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Ballerina2012
Joined: 17 Jan 2012
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 Posted: Thu Jul 12, 2012 6:04 pm Post subject: Necessities |
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Hi all,
First I want to thank the people who are so helpful on this site specially to newbies.
I am packing for my trip over and am wondering what are some things I need to bring that are really hard to get over there. I don't wanna take a lot of stuff I can get there easily.
Is it usual for the school "person" to help you get groceries etc. when you arrive or are you on your own for that?
Many people have helped me on here and I do appreciate it! B |
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lichtarbeiter
Joined: 15 Nov 2006
Location: Korea
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| Posted: Thu Jul 12, 2012 6:18 pm Post subject: Re: Necessities |
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| Ballerina2012 wrote: |
I am packing for my trip over and am wondering what are some things I need to bring that are really hard to get over there. I don't wanna take a lot of stuff I can get there easily.
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- fluoride toothpaste (you might be satisfied with Korean non-fluoride toothpaste, but I've found after a few months of using it I started getting these strange toothaches - not painful, just a little disturbing)
- whatever you keep in your medicine cabinet, especially painkillers
- deodorant
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| Is it usual for the school "person" to help you get groceries etc. when you arrive or are you on your own for that? |
Both jobs I've had, the employers left some "necessity" food items in my apartment upon my arrival to tie me over for a couple days. I was on my own for grocery shopping, which isn't a problem if there's a supermarket nearby. |
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crisdean
Joined: 04 Feb 2010
Location: Seoul Special City
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| Posted: Thu Jul 12, 2012 6:28 pm Post subject: Re: Necessities |
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| Ballerina2012 wrote: |
Hi all,
First I want to thank the people who are so helpful on this site specially to newbies.
I am packing for my trip over and am wondering what are some things I need to bring that are really hard to get over there. I don't wanna take a lot of stuff I can get there easily. |
That largely depends on you. what type of foods do you like?
If you're really big into tex-mex cooking I'd recommend bringing a year supply of chili powder and cayenne pepper as I've have yet to stumble across decent stuff here. Some other herbs and spices may also be hard to find, and since they're cheap, light, and don't take up much space why not just bring them with you if they're something you often cook with.
Some people would recommend miracle whip since that generally can't be found here, and when it can be found it's way too expensive.
| Ballerina2012 wrote: |
| Is it usual for the school "person" to help you get groceries etc. when you arrive or are you on your own for that? |
That's really variable, and largely depends on your co-workers. I've had co-teachers that were very helpful for various things, and other co-teachers that couldn't have cared less. |
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Modernist
Joined: 23 Mar 2011
Location: The 90s
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| Posted: Thu Jul 12, 2012 7:26 pm Post subject: |
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| Is it usual for the school "person" to help you get groceries etc. when you arrive or are you on your own for that? |
I wouldn't count on this. Koreans like to say 'I'm very busy' which means, typically, 'I don't want to do it, so don't ask again'. At least they should be able to point you in the right direction.
Grocery shopping here really demands paying attention, which can be difficult since Koreans apparently require shouting, screaming, a constant stream of noise at all times. I would recommend wearing headphones playing some decent music to drown it out and help you concentrate. Focus on the pictures and package designs and just go one aisle at a time. Don't try to find one specific thing, just go through the store and keep looking and you'll see it eventually. And don't buy any fruit or vegetables at marts/stores--always get them at the open markets.
You might want to bring a nice big soft bath towel. Korean towels are tiny, like hand towels, and thin too.
I brought proper-sized forks. You'd be surprised what passes for a fork over here.
Bring some candy or salty snacks that you really like. Most of them are hard to get here and the taste of home will help you adjust to the, uh, different local cuisine. |
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Ballerina2012
Joined: 17 Jan 2012
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| Posted: Thu Jul 12, 2012 7:34 pm Post subject: |
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| Can anyone advise me on a electrical converter for my MacBook too? |
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lichtarbeiter
Joined: 15 Nov 2006
Location: Korea
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| Posted: Thu Jul 12, 2012 7:41 pm Post subject: |
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| Ballerina2012 wrote: |
| Can anyone advise me on a electrical converter for my MacBook too? |
You probably don't need one. Check the A/C adapter. It'll probably say that it's rated for 100-240 volts.
In that case, you would only need a plug converter. Find one with F-type output (double round pin). They probably have it at Best Buy or whatever. |
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Ballerina2012
Joined: 17 Jan 2012
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| Posted: Thu Jul 12, 2012 7:49 pm Post subject: |
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| TY! So the plugs are the same as USA? |
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ttompatz
Joined: 05 Sep 2005
Location: Kwangju, South Korea
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| Posted: Thu Jul 12, 2012 7:49 pm Post subject: |
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| Ballerina2012 wrote: |
| Can anyone advise me on a electrical converter for my MacBook too? |
Read the label on the brick. If it says:
Input 110-240 VAC (like almost every other laptop on the planet) then you are fine.
Bath towels are here (10k won each) at home-plus or e-mart.
