Korean Job Discussion Forums

[ceadem]

I have the contract signed and I'm going to be sending off all my docs this week to the school, I'm due to start on Jan 2nd! (any ideas on when they'll book my flight?) So what do you recommend I bring? The necessities a newbie like me will probably overlook.

Thanks

Oh and I'll be in Dong-gu in Dae-gu, anyone with experience there?

[the ireland]

well if they book flights like they plan everything else you should get plenty of notice and you will be well prepared to be coming over , no you will prob get given the flight details at the last poss minute and just have to hurry yourself along!!

bring some clothes for the cold weather and yourself, that's about all yu will need, maybe bing over whatever food you will miss the most that you think is not available here!!

[sojourner1]

Extreme cold weather gear.

[egrog1717]

Enough food to last until about mid-March when the Koreans come out of hibernation

Book your flight when you have your visa in hand... Delays and what not are a pain, but a reality when dealing with the Korean Consulate

As for supplies - Do bring some food with you (Mac and Cheese, Peanut Butter, Etc) to last a few days until you can scope out your neighbourhood and buy some for yourself... You'll also need between 300 and 500 bucks in cash to cover bills, towels, dish towels, if you like bed sheets bring those too... Yes, you can buy most of that stuff here, but if you have it at home (and have the room) you may as well just pack it...

As for everything else - and while this sounds kinda hokey - ask your mom what she would pack you if you were going to camp for the summer... LOL... Because guarenteed she'll think of things that you won't

[sarbonn]

Having just come here, let me list a few things I would have liked to have thought about before coming here (to bring, I mean).

1. Warm socks. You can find them at Costco, but getting to Costco your first time is going to be a challenge.

2. Very warm clothing. I screwed up on that one (coming from the SF Bay Area in October (when it was nice). I'm freezing right now, and it's only November.

3. If you have a computer (laptop) that you bring with you, remember to bring some computer programs you can use. Make sure to bring your Windows disk as well (you never know if something might happen and that request from the computer will come, and you won't have it).

4. If you have a dvd player, bring as many dvds as you have (I put all of mine into a CD folder that I brought with me, and I was able to bring a tone of them).

5. If you have any light favorite foods, think about bringing some with you. You'll be struggling in the beginning to find the kinds of foods that will make you happy. Some more than others.

6. Pack theraflu and other cold medications that you'll have a hard time finding here.

7. Fluffy towels. You can find them, but they're harder than easier to find. I recently found great towels at Emart for almost pennies, so I bought tons of them. But that was a really rare find.

8. Shoes. Make sure you have some new walking shoes. You'll walk miles and miles here. My tennis shoes are completely worn out, and I've been here a little over a month, so now I'm hunting down a place to buy shoes.

9. A tool kit. I brought a nice little tool kit that has been invaluable to me.

10. A tiny sewing kit. I wish I would have thought of this. I'm having such a hard time finding one, but I could certainly use one.

11. If you are on any medications, get those filled big time before you leave. Also, have your doctors give you prescriptions for being filled here. Again, wish I would have fully thought that one out before coming here.

12. Books. If you are wanting to read certain books on your shelves, bring them. You may have a hard time finding them here, and end up having to pretty much rely on the trade market here where people will sell you their finished books. You can buy new books in some places, but you can't always get the ones you want. You can order online, once you figure out how to do that to Korea, but I'm still waiting on two books I ordered weeks ago, so your options are limited.

13. I brought tons of batteries, but discovered they're very easy to find here, so that was probably a waste of space, but who knows?

14. If you eat carrots, buy a carrot slicer. I can't find one in Korea.

15. Posters. I can't figure out where they sell them here, so you might be limited to your own from home.

16. If you desire to learn Korean, I highly recommend that you buy Korean CD lessons on cd back home and bring over here. I haven't really been able to find any good ones here, and it's hard to figure out what's good anyway because the language restriction in the first place. If you can find a computer program for learning the language, I advise you install it on your computer and bring the cds/dvds with you. I had a great program I found, and like most things, I forgot it in the rush to finish packing and leave.

17. If you're thinking of doing something like Amazon's Kindle, buy it before you leave (if there's time). They won't send it to Korea. Amazon kind of sucks for Korea in most things, although some people say they had no problem, but I'm finding myself believing them less and less these days.

18. An umbrella. Yeah forgot that one myself. Was able to buy one really cheap, but it was after it rained and I was stuck in the middle of nowhere realizing it would have been really nice to already own an umbrella.

19. Underarm deoderant. A year's supply. Honestly. You'll have trouble finding what you need here.

20. If you need a specific type of shampoo, make sure you bring it. You may have a hard time finding it also. Also, bars of soap, if you like something like Irish Spring. They have Dove here, but haven't seen too many other alternatives that looked all that pleasing.

21. If you plan to have a house phone line, bring a familiar phone. The ones here all have Korean writing on them, and I have this somewhat fancy phone that I can't program because the directions couldn't be anymore confusing than they already are just because of the language.

Mostly, I've picked up a lot of the stuff I mentioned since being here, but it has cost a lot to do so, and when you're just settling in, you really want to spend your little stash of money on more interesting things that you discover you need at the last minute (like that case of diet dr pepper they sold me on the blackmarket...you know, the important stuff).

Either way, good luck to you. If any of this helps, then at least I set someone on the right path that I could have used myself before coming here. I'm still trying to get almost any of my stuff sent to me here by one of my friends and it's taking forever. I've been here going on two months now, and I still haven't seen any of my stuff from back home. Gets kind of frustrating and discouraging at times.

Oh yeah, and bring a sense of humor. If you can laugh at the ridiculousness you run into, you'll have a better chance of surviving the longer haul.

[Straphanger]

[ceadem]

[Straphanger]

[DrOctagon]