Singin' on the coast

The popularity of the Jeju Open Mic has definitely been growing strong. The weekend before last was the latest one, and showed some promising new talent to the island. Located at HaeByun Concert, near 용두암 (Yongduam or "Dragon Head Rock), it's a comfortable venue with a scenic location right on the water.

Although it was slower getting started this time, it had an interesting mix of performances and music.

One of the first to take the stage offered a unique poem recital. Respectfully, everyone kept their voices down for him.



It was followed by a classic: "House Of The Rising Sun" by The Animals.



Another classic, Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire," which was performed by yet another newcomer to the island.



There was some really good jazzy music which was accompanied by a trumpet.



They were all really good performances, and definitely something worth checking out next time 'round. The next scheduled Open Mic is on December 5th at 8:00 pm. You can find all the details on the facebook event here.

Here is a map for those a little confused on how to get there:

Recent Happenings

Having Monday off this week due to an island-wide hagwon strike was nice, but coming back to classes on Tuesday was a bit alarming when I discovered that a dozen or so students have gotten sick with H1N1, Swine Flu, at nearby schools in Sae-Seogwipo ("New Seogwipo" also referred to as "Shinsigaji," the area where I work).

The nearby elementary and middle schools have shown an increasing amount of cases of the sickness, and as a precaution, many parents are pulling their kids from classes just to be safe. Even one of my co-teachers was showing similar symptoms, even though he was told by doctors that it wasn't Swine Flu.

The fact that he's sick though just prompts parents to think that it might lead to their children getting sick and even catching Swine Flu, so a few pre-cautious parents have taken their kids out of our school for the time being.

My director has implemented regular body temperature checks via an ear thermometer (which he cleans in-between) as well as buying new microphones for the computer lab that will help keep germs from spreading. Along with a hand sanitizer dispenser and aerosol disinfectant cans for each class, I think he has made a good attempt to prevent the sickness from spreading.

In other news, I woke up Tuesday morning to find that my scooter was gone. Someone had stolen it, torn open the front grill, and cut the ignition starter out. I found it later down a road in a nearby orange grove.

I was upset to say the least, but I suppose I had it coming. I broke my lock a couple months back and have been just parking my scooter in my pension parking lot, which is easily visible from the road that connects down into the nearby village of Beophwan.

At first I thought it might have been just some school kids having a laugh, but the fact that they removed the starter and left the bike leads me to believe it's a nearby resident or farmer. There are plenty of people in the area with old scooters, so my guess is someone was needing a starter and mine was the perfect target.

It wasn't the best starter, in fact I've been having some troubles with it, but having to pay 125,000 won to get the grill and starter replaced isn't exactly my idea of an upgrade.

Anyway, my director gave me a big bag of Jeju mandarins that has helped cheered me up somewhat.

Fun in the Sun

Bright and early Saturday morning, the sun was shining down on the participants of the 2nd Jeju Furey Beach Volleyball tournament. With a scheduled start time of 8:00 am, many were feeling lethargic; myself included.

Not long after the team captains' meeting had concluded, teams began to gather around the courts, preparing for a day of battle.

Our team, Thunderbots (an amalgamation of the two greatest groups of cartoon heroes from the 1980's, Thundercats and the Autobots) comprised of several spirited and unique indivduals:


Kristin Mitchell, a newcomer to the island and first-time volleyball player. What she lacked in experience she made up for in enthusiasm.


Brian Miller, long-time veteran of Jeju and an Obama fanatic. He strikes fear into the heart of his enemies with his serve, shouting from the depths of his soul, "OBAMA!!!!"


Matthew Poll, a.k.a "Speed Racer," a.k.a "Capt. Faclon," a.k.a "Birdman." A mild man and teacher by day, wild and whimsical beer magician by night. He searches the land, sea and air for rare feathered creatures. He is guided by the way of the blue rock thrush.


Bridget Best, a Jeju-Northsider, measures up to her own name as her actions out on the court speak for herself. She plays with a fierce passion that any team would be lucky to have.


Niamh Nicholas, an Irish fighter with a heart of gold. After only a few practice sessions she has found her footing in the game and can hold her own.


Lastly, myself, team captain and spiritual motivator. An average-at-best player in the court with some hustle and a serve that falls from the sky like Thor's hammer, smiting our enemies.

Unfortunately, for all the spirit and motivation we had, we didn't possess the skills to go very far in the tournament. We didn't end up in last, but we weren't far from it.

Saturday was a long day with a few short-lived victories. Thankfully, there was pizza and beer to sooth our egos. The Jeju gods must have been smiling, as the weather turned out to be perfect again with another brilliant sunset.



Nathan would have been proud of the way everyone played. The tournaments were a big success and a great time for everyone involved. Hopefully it'll be a regular occurrence.

The season of colours

Today was the first day I woke up and it actually felt like fall. Sure it was sunny out and warm, but something in the air felt different, that old familiar feeling of a change in seasons.

