Korean Job Discussion Forums

[cali0396]

I'm planning on teaching in Incheon and would love advice about the city and your experiences. Things like:

safety, public transportation, people, culture, shopping, kids, public schools, etc etc..

[seoulsucker]

Pro: you're close to the airport.

That's about it.

Why exactly are you planning on living there?

[cali0396]

Ok, planning is not the right word. I am researching and debating whether or not I want to teach English in Incheon. I have already been offered a position there. Just want to figure out if it's worth the risk to move to another country with no knowledge of the Korean language and no friends or families in the area.

[cali0396]

I already know the airport is nearby. Anything else? Cons?

[cdninkorea]

Are you close to the beach if you live in Incheon? I don't want to move far from Seoul but want to be closer to a decent beach. Does anyone know?

[Yu_Bum_suk]

I've said it before and I'll say it again: there's a subway line to Seoul. If you live in Incheon you'll likely get to know it very, very well.

[cali0396]

A little more perspective other then geological facts? Anyone who live in Incheon would be helpful.

[bogey666]

well any "beaches" in Incheon would share the same body of water my town does which lies just across the bay.

that being the "Yellow Sea".

Except the "Yellow Sea" is more akin to "Black Sludge", mostly courtesy of China.

I know nothing about Incheon, except someone did refer to it here some posts ago as "the armpit of Korea".

[pogoro]

[Cohiba]

[cali0396]

Not amused. Sarcasm or not this is useless.

[Cohiba]

[nomad-ish]

if you must be in incheon, live and work in BUPYEONG. if not, just go to seoul. bupyeong has a bunch of bars (some foreign ones are: g7, rock bar, goose goose, n's pub), and there is a decent foreign population there as well. lots of restaurants (great galbi places, ddukgalbi - korean food) and foreign places (mcdonald's, bennigan's, pizza hut, dunkin donuts, etc.). just more to do really. you would also be near the subway line that takes you straight into seoul. plus the koreans in the area are a little more used to foreigners, so there's a better chance that some know english (and there will inevitably be less staring).

edit: as cohiba said above, i'd avoid public schools in incheon. the program seems to be tanking this year.

[Guri Guy]

[redhed]

I live near the end of the Incheon metro line close to Dongmak station. It is a long ass way to seoul and we go once or twice a month depending on what's going on. The ocean is here but is a huge construction zone near us, cranes and cement trucks as far as the eye can see. There are numerous parks and hiking trails which are nowhere near as crowded as the ones I've seen in seoul. Also, the incheon bus terminal will take you anywhere you want to go in korea without having to go into seoul which is nice. The pollution I think is better or worse than seoul depending on the wind, a lot of the time I think the wind from the ocean pushes a lot of it inland towards seoul, but sometimes we get it bad, it all depends. Also, there seems to be a lot of westerners in the Yeonsu-gu area, maybe not a lot compared to parts of seoul, but it's not like you're in the middle of nowhere, you see westerners walking dogs, getting coffee, drinking, and going about their lives. I really like where we're at as being between yeonsu-gu and New songdo it is nowhere near as crowded as other places we've seen. To be fair, I have traveled around incheon a bit running errands and it seems like a lot of places might not be so nice for me. Also, I live with my girlfriend so am not returning to an empty apartment and perhaps had an easier time adjusting. Bupyeong does seem to be a good hub for working in Incheon, and it would cut 40 minutes of my subway ride to seoul, which would make it a lot nicer. Hope this helps