Kraft brand miracle whip won't be but mayo (assorted brands) is all over the place and cheap enough.
IF you are brand specific for your toiletries then bring then with you.
If you aren't picky on which brand then there are LOTS here.
You will be on your own for groceries. It isn't much different from home if you go to the larger stores (home-plus or e-mart as examples). Depending on where you are Costco is an option as well.
Best choice for veg is the open markets and not the supermarkets or convenience stores/mini-marts.
Bring spices (sealed, bulk cello packs) if you plan to do much cooking at home. Get used to cooking on a 2-burner gas stove with NO OVEN (the norm over here).
. |
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cheezsteakwit
Joined: 12 Oct 2011
Location: There & back again.
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| Posted: Thu Jul 12, 2012 8:28 pm Post subject: necessities |
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Bring pictures from home to hang up around your apartment. Bare walls can be depressing.
Bring a flash drive with pics of your home town / family / hobbies / info about your country so you can make a good introductory powerpoint about yourself for your students.
I second the toothpaste notion. Korean toothpaste tastes a lil 'off'.
Hangers, sheets, bath towels, groceries, etc... All that kind of stuff can be bought at HomePlus or similar stores, so don't waste valuable luggage space.
If you can , get a Lonely Planet Phrasebook for $9 , so you can learn some basic Korean phrases. The Korean alphabet is pretty easy to learn and I had most of it mastered on the plan ride over here (except for some of the vowels)
Good luck and welcome to Korea ! |
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soomin
Joined: 18 Jun 2009
Location: Daegu
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| Posted: Thu Jul 12, 2012 8:38 pm Post subject: |
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As a woman... I would recommend bringing things for that girly time of the month... If you're living in a city with a Homeplus, you can find playtex and maybe kotex tampons, but they are flippity expensive. (8,000 won for a 12 pack). There are also Korean-brand tampons, but I've never used them... There are plenty of pads there, though, so if you're fine with that, no worries.
Prescriptions, of course, but I also recommend cold medicines (like Nyquil). From my experience, cold medicine is pretty weak here as many Koreans don't like to take medicine and would rather wait out colds. Mydol is here (called EVE), aspirin is here, claritin/zyrtec/flonase is here, stomach medicines are here, etc etc.
I also recommend bringing a pic of your family for your wallet. You'll be asked to show a family pic a lot when you're first starting and by new friends (at least, in my experience), and it's nice to have one around.
I don't recommend bringing a towel because there are no dryers here. Korean towels (and you can get big ones for cheap) are made with this in mind and dry really fast. My ones from home tend to get moldy smelling because they can't dry well.
Shoes if you're over a size 7-8 (US size) and clothes if you don't think of yourself as petite (or if you have breasts over a C-cup (US) or a butt as many clothes are not made for these things.
Bring some makeup to tide you over, but you'll probably like experimenting with new ones after you get settled in here. If you are very tan or are non-white/non-asian, foundation will be more difficult to find as most foundations and powders are made to make your skin look fair. There are face washes for oily skin and for normal or dry skin, too.
Good luck and if you have any questions, feel free to PM me ^.^ |
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NYC_Gal 2.0
Joined: 10 Dec 2010
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| Posted: Fri Jul 13, 2012 12:12 am Post subject: |
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If you're picky about bras, toothpaste, and tampons, bring those. Most other things are available here (though they are more expensive) or online.
If you aren't a size small, you may have trouble finding clothing, so you may want to stock up on those as well. If you are, though, it's easy to find clothes.
Shoes can be ordered from endless.com (it's one of Amazon.com's sites) with shipping only costing $10, so don't worry about packing a bunch of shoes. |
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transmogrifier
Joined: 02 Jan 2012
Location: Seoul, South Korea
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| Posted: Fri Jul 13, 2012 1:34 am Post subject: |
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A sense of adventure
Flexibility
A sense of humor
The ability to stand up for yourself
An open mind
Done! |
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tideout
Joined: 12 Dec 2010
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| Posted: Fri Jul 13, 2012 3:33 am Post subject: |
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I tend to agree with the previous posts on over the counter meds. You can find some things here but if it's something you really prefer over other things bring 1 or 2 packs of them.
If you're going to be co-teaching, bring your favorite ant-acid medication. |
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Skippy
Joined: 18 Jan 2003
Location: Daejeon
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Kimchifart
Joined: 15 Sep 2010
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| Posted: Fri Jul 13, 2012 5:30 am Post subject: Re: Necessities |
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| lichtarbeiter wrote: |
- fluoride toothpaste (you might be satisfied with Korean non-fluoride toothpaste, but I've found after a few months of using it I started getting these strange toothaches - not painful, just a little disturbing)
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This old chestnut? I have never been to a supermarket and not found flouride toothpaste. It's just not as prevalent as non flouride but it's virtually always available.
OP don't bring toothpaste. Medication and deodorant yes (still quite expensive, but completely available and less expensive than it was.), but since the FTA there are more and more foreign medications appearing. A recent one I noticed was Gaviscon antacid tablets. |
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