Urbanite leads poetic Jeju lifestyle

Kim Soo-hong, author of “Sigol Books on Jeju,” poses with his book at his bookshop in Jeju's eastern town of Jocheon-ri in this undated photo. / Courtesy of Kim Soo-hong

By Kang Hyun-kyung

Kim Soo-hong, 57, is one of a swarm of urbanites who migrated to the southern scenic island of Jeju about a decade ago. The “Jeju rush” phenomenon has been continuing since 2010.

Since he settled down in Jeju's eastern rustic coastal town of Jocheon, he opened a small bookstore two years ago. He named it “Sigol Books on Jeju.” Sigol usually refers to the countryside but the name of his bookstore comes from a Korean abbreviation of “a poetic, corner bookstore.”

Unlike other bookshop owners, his primary purpose is not earning money.

“Jocheon-ri is such a small, underdeveloped town, so demand for books is not outstanding,” he said in a phone interview with The Korea Times. “Sigol Books is serving as a free-of-charge venue for small group gatherings. Artists, poets and authors meet for book club meetings or other cultural discourse. My Facebook friends from Seoul or other cities on the mainland visit here whenever they come to Jeju.”

Kim describes himself as a low culture aficionado, noting he likes cultural works that are easily accessible.

On Jeju, he immersed himself into the world of art and culture. He writes poems and leads a book club. He is also a member of a multinational music band and engaged in various cultural activities.

Recently he released a book, titled “The Happiest Times in My Life: A Story of a Poetic Corner Bookstore,” published by Daesup Baram. It is a selection of essays he posted on his Facebook account over the past two years. One of his Facebook buddies has a small publishing house and she encouraged Kim to publish his essays, a request he accepted.

Kim said his Jeju life has inspired him to write essays and poems regularly and share them with his friends.

“Since I came down to Jeju, I have led a life very different from my life in the urban area,” he said. “I am the youngest of seven children. I grew up in a family where the preference for sons was dominant. I studied economics in university in the 1980s and at that time female students accounted for only 1 percent of the entire economics department. After graduation, I began my career as an international finance expert at then the global giant Daewoo Group and worked there until 1998 when the conglomerate was mired in turmoil during the Asian Financial Crisis. Most of my clients were men. Before Jeju, I had spent most of life in a male-dominated atmosphere.”

On Jeju, Kim said he came to embrace a more “feminine” lifestyle while working with local literary people. According to him, men are result-driven, whereas women enjoy the process of work.

“Many of the local people with whom I mingle through book clubs or other cultural activities are women because women make up the majority of participants. It took time for me to adjust to such an environment,” he said.

While reading books, writing poems and mingling with local artists, he came to discover the hidden delights of life on Jeju and this caused him to find his inner strength as a writer, a trait he didn't even know about.

Born in Busan in 1961, Kim is no stranger to Jeju Island. Jeju is his parents' hometown.

Kim said he chose to settle down on the island while travelling there on a business trip. His migration to the island coincided with the Jeju rush that began in 2010. Mainlanders began to migrate to the southern island and this led to a significant increase of the Jeju population. Between 2014 and 2017, for example, over 40,000 people, mostly from Seoul and other big cities, migrated to Jeju.

Various groups of mainlanders moved to the island for different reasons. Those in their 30s were tired of living stressful urban lives and went down to Jeju to enjoy its pristine nature and to raise their children in a cleaner, quieter environment. The migration also included retirees who wanted to enjoy their sunset years.

There is another group of people who have flocked to Jeju since 2010 _ artists. They settled on the island to get inspiration from the rich natural environment for their art projects.

Kim's mingling with the artists who migrated to Jeju has led him to know the joy of small things. “I truly enjoy my post-retirement life here on Jeju because now I am doing what I want to do,” he said.