-finds-180986673/#:~:text=%E2%80%9CThey%20dive%20throughout%20their%20whole,the%20last%20of%20their%20kind

• https://ich.unesco.org/en/RL/culture-of-jeju-haenyeo-women-divers-01068

• https://www.visitjeju.net/en/themtour/view?contentsid=CNTS_200000000012528

• https://oceanographicmagazine.com/features/last-of-their-kind/