Korean Job Discussion Forums

yodanole · Joined: 02 Mar 2003 Location: La Florida

Anyone that has to go to Itaewon to locate "escorts" in Korea, would also be likely to starve to death anywhere except McDonalds.

cj1976 · Joined: 26 Oct 2005

I've been to Itaewon countless times and have spotted exactly zero used condoms anywhere. Maybe I haven't been looking hard enough. As someone rightly said, Hongdae is a far bigger shithole than Itaewon now. 3am in Hongdae is absolute carnage.

darkjedidave · Joined: 19 Aug 2009 Location: Shanghai/Seoul

I haven't been to Itaewon since April. Hongdae and Sinchon suit me just fine

Gaininganadventur · Joined: 02 Aug 2013

Itaewon! It's my favorite place...I think:) Loads of good memories in that area Cool

Scorpion · Joined: 15 Apr 2012

I personally find Itaewon much too scary and threatening. It's defintely a dangerous place. On the rare occasion that I go there for shopping, I make sure to get out of there before it gets dark. If I'm having a meal and notice the sun setting, I'll quickly pay my bill and grab the first cab I can get. I don't care if I haven't finished my meal. It just isn't worth the risk. This is especially so on weekends. You've been warned. But this being Dave's, I'm sure nobody here will listen. Confused

T-J · Joined: 10 Oct 2008 Location: Seoul EunpyungGu Yeonsinnae

I long for the Itaewon of yesteryear. The Hill was the Bourbon St of Seoul, shoulder to shoulder packed with revellers. That was prior to '95...

There used to be an open aired cafe style super half way up the hill on the left with TVs for watching AFKN sports (American football) in the wee hours. The hotel on the right went up in '93 and that was the beginning of the change.

Then in '96 the subway construction started and I knew that the glory days were numbered.

I was away from '98 to '04 and when I returned then it was a shell of what it had been.

I stop through once or twice a year these days but i can't revisit the Itaewon I remember because it is no longer. Neither are the expats of old for that matter but that's another story altogether.

KimchiNinja · Joined: 01 May 2012 Location: Gangnam

catman · Joined: 18 Jul 2004

I haven't been to Itaewon in years but used to frequently go there when I was living in Seoul.

Remember that old homeless man at the subway station who would grunt really loud and swipe imaginary bugs off his head? Is he still around?

El Bandito · Joined: 07 Oct 2013

I remember moving to Incheon in 2003 and would go into Itaewon on the weekends, eat a poorly cooked breakfast at Nashville's and start my early morning beer drinking while watching movies in the basement there.
That was the ONLY place open for breakfast at the time.

I would also pop into a club called All That Jazz from time to time and check out some cool tunes. Is that still around?

Also, for the longest time Pancho's (Rauncho's) was the only place to get any kind of Tex-Mex. At one point, they changed chefs and the food was pretty good. Couldn't beat the free chips and salsa at the time, too. Not sure if they still do that.

I know that doesn't beat pre-IMF times, but even in 10 years, a ton of stuff has changed. Haebangchon had nothing there back then.