Last weekend I got my first glimpse of the changing leaves up on Hallasan; this week I'm breaking out my heavy fall coat. Almost all the oranges in the fields are nearly ripe for picking, and in about another month the Jeju Orange Festival will kick off.


While some people may complain that it's getting too cold, or that there isn't going to be anything to do now that the weather is declining, I'm looking forward to the change of pace. It feels a lot like when I first got here, a sensation I have fond memories of.

On my drive into work today, everything felt just slightly different. I noticed a building which I've never seen before, but that has always been there, leaves that are starting to clutter the sides of my street and people dressing in more layers.

In defiance of the changing seasons, there is an upcoming beach volleyball tournament this weekend at Iho beach in Jeju-si. This will be the second tournament held in memory of Nathan Furey, with proceeds going to his family.

Having played in the first tournament, I knew how much fun it was, so I decided with a few friends to put together another team. It's probably the last beach event in a while, so I hope it'll be a good one.

The most beautiful sunrise on Jeju

This past weekend was 추석 (Chuseok), the somewhat equivalent of Thanksgiving in Korea. So while many Koreans were off paying respect to the spirits of their ancestors, a few friends and myself decided to go for ambitious sunrise hike up Seongpanak, Mt. Halla's longest trail.

We started out at about 2:30 am on Saturday morning, trying to time it so that we reached the peak just before sunrise. It was dark out, but a full moon was shining brightly in the sky.



I had picked up a head lamp the night before, thinking that it would come in handy for trekking through the woods in darkness. Muggs, Rob, Marian and myself all had some source of light with us, making it easier to avoid twisting our ankles on the rocks.

We were making good time as we reached the first rest stop only after an hour. As we neared the more challenging part of the course, Muggs spotted a deer hiding in the bushes. We had a good opportunity to check it out, as it was blinded by our head lamps while we stared at it.

As the trail started to climb higher and higher, we could start to see the first light on the horizon behind us.



There was time enough to snap a few quick pictures before continuing our hike; we had to press on if we were going to make it to the top before the sun came up.



We came upon the second rest stop and thought to take a quick break indoors before continuing, but after some inspection, we discovered that there was someone watching TV inside the small outlet. Rather than alarm him, we decided to just cuddle up and have a snack on a nearby bench.

At this point comes the most difficult part of the trail. It gets progressively steeper and the protection the trees provide from the wind quickly disappears. Normally, if you reach this point past 12:30 pm, they won't let you continue to the summit, because you won't reach the bottom of the trail until after dark. Thankfully, we didn't have to deal with that problem as we were the only ones on the trail.

Around 9.6 km in length, Seongpanak takes on average four hours to climb, plus an additional four hours to descend. Chances are though that you'll be a lot more tired coming down, so that you'll want to plan ahead so you have enough time to do both.



With only about another 150m to climb before reaching the 1,950m summit, we were witness to a breathtaking view over the tree-line. The sun was slowly lighting up the sky, creating a rainbow across the horizon.



Oreums came to life, as their tips pierced through the haze and clouds. Our small city of Seogwipo was a sprinkle of lights on the coast.

The wind picked up, my legs started to seize and despite how tired I was, all I could think about was how perfect this moment was.

The sky turned the ground red and it reminded somehow of Mount Doom. I could picture Frodo trudging alongside me, exhaustingly trying to reach the crater to destroy the one ring.

While my goal wasn't as crucial, I was nonetheless motivated to keep going and reach the top before the sun did.

As I scaled the final 50m, I started to hear voices. At first I thought the wind was playing tricks with me, but starring harshly at the summit, I saw something moving:



Over 50 soldiers dressed in camouflage were cheering and posing for pictures. It was as if we had just finished a marathon and they were cheering us on. I think they were as surprised to see us and we were to see them, but it was such a happy moment, filled with smiles and an exchange of greetings.



We took a moment to pose for pictures as we all stood there in the freezing winds; everyone seemed to come together in the spirit of the moment, it felt fantastic.



The sun began to creep up over the horizon:



Taking it all in, it was worth every ounce of pain to get to see such a sight; few on the island have done it, but those who have, know the rewards of such a journey.

It's one of those moments that you think, "This is what it's all about."



After spending a good 30 minutes at the summit, my hands were beginning to go numb. The soldiers had already started their descent and it was time to start ours.



The trail on the way down looked completely different in the light; I could actually see what we were walking through. Not that there is much to see because the trees block most of the view, but it was still interesting to see it for the first time.



Having walked for almost 7 hours, the appeal of the trail was starting to wear off...fast. We were feeling quite fatigued when we were met by a group of kind strangers who offered us nature's finest: fruit and soju.


With a little help from my ipod and a cup of ramyeon noodles, I made my way back to the bottom in one piece.

We completed the journey in just under 9 hours. The second half was definitely longer, we were just about to collapse by the time we finished.

