Art In Island - Dog Friendly Wooden Cabin in Gangwon-Do, South Korea

/
Art In Island - Dog Friendly Wooden Cabin in Gangwon-Do, South Korea

It only took us 3 years, but we finally found the perfect little wooden cabin in the mountains here in Korea. And the best part, they are dog friendly (not just in the cabin, but in the surrounding campsite too!). I am always looking for get away places here in Korea, and even before having a dog and needing to worry about places that would allow him, I hadn't found much in terms of 'western style' cabins that didn't cost the earth. Stumbling upon Art In Island was one of the highlights of our stay here in Korea, and the place itself exceeded all of our expectations.

Art In Island is a delightful little corner of the Korean countryside, surrounded by mountains and a river (great for fishing!) and great for hiking and exploring too. As you can see from the photos below, we headed to the cabin in winter (the snow made everything magical) but I can tell that this place would be just as wonderful in all seasons.

The cabin owned by the most friendly man, Hao, who was great to communicate with before and during our stay. He replied instantly to all my messages and both him and the local manager went out of their way to make sure we had a comfortable stay. Hao speaks perfect English and really was wonderful to communicate with, even though he lives in Seoul, he often visits the cabin and is a great guy to hang out with and get to know. And the fact that he was so friendly to our dog, Shadow, made us like him even more!

If you own a dog here in Korea, you'll know just how hard it is to find dog friendly accommodation, especially if you own a 'large' breed dog. This cabin was everything we hoped it would be and will definitely be going back before we leave Korea.

Read More

Dog Friendly Accomodation in Gwangju, South Korea. Hertz Guesthouse

/
Dog Friendly Accomodation in Gwangju, South Korea. Hertz Guesthouse

Owning a dog in Korea is so much harder than people realise. Korea is not very pet friendly, and although this is improving, small dogs (or rather teeny, tiny handbag size pooches) are far more accepted and approved of than big dogs.

I own a 'big' dog, although he would be termed medium size in any other country. 

Shadow, my 1.5 year old Korean Jindo, is a rescue dog whom we found on the side of the road in September 2013...you can read more about him by clicking here. 

But, after lots of trial and error, I have found some great places that allow 'big' dogs that don't cost an arm and a leg and are near the popular areas of each city. It's no fun having to stay miles and miles away from where you want to be, as having a dog shouldn't be a huge hinderance.

This post is about Hertz Guesthouse, an awesome place to stay right in the heart of downtown Gwangju.

 

Read More

An afternoon in the Damyang Countryside

/
Damyang House dog friendly accommodation in Gwanju South Korea

I spent the day in and around Gwangju this weekend, and ended up at the Damyang House for an afternoon stroll with a great group of fellow rescue dog owners. Sean & Jo-Jo own the gorgeous Damyang House, a beautiful (dog friendly) holiday home for rent in the surrounding Gwangju countryside. You can find out more about renting the Damyang House on Airbnb by clicking here. 

Sean & Jo-Jo often arrange get togethers at their dog friendly rental holiday home, and I was very happy to be able to join in this past weekend. Having a dog in Korea isn't easy, especially when your dog dwarfs 90% of the other Korean dogs, and so to be able to go a place that gave him plenty of space to run around and socialise with other dogs is a real treat. 

Sean & Jo-Jo own two rescue dogs, Soonie & Gauda (the small black and tan & the regal looking white pup) and we were joined by Meg & Ben who own Millie (the little, long haired black and white rescue dog) and their friend Ryan. I also met a lovely Korean lady, Jiseong, who brought along her two little Maltese rescues, Coco & Gucci. Of course, Shadow (the big black and tan Jindo mix) was a bit of a handful for the smaller dogs who weren't too interested in his playful advances, giving him a run for his money through the mud and farm lands. He had a ball regardless, none too phased by the barking and chasing he received when he tried to get too playful with them. 

More posts on Life in Korea
Winter in Korea and our latest snow fall!
Winter in Korea and our latest snow fall!
An afternoon in the Damyang Countryside
An afternoon in the Damyang Countryside
November in a nutshell
November in a nutshell
Chopping off your locks - Donating your hair to Charity in Korea
Chopping off your locks - Donating your hair to Charity in Korea

It's the start of the cooler weather here in South Korea and I have been wanting to cut a fringe for the past few weeks. Cooler weather means much less maintenance when it comes to a fringe, or bangs as my American friends say. All girls with a fringe will sympathise with me when I say that that part of your hair does not tame easily, especially if you exercise a lot.

A few weeks ago I noticed a number of my students had cut their gorgeous, long hair in favor of a bob, and when I asked them why they had cut their hair, I was quite surprised at their answer. They had donated their hair to cancer charities. After asking a few more questions about it, I decided I wanted to do the same with my hair. In the past 20 years I have only had one 'short' hair cut and that was to below my shoulder, hardly short I would say, and so this was quite a big deal for me. Instead of thinking about it too much, I decided to make the change last week Tuesday and then walked into a salon here in my small town and had it all chopped off. Over 30 cm's of hair!

Here are a few snaps of my hair pre-cut (as in, the morning of the day I cut my hair). It was long, wavy and looked a bit endy. I was never the type of girl to spend hours curling or straightening my hair, and this is how it looked naturally after a quick once over with the hairdryer after a shower. 

A Winnie The Pooh Baby Shower
A Winnie The Pooh Baby Shower
#DiyDaysInKorea {Picnic Meet-Up)
#DiyDaysInKorea {Picnic Meet-Up)
Owning a Dog in Korea {Part 1} What you need to keep you and your pup happy.
Owning a Dog in Korea {Part 1} What you need to keep you and your pup happy.
ChristmasinKoreaCGS (1 of 1).jpg
Happy Christmas from South Korea!
#DIYDaysInKorea {third meet-up}
#DIYDaysInKorea {third meet-up}
Halloween Lesson Ideas for young ESL students
Halloween Lesson Ideas for young ESL students