KOREA FOUNDATION

This time last year, I was assigned to work on Jeju Island. I arrived with my puppy Yulmu, who was only a few months old, as a sizzling heat was just beginning to replace an unusually long period of rain.

The life of a single office worker with a pet dog is pretty standard, even when the office is on the fantastic island of Jeju. The only difference is that when we take walks, we don’t stroll around apartment complexes or city parks; instead, we visit the island’s olle paths or tourist spots. When I come home from work, I have a brief yet emotional reunion with Yulmu, left alone all day, and the two of us go out for a walk immediately. The streets of Jeju are much darker at night than in cities on the mainland, so we cannot waste any time. Afterwards, I wash up and eat dinner before surfing Netflix and writing in my journal, playing ball with Yulmu in between. Before I know it, midnight comes. This is how I spend my days.

On weekends, I often venture out in search of someplace new to make the most out of being on Jeju. It is surprising that while the island has many restaurants and cafés that are open to customers with canine friends, much of its nature is a pet-free zone. Pets are forbidden to enter all the parks and forests managed by the provincial government as well as Saryeoni Forest Path and Samdasoo Forest Road. Even at the entrance of oreum (parasitic cones), I sometimes see signs banning their entry. Therefore, if I want to go somewhere with Yulmu, I have to research the place thoroughly before I leave. Before coming to Jeju, I thought that I would be able to visit and experience nature whenever I felt like it, but the distance between ideal life and reality is truly wide.

Under these circumstances, the easiest way for me to enjoy Jeju with my dog is by walking the olle paths, where animals aren’t banned. They have fewer hills and staircases than the oreum, so little doggies can come and go without any difficulty. The only problem is that many parts of the olle paths are not shady, so it is best to avoid them at midday and the height of summer. When I first came to Jeju, I liked to go to cafés with my dog, but I don’t go as often now. As Yulmu has to remain harnessed and sit on my lap most of the time, I’m afraid spending time at a café is more boring and stifling than at home.

As I’ve never lived on Jeju, nor with a dog, I have had to learn and adapt to so many things. Now that I have spent four seasons in Jeju with Yulmu, I feel more or less comfortable. I have heard so much about the autumnal beauty of the island, but last year I was too busy adapting to my new life to appreciate it. This fall, I will go out with Yulmu to see waves of silver grass and take many walks under the fair blue skies. Summer is still high but I am already looking forward to autumn.

Written by Senior Program Officer Im Ji-eun, Resource Management Department

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