With the sun beating down on us, we decided rather than try to go straight to sleep, and mess up any chance of sleeping later in the night, that we would just relax on the beach.

In all, it was probably one of my most memorable moments here on Jeju. Not since New Year's have I had such an enlightening and embracing experience.

O'Sulloc green tea

Jeju has a couple large tea plantations scattered around the southern half of the island. They're nothing compared to those in China or Japan, but if you're a fan of green tea or green tea products, then you might want to check them out sometime.

The most popular and tourist friendly is O'Sulloc, located just west of Donggwang-ri around route 1116 or just off route 95 if you're coming from Jeju-si; you can't miss the signs.



O'Sulloc is a company based out of Seoul that bought land on Jeju, and has several outlet stores and cafes within the city.

At the plantation on Jeju is a newly renovated museum, which has an interesting exhibition filled with Korean artist tea-ware along with others collected from around the world. Together with a souvenir shop and a cafe, it makes for a quaint place to sit and enjoy some green tea.



As you can see from the video, it's quite popular with tourists; so expect it to be busy during the summer season. They have a variety of tea rolled cakes, green tea lattes, earl grey tea cookies, green tea ice cream and of course, just regular green tea. Prices from 4,000 won to 8,000 won for individual items.


I decided to go with the ice cream, which was delicious.



Just past the museum are fields and fields of green tea; the weather when I went was nice enough for a pleasant stroll.



With rows upon rows of lustrous green leaves and a looming Sanbangsan in the background, it makes for an exquisite scene.



I'm not exactly sure how they harvest it all, or what the process is from growing it to drinking it in your cup, but I imagine there are guided tours available if you check with the museum reception at the entrance, or at the very least, a brochure.

There is no entrance fee to the museum or to walk around the fields, so feel free to drop by anytime during the day.

So long summer

As the days get shorter and the nights get cooler, the remnants of summer are quickly fading away. It's been a rather enjoyable summer, however rainy and cloudy it has been at times, but I'm looking forward to the Fall.

I've just resigned my contract in Jeju for another year, so I'll have another opportunity to enjoy the summer here again. I'll be traveling for the first two weeks of November back to Canada, which will be a nice break from my regular schedule.

With the arrival of fall, comes the season of oranges. All around my apartment are fields of them, and already I can start to see the change from the summer green sprouts to the blossoming balls of orange and green.



Where at one time I would leave my school and there would still be enough light to go swimming, now has been replaced by the darkness.

So here's a little something to remember those beautiful summer sunsets:



So long summer, I'll see you next year.

Some of my favourite beaches

Having spent as much time as I could on the beaches this summer, and after taking a few tours around the island, I have seen my share of fair beaches that Jeju has to offer. Here are a few of my favourite spots:

Jungmun Beach


Photo by Brian Miller

Probably one of the most popular spots for tourists and locals, Jungmun beach is an incredibly accessible beach located in the heart of the tourist district. There is lots of room and it's within distance of some great places to eat, such as my beloved Gecko's.

It's probably one of the best summer spots for getting some surf, and in the months of May, June and September, it is a lot more peaceful and comfortable. The perfect spot for an early morning swim, or a lazy afternoon of resting and reading. It has become the recent annual host of the Jeju Surf and Rock Festival.

Hyeopjae Beach



Another popular spot, Hyeopjae Beach is one of the most picturesque locations on all of the island. Bright white sands, brilliant shades of blues and an offshore islet against the backdrop of the sky and ocean. If it weren't completely jam-packed with people, it would probably be the best spot on the island. There isn't much waves and the water isn't very deep because of the sand bar that goes out for half a kilometre or so, but it's stunning to look at.

Try venturing away from the main beach and you'll find a more quieter relaxed spot just around the bend, towards Geumneung Beach.

Udo Beach


A lot more reclusive than the previous beaches, Udo island has a beach on its far side that is the perfect spot to enjoy a sunny afternoon. Although harder to get to, Udo beach is worth the trip, especially since there are many other incredible breathtaking views available on the small island.

I recommend organizing a camping trip or renting a 민박 (minbak, a room with a kind of 'bed and breakfast' style) while you're there, because you'll want to spend more than just the one afternoon there after making the trip out.

Gimnyeong Beach



Located on the Northeast side of Jeju, Gimnyeong beach is up there for one of the best beaches. Like Hyeopjae, it is incredibly beautiful, but it has the benefit of being a lot less crowded. I camped out there a few weeks ago after some sailing in the day, and it was absolutely serene.



Bring a book, a snorkel and mask, as well as something to snack on and you'll have yourself a great time. It's within a five minute walk to a bus station that will take you to either Seogwipo or Jeju-si.



It's hasn't been the sunniest summer, with all the days of rain we've gotten in July and August, but the days that have been clear were something to remember. It's important to take full advantage of such occasions, as you may never get a chance like that again. So much can be said about having good weather, good company and a good time.