Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Olivencia]

1. Western restaurants?
2. Are the beaches nice?
3. Nice spots to visit or hang out in?
4. Parks?
5. People cool? (Or are they pretty much the same everywhere else in Korea)
6. Pollution levels?
7. Hot summers I assume. Does it ever snow there?
8. Places to avoid (and why)

Please elaborate and throw any other useful info in.

Thanks

[Darkray16]

I've lived here with my Korean wife since January.

1. Mostly at the PNU subway station(Pusan National University... not BUSAN National University)
2. Yes they are, but in July August they will be seriously crowded... with Korean women in bikinis... so not such a bad thing. The rest of the year it's not crowded.
3.Yes, mostly traditional tourist sites. Haven't been to bars or clubs much as I don't drink alcohol.
4. A few nice ones.
5.The people are more conservative(in the cultural sense, not political) and traditional here. Probably not noticeable to a foreigner as most Asians are more conservative compared to us, but there is a difference here in Busan.
6.Not as bad as Seoul. Second biggest city here, so you can make an educated guess.
7.My wife said it snowed around late Dec to early Jan, but extremely light. I came mid January and never saw any snow after arriving.
8.I haven't ran into any places that are more hostile than others here. BUT I am Chinese American so Koreans cannot tell I am a foreigner until they hear me talking to my wife. In the few months I've been here I've only had 2-3 incidents where some old korean man made a rude comment because I was a foreigner. I would say that 90% of the Koreans I've met are extremely friendly.

[Olivencia]

Thank you very much for the information.

[A2T]

1.
PNU, Haeundae beach, Seomyeon, Kyungsung Univ area... Basically any large shopping area will have some kind of western food. I still haven't gotten around to a lot of places ...

These include McDonald's, Burger King, KFC, Outback, TGI Fridays, Cold Stone and other ice cream places, donut shops everywhere ...

Also there's a lot of good restaurants I don't recognize from home. I had great pizza at a place called .. maybe Pasta House? Can't remember. There's so many different restaurants that I don't usually pay attention.

2.
I disagree about the beaches. Small and dirty from overcrowding is how I'd describe them. (though not covered in litter at least). On a nice day crowds of women in bikinis might change my opinion.

They are nice for a walk with friends on a spring night though. Just don't expect to get the same use out of Busan beaches as you would tourist beaches in Florida.

3.
Plenty of places to hang out, though I'm not sure what you enjoy. Anything within 20 subway stops feels very accessible. I've been getting the most use out of lines 1 and 2, which meet at Seomyeon.

You'll find bookstores, coffee shops, large dept. stores with everything you need to waste a day, large outdoor markets, etc. There's Lotte Giants baseball games. Can't think of anything else right now. Maybe some historical sites / museums.

4.
Not sure about parks. For outdoor activities, hiking is huge here. Plenty of small mountains to conquer.

5.
I have no incidents to report so far. Although everyone could be talking about me behind my back in Korean and I'm blissfully ignorant.

I get looked at, but it's not necessarily staring. I just stand out here, so I understand them taking more notice of me.

I'm not sure what it means when people say Busan is more conservative. They hang on more to traditional values? I do notice my co-teachers have national pride / discuss Korean values with me, but it's not suffocating ... Maybe I'm just lucky working with nice people.

6.
I haven't been checking. Some days the mountain tops around my school are a bit hazy. If there's bad pollution, I don't really notice as I'm too busy noticing sewer smells which you'll get at least every block.

7.
Haven't been here for a summer yet. There's always a great breeze off the ocean though ...

8.
Foreigner bars. Expensive and lame. Although maybe this is your scene ..


I came from a medium sized midwestern (American) city with almost non-existent public transportation. So it's no surprise I'm finding much more to do than at home. (and certainly enough to keep me from boredom)

Although the population of Busan is double that of my home city, it doesn't feel larger.

[verve]

1. Western restaurants?
Yes.

2. Are the beaches nice?
When they're not packed because of some event, yes. Gwangali is better than Haeundae.

3. Nice spots to visit or hang out in?
Sure are.

4. Parks?
Yes.

5. People cool? (Or are they pretty much the same everywhere else in Korea)
More chilled than Seoulites.

6. Pollution levels?
Not as bad as Seoul, but this is Korea's major port and 2nd largest city...sooo not so good.

7. Hot summers I assume. Does it ever snow there?
It snows, definitely not as much as colder parts. Summer are probably amongst the hottest and most humid in Korea, barring Jeju.

8. Places to avoid (and why)
Texas Street. Seafaring Russian hookers.

Please elaborate and throw any other useful info in.

Great city! You'll love it. To live for a year - can't be beat.