Hanhwa Aqua Planet, Seopjikoji, Jeju Island

After trekking Seongsan Ilchubong, we moved on to visit Hanhwa Aqua Planet, an aquarium in Seopjikoji, Jeju Island. This aquarium is reported to rank 11th biggest in the world. In going through the ranking, it is the aquarium in Sentosa Island in Singapore which is ranked second that surprised me. Chimelong Ocean Kingdom Aquarium, Hengqin, China is ranked first in the world.  

Sentosa Island Aquarium holds 12 million US gallons (45 million litres) of water. It has 800 species and 100,000 animals. In comparison, Aqua Planet holds 2.6 million US gallons (9.8 million litres) of water and it has 500 species and 48,000 animals which are sourced from local and abroad. 

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One of the attractions in this aquarium is the underwater live performance that showcases the Jeju's "haenyo" - the woman divers. These women in dwindling number over the years make a living by diving to a depth of 20m for two minutes or more to catch fish and other edible sea animals.