Jeju Island, South Korea

“ Glimmers of history on every cobbled street and quaint square are the big draw here, from the statuesque Prague Castle and romantic Kampa Island to the pastel-coloured Baroque buildings of the Old Town Square and the Gothic spires of St Vitus Cathedral.”

Nam Ji Hyun sighs with pleasure at those words. She adds a sticky note to the journal page she was reading then pulls open her notebook. For a moment she pauses, lost in thought. Her fingers twiddle with a little locket around her neck.  Then she starts writing.

“The air is thick with suspense as fog descends on the Old Town Square. A shadow appears behind her only to flicker away. She pauses, uncertain if she was being followed. Small prickles of terror cause her to walk faster and faster until she is running past the spires of St. Vitus, feeling sure her every move was being watched. A hand grabs her wrist and she screams in terror…”

Hold on, no.. not a hand. If she was running could a hand grab her all of a sudden? Or maybe he was lying in wait?

A flock of birds nearby break into beautiful song, and interrupts her thoughts. The crisp bright morning in Soenheul village was as far from a dramatic, gothic European town as one could imagine.

Ji Hyun sighs and knows she won’t be getting much writing done today. She was supposed to have gone to the store to pick up their supplies and she had already wasted 30 more minutes than she should have.

Nam Ji Hyun was the innkeeper at her Aunt’s Jeju guest house. Which meant she was the glorified receptionist, cook, maid, driver, and gardener. But she loved helping her Aunt, and this quiet little village had been home for as long as she remembered.

A number of years ago her Aunt had excitedly read an article in a magazine about eco-tourism and declared they could do something similar too. Ji Hyun had just started middle scho