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Korean Job Discussion Forums
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FMPJ
Joined: 03 Jun 2008
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 Posted: Fri Oct 05, 2012 11:51 pm Post subject: |
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| Steelrails wrote: |
Alright, I guess I'm wrong. I guess NETs in Korea who pull SOLID bank will not own cars. I guess people who are pulling in 100-250 grand a year don't see the need to own a car.
But, but but, part of me wonders if that is REALLY the case. Someone making 250 grand a year can't find it in themselves to purchase a car? Really? Somehow they are different from Korean people making the same who buy cars, and different from people the world over that they don't want to buy cars? Even if it's a simple purchase? Really?
That flies in the face of observable human behavior around the world. But, i guess it must be true.
For one I can't even picture people making serious dollars and going to business meetings via subway and interacting with everyone else by subway transport. I just don't see it. I don't want to call ya'll liars, but I have to think that some of you are just saying things to prove a point, not speaking the actual truth.
What is so scary about driving a car? |
Nothing's scary about it, I drove for 15 years in the US before I came to Seoul (ten years ago), but I don't feel the need to do it here at all.
I don't want to go snowboarding or mountain climbing or whatever and virtually never leave the city (hey, it's what I like). I commute to work in a cab, which is my only down time each day--30 min each way of being alone and quiet is a valuable to me, and driving would add stress to that, not to mention make reading impossible.
My wife and I have considered buying a car, but she's not much of a driver and would have to brush up, and I don't have any desire to drive at all. If we had a kid we'd get one--just for practicality--but right now, we live smack in the middle of the city and find that a car would be superfluous.
Besides, if I had a car I'd also want a driver to drive me around in it, and um cabs sorta work that way already  |
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PatrickGHBusan
Joined: 24 Jun 2008
Location: Busan (1997-2008) Canada 2008 -
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| Posted: Sat Oct 06, 2012 3:11 am Post subject: |
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| Unposter wrote: |
Well, I should say I have not read anything but the last page (7) of this thread but for what it is worth, I have lived here a long time, married with two kids, double income and we have never owned a car.
Personally, I don't think it makes sense when Seoul has such an amazing public transportation system and, well, we would rather spend our money on other things.
I guess I should also say that the wife and I are avid wallkers. Even my two six year old kids don't blink at walking an hour someplace. I don't even mind carrying our groceries in a backpack and/or a two-wheeled cart. And, vertually every attraction in Korea has a bus you can take; it is suprisingly easy and cheaper than owning your own car.
But, I don't think of ourselves as the average Seoulite.
Every Korean friend and co-worker of my wife and I drives a car. Everyone said we would have to buy a car when our kids were born. They were wrong! And, what a difference it makes! My kids are so much healthier for it. And, it can lead to substantial savings.
People get too complacent about "conveniences." Many of them you really don't need and your quality of life is just as good. Of course, there are many you want, such as a washing machine for me, but there are really many you don't really need, such as a car, when you have a government with as much foresight as Seoul's.
In Korea, like many other places in the world, a car is not just a convenience, it is a status symbol. If you are stuck in the "I have to impress my neighbors" mode, then, well yes, you "need" a car. But, if you can get past that, you will soon realize that what you thought was a need really isn't.
(And much better for the environment, your health and your wallet.) |
We had a car in korea unposter and it was in no way a status symbol! It was convenient as heck but we used it only for specific things: bigger grocery trips, weekend trips, airport pickups. For the rest we used public transit and cabs. With 2 kids, we found the car to be darn useful with those big grocery loads. |
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Hank the Iconoclast
Joined: 08 Oct 2007
Location: Busan
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| Posted: Sat Oct 06, 2012 4:09 am Post subject: |
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| Live in Busan and don't own a car. Nor will I. I am trying to move back to the US. If I were planning on staying though, I might consider getting one for the baby and the wife. |
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motiontodismiss
Joined: 18 Dec 2011
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| Posted: Sat Oct 06, 2012 6:11 am Post subject: |
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A car comes in handy when you have a ton of stuff to carry around or in inclement weather. And before you taxi-lovers bash my head in for daring to say that a car is worth the expense, on a rainy day everyone else is taking taxis and you can't catch one. Same thing during rush hour when you're running late. I have a car and I'd get rid of it only if I lived close enough to work that I could walk or hire a driver.
Plus owning a car allows me to get out of the overpopulated cesspool that is Seoul and live in nicer surroundings for less money in Gyeonggi. And teach privates. My tutoring job pays for my car. My salary from my primary job pays for everything else.
And If I were a Samsung man making whatever Samsung men make (I have an interview with them next week so very good chance of this actually happening), I would NOT want to wait in line to get on a bus or fight my way onto a crowded subway after a 15 hour workday. Ever. All the more reason to own a car. |
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Unposter
Joined: 04 Jun 2006
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| Posted: Sat Oct 06, 2012 5:34 pm Post subject: |
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To Homere and anyone else,
I have nothing against having a car if that is what you want. I certainly don't expect everyone to be like us - in fact I don't know anyone like my family. When it rains, we just grab our umbrellas and even rain coats for the kids and trudge on out in it - no big deal to us.
