There is much hubbub at the Chujado passenger terminal as the 9:30 am Pink Dolphin arrives from Jeju. It is an unusually busy dockside as families reunite and part ways for the Seollal holiday. A collection of fishing boats bob calmly in their places sleeping off their previous night’s work. Across from them a thin strip of storefronts spread around the harbour with an unplanned morass of blue and red-roofed buildings. They give way to steeply rising hills, one of which is the location for Chujado lighthouse, unlit during these daylight hours. The sky is blue though partially cloudy. There is a fleeting warmth from the February sunshine above.

GETTING IN
The Pink Dolphin (10,000 won single, one hour) is the fastest way of reaching Chujado and operates from the Jeju City Ferry Terminal daily, though weather conditions do lead to cancellations. It is advisable to take medicine to prevent sea-sickness as the journey is notoriously rough. Medicine is sold in the pharmacy just to the left of the escalators upon reaching the terminal’s second floor. Alternatively, take the larger and slower ferry (8,000 won, two hours), which will provide a much smoother ride. Please check times at the Jeju City ferry terminal a few days prior to departure as the schedule is often changed.

The squealing of tires, the wind rushing in my ears and the occasional loud report as my four cycle engine backfires are all I hear as I lean into the turn. I am tearing down the track at the maximum speed of 34km/hr in my little go-kart, steering around other drivers going a more pedestrian speed. Man, does it ever feel good to be in control of a motorised vehicle again!

Whether you come for the music, the home-cooked meals, or to meet new and interesting people over a beer or two, most agree that La Vie is a comfortable place to hang out and feel at home. Look around the place and first you may notice the comfortable stance of the patrons and hear laughter in response to an animated story, along with the full bookshelf (La Vie’s open library), houseplants and artwork on the walls. One patron Eric Karrandjas says of La Vie, “They are really friendly people and I always feel welcome when I’m there.” Another regular, Joey Rositano says he comes to La Vie “for the stories and the good company.”

Once upon a time in Jeju, there lived a mammoth-sized old maid named Seolmundae who had five hundred sons. As legend has it, Seolmundae was such a large lady that she used Mt. Halla as her pillow when she slept, and her feet reached all the way to Kwantal, a small uninhabited island off of Jeju. One day while cooking a very large pot of rice soup for her many sons, she accidentally fell into her concoction, simmering herself to death. A little while later, the five hundred hungry sons came home to find this delicious brew and began to consume the pot of homemade mom. By the time the youngest son was served, he discovered his mother’s bones at the end of the pot. All of the sons grieved together and died of heart-break. As a result, the five hundred brothers were turned to stone for their transgression, with 499 of the rocks lining the Yeongsil Trail that runs up Mt. Halla and one rock on Chadwigo Island, representing the youngest brother who found his mother’s bones.