Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Oliver]

Hi All!

I know there are a fair few threads on Yeosu but I was hoping to ask a couple of questions. I am moving there in early October to teach in a public elementary school.

Are there many banks in the city?

What about shops and internet cafes?

If anyone who lives there could PM me with some general info about amenities, shops and facilities I'd be grateful.

Thanks!

Oliver

[Tobias]

Yeosu's a good place. I've spent some time there while on break, and I really like that city. It's one of my favs in Korea, in fact. There are plenty of banks, shops, internet Bangs, and even the typical bazaar. You'll have no problem finding anything you need.

Yeosu has two parts: a northern part and a southern part. The northern part has an ancient shipyard. It's no ordinary shipyard...this is the yard where the world's first iron ships were built (for General Yi). The monitor and the merrimac were only about 500 years later. Ahh, the lies that are passed off as history back in the west...Koreans especially love the label 'The Sea of Japan', but I digress.

The southern part has docks, a cool park that overlooks that part of the city, a nice bay, et. al.

ChonNam National University is also in Yeosu. The neighborhood around Cheon is a good place to hang out.

Congrats on landing a job in one of Korea's coolest cities.

[hagwonnewbie]

There's facebook group that might be helpful:

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2260599226

[BreakfastInBed]

What Tobias said.

I spent a few days there this summer break and thought it would be a nice place to migrate down to after another year or two where I am. It seemed pretty laid back and was very pretty. There are islands that are easily accessible by ferry and they were quite nice as well. My girlfriend and I shared a cab with a buddhist monk on one of them and he hooked us up with a free room in town for no good reason. I'd jump at a decent public school job in Yeosu.

[Sushi]

It's a tourist town. Plenty to see all along the South Coast. Biggest city in the province is Gwangju which is a 3 hour bus ride North.

[Tobias]

Question:

Is this Gwangju that hosted the 1980 protests and subsequent massacre?

There are two Gwangjus in SK, one is the headquarters of Kia, and the other is a small 'burb of Seoul.

[Konglishman]

Yes, this is the same Gwangju in Jeollamnado where the 5/18 brutalities occurred.

[smedini]

For what it's worth, I lived in Yeosu for two years back in the late 90s and I have to say that my awesome experience in Korea was thanks in a very big way to living in that city. While I'm sure a lot has changed since then, it was a great city back then...not too big but just big enough so you didn't feel you were in a backwater (though some will tell you that you are!).

I believe that I had such a great "Korean" experience living in Yeosu, much better than I would have had I lived in a bigger city like Seoul or Pusan. Back then there were less than 30 foreigners living in Yeosu and neighbouring Yeocheon (now part of the same city, Yeosu) and we were quite a crowd. I learned loads more Korean than I would have otherwise, and really felt like part of the community.

Yeosu, while not immune by any standard, is not as polluted as other places in the country and, being on the coast, is quite beautiful. There are lots of attractions and I believe a world expo is about to be held there (in 2012) so the ammenities (which were already pretty great ten years ago) are likely to get a boost. There's loads to see and do and the people there are some of the best in the country .

Korea is a tiny country so it's easy to get to anywhere from Yeosu...I'm sure I've been to every major city in the country and loads of minor ones, too. And yes, nearby Gwangju *is* the site of the 1980 massacre...when I lived in Yeosu I went to Gwangju all the time 'cause it, too, is a great city. I went there for the 5/18 shameversary in 1999 and it was a very moving experience - not to mention the tear gas I got hit with while joining some protesters at the university.

All in all, like another poster said, congrats on heading to Yeosu...it's a great town full of great people and lots of beauty to enjoy. I hope you'll come and tell us all about it when you've had a chance to settle in. By the by, I don't know if it's still there or not but there was one wicked dalk-kal-bi restaurant downtown back then...I sometimes think I'd make the flight again just for one meal in that great dive

IMHO
~smedini

[Tobias]

It's way, way off topic, but let me throw this out there:

May 18, 1980...a day that will live in infamy in many places.

1. Gwangju massacre in South Korea.

2. Ian Curtis, lead singer of the great band Joy Division, hangs himself with barbed wire while standing on a cube of frozen carbon dioxide in England.

3. Mount St. Helens blows its top and gives people in the Pacific Northwest of the USA something to talk about for the next 50 years.

Time to get back to work.

[hagwonnewbie]

I lived there for a year, and there were no great acadmies there. A few of them bad reputations, so I would look for a public school jobs there. Definitely the way to go in Yeosu.

[justaguy]

In 2010 the World Expo will be held in Yeosu. They are already gearing up for it. There will be lots of work for English teachers there.

I have never lived in Yeosu but I know people who have and they all had good things to say about the place.