Korean Job Discussion Forums

philipjames · Joined: 03 Feb 2003

It was late for work today because I got lost on a new route. I ask a crossing guard for directions to my school. A general direction would do me fine. I follow her directions then end up miles in the wrong friggin direction. I ask someone else. Their directions lead me even further from the school. Ask a third person. Their directions are the complete opposite of the previous two people. Shocked

I've encountered this before in Korea. Why the hell can't they just give an honest answer to an honest question?

"I don't know," is much better than pretending you know and then screwing someone around whose already stressed about being late for work. Grrrr.

Poemer · Joined: 20 Sep 2005 Location: Mullae

In a country with almost no posted street names or addresses, you would think people would have to develop pretty good direction-giving skills. Sadly, without their gps to lead them, everyone is totally clueless and completely lost.

chevro1et · Joined: 01 Feb 2007 Location: Busan, ROK

It seems that many Koreans have no inate sense of direction in general. Hell, half of them cant even walk a straight line down the sidewalk, let alone tell you what direction a given destination is.

Underwaterbob · Joined: 08 Jan 2005 Location: In Cognito

Because in Korea it doesn't matter which direction you go in, it's all the same.

pkang0202 · Joined: 09 Mar 2007

Are they giving you directions in English or Korean?

I find it hard to believe you could find 3 people to speak English, let alone give you directions.

CentralCali · Joined: 17 May 2007

philipjames · Joined: 03 Feb 2003

JongnoGuru · Joined: 25 May 2004 Location: peeing on your doorstep

Nobody uses or even seems to grasp (no boyscouts in ths country?) the Four Directions (N,S,E,W) except at the broad regional level, like Chungcheong-nam & -buk (which is my favourite misnomer, those stupid things are so clearly East/West!) or at the district level (Gangnam/Gangbuk) which we already know and doesn't help you nagivate the streets.

Dashboard-mounted GPS navigation panels didn't come a minute too soon for these people. Funnily, one of the things I remembered seeing in almost every Korean tax in the late '80s, early '90s were those little compasses glued onto the dash. Did you ever have a compass on your car dash? I never did, but I can see how they'd be a good idea. Anyway, in Korean cars they were essentially just for decoration. I asked drivers how/if/when they used their compass, and more than half the time they'd tell me it was broken.

So you end up having to rely on landmarks, which in much of Seoul (and all of Gangnam) means "some big building that everyone knows". Have a look at the bus route maps (mounted on the inside, painted on the outside, printed in route books, up on the internet) and you'll see bus-stops named for banks that went under during the IMF --11 fking years ago, and we're all still yapping about the "Han-mi Eun-haeng Intersection"?? You nitwits!!

Captain Corea · Joined: 28 Feb 2005 Location: Seoul

Wow, a thread about how Koreans

-can't just give an honest answer to an honest question
-(are) totally clueless and completely lost
-have no innate sense of direction in general

very informative. Rolling Eyes

JongnoGuru · Joined: 25 May 2004 Location: peeing on your doorstep

Bingo · Joined: 22 Jun 2006

I had a similar experience looking for the post office once. I was on a lunch break and was looking for the central post office. I was in the correct vicinity but couldn't find it. I asked several different people (in Korean) and ended up getting wildly different (and incompatible) directions. I ended up giving up and rushing back to school. I was really annoyed as I really needed to take care of something at the post office that day.

I mentioned this to a Korean friend. She said to never ask Koreans for directions. They would rather give you wrong directions than admit they didn't know the answer. Shocked

The whole 'saving face' thing again.

Benicio · Posted: Sun Oct 26, 2008 7:14 pm Post subject:

ernie · Joined: 05 Aug 2006 Location: asdfghjk

don't get me started on this issue. i've been here for 2 years and i'm pretty sure i have a better sense of direction than most of these cab drivers who've lived in seoul for over 50 years (or maybe they're just trying to rip me off by taking the long way).

one of the biggest problems for me is the stupid dong addressing system. i live in 9-dong, so where does my dong end and another one begin? is 9-dong next to 8-dong? of course not, that would be too simple!

my theory is that the south korean government wants directions to be as difficult as possible in order to confuse potential invaders. nothing could be this retarded by accident. the only surefire place to meet someone is at a subway station.

Bingo · Joined: 22 Jun 2006

If they had actual street names, I could simply have asked (in Korean), "Excuse me. Where is Sejong Road?" (Unfortunately, if they didn't know where it was they'd still manufacture directions.) Very Happy

RACETRAITOR · Joined: 24 Oct 2005 Location: Seoul, South Korea

I've noted that many Koreans seem to have no spatial sense. That's why I respect taxi drivers in this country.

In my first year, I lived in Suwon and rode around on a scooter to visit students' homes. After a couple months, I usually had to give my boss directions on everywhere, because he couldn't find his way around his own hometown.