The OP wanted to know if anyone lived without a car, and well, we do quite well. It is one of the (many) things I truly enjoy about my life in Korea. Not that I don't enjoy driving. When I am back in the U.S., it is a total necessary and there is nothing I enjoy more than rolling up the windows, turning the radio/CD up loud and driving. And, it is not that we don't have the money for it, though I do like spending my money differently, and it is not that we don't have kids, we have two. It is just that if you have the right attitude, it is perfectly easy to get around without one. And, it is not like we are stuck in the city. There is plenty of busses and trains to get you anywhere in Korea, manyof which are direct, cheaper and even faster.
I don't doubt, Homer, that a car for you is not a status symbol but I still think for many, especially here in Korea, it is. In Korea, it is a sign you've "made it." And, it is my personal opinion that a lot of Korean families have a car for this reason even though they probably don't need it.
Anyway, all I am really trying to say is that if you don't want a car, you certainly don't need it, especially if you live in Seoul or somewhere on the Seoul subway line. |
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schwa
Joined: 18 Jan 2003
Location: Yap
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| Posted: Sat Oct 06, 2012 5:50 pm Post subject: |
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| Unposter wrote: |
| ...Anyway, all I am really trying to say is that if you don't want a car, you certainly don't need it, especially if you live in Seoul or somewhere on the Seoul subway line. |
Or in a compact town where most everything you need is centralized. |
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Steelrails
Joined: 12 Mar 2009
Location: Earth, Solar System
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| Posted: Sat Oct 06, 2012 10:13 pm Post subject: |
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| edwardcatflap wrote: |
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A man needs a car. I agree with Steel rails totally.
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And the Saudis. And presumably you're just talking about men in rich countries as well when you say this. Or do you want to live in a world with 4 billion cars in it? |
That would be great, it would mean Detroit would probably be booming again.
It's not like they'll all be on the road simultaneously. And again, it's not saying everyone should have a car. We're saying if you had the discretionary income you would most certainly own a car and have a license. You might rarely drive it or hire a driver, but you'd want your license for emergencies and for when time is of the essence. Remember, you're probably living in a house which means you're probably in the suburbs and potentially away from transportation.
EDIT- One big caveat I overlooked. If your rich dream is some tropical island with minimal transportation infrastructure or some INSANELY dense 3rd world country, then I can sorta see not wanting to drive ever. Sitting for 3 hours behind an ox cart could get pretty old, pretty quick. Still I probably would have a car just for occasional spins and emergency purposes. |
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newb
Joined: 27 Aug 2012
Location: Korea
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| Posted: Sat Oct 06, 2012 10:33 pm Post subject: |
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 Drive if you will. Don't drive if you won't |
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PatrickGHBusan
Joined: 24 Jun 2008
Location: Busan (1997-2008) Canada 2008 -
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| Posted: Sun Oct 07, 2012 5:24 am Post subject: |
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| Unposter wrote: |
To Homere and anyone else,
I have nothing against having a car if that is what you want. I certainly don't expect everyone to be like us - in fact I don't know anyone like my family. When it rains, we just grab our umbrellas and even rain coats for the kids and trudge on out in it - no big deal to us.
The OP wanted to know if anyone lived without a car, and well, we do quite well. It is one of the (many) things I truly enjoy about my life in Korea. Not that I don't enjoy driving. When I am back in the U.S., it is a total necessary and there is nothing I enjoy more than rolling up the windows, turning the radio/CD up loud and driving. And, it is not that we don't have the money for it, though I do like spending my money differently, and it is not that we don't have kids, we have two. It is just that if you have the right attitude, it is perfectly easy to get around without one. And, it is not like we are stuck in the city. There is plenty of busses and trains to get you anywhere in Korea, manyof which are direct, cheaper and even faster.
I don't doubt, Homer, that a car for you is not a status symbol but I still think for many, especially here in Korea, it is. In Korea, it is a sign you've "made it." And, it is my personal opinion that a lot of Korean families have a car for this reason even though they probably don't need it.
Anyway, all I am really trying to say is that if you don't want a car, you certainly don't need it, especially if you live in Seoul or somewhere on the Seoul subway line. |
Agreed! |
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pugwall
Joined: 22 Oct 2006
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| Posted: Mon Oct 08, 2012 10:02 am Post subject: |
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Like a lot of others, I would want to be in a place with good cycling infrastructure and a lot of people cycling. A cyclized city is a civilized city.
I dont know what this has to do with the conversation, but all this knuckle dragging stuff about a red blooded man needing a car is a little too Top Gun. |
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big_fella1
Joined: 08 Dec 2005
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| Posted: Wed Oct 10, 2012 5:17 am Post subject: |
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I drive here and refuse to use public transport. I trust my driving more than a taxi or bus driver and the subways are crowded and inconvenient.
Having said that driving here sucks, they should introduce a COE(you bid for the right to buy a car) system like Singapore. |
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Yaya
Joined: 25 Feb 2003
Location: Seoul
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| Posted: Wed Oct 10, 2012 7:40 pm Post subject: |
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Using public transportation and walking in Korea have helped me not look like Fat Bastard.
Plus the trouble involved with driving, insurance and parking isn't worth it for me. |
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darkjedidave
Joined: 19 Aug 2009
Location: Shanghai/Seoul
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| Posted: Wed Oct 10, 2012 9:16 pm Post subject: |
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I have a car here, only use it for Costco, E mart trips or traveling around Korea. Other than that, I ride my motorcycle. The nearest subway stop is a 25-30 minute walk, so I can ride place most places faster than it take to get to a station.
I find it easier to ride a motorcycle here than in the States or Finland, as the people are used to having them on the road all the time. Plus, having a loud set of exhaust pipes helps =) |
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