Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Neozenha]

So after reading a thread, I see people complain, people loving Korea etc... so I thought that I would create a thread asking this:

Do you see yourself living in Korea long term staying as an ESL teacher?

The positives:
The negatives:
The limitations:

I'm generally talking about living in Korea, not about teaching in Korea.

[backtotheROK]

Positives: Food, girls
negatives: Men,zero respect
Limitations: so many

[tob55]

[salutbonjour]

The positives: Food, girls, city has lots of stuff to do
The negatives: Dirty, no quiet place, work culture
The limitations: Korean language is not easy, speaking zero Korean sucks and speaking medium level Korean means everyone wishes/assumes you speak advanced level Korean.

[Scorpion]

Positives: food, women, fewer fat people, pleasant countryside, steady employment, convience, low taxes, ability to save, etc.

Negatives: rude people, pollution, insane and obnoxious drivers, pushing, bumping, cutting in line, confucionism, spitting, vigorous throat clearing, snot rockets, ajoshie animal sounds, noise (everywhere, all the time), ugly cities and towns, soul destroying architecture, piles of trash, cars on the sidewalk, selfishness, abysmal table manners, one-room apartments, the weather, broken and uneven sidewalks, incomprehensible walking culture, lack of common sense, too many religious nutjobs, inability to think critically, spatial management, etc.

Limitations: very little opportunity for upward mobility; language barrier, never truly accepted / always living on the fringe of society (although I'm okay with that), xenophobia, etc.

[Reset]

reset

[Steelrails]

Pros: Baseball here is a good bang for the buck. Can drink, smoke, and swear pretty much anywhere (though the killjoys are starting to clamp down on that). It seems that you can pretty much sell any crap out of the back of a car without much regulation. Not getting caught up as much in the news cycle and culture wars back home, and you don't have to care about it here and waste time on it. Calling in drunk is a legitimate excuse for missing work (I don't get why people lie about this- once a year you're entitled to say that you met some old friend or drank with someone older and they force fed you booze). Not having to calculate taxes with lots of sales. Fast shipping on domestic orders. Slim chances of prosecution for downloading material. No bulletproof glass, sirens, metal detectors, and the like.

Cons: Beer, Bourbon, Wine, Cheese, tortilla chip, and bread selection is erratic at best and atrocious at worst. Still haven't found a really good sandwich. No Greek omelettes, salads, or pizzas. American Chinese food is non-existent. No good Korean-American food. Driving. Gas. Having to dodge facebook for hours while you wait for the Breaking Bad torrent to get thrown up. KCSC Warning. Boney fish. Stuff blocked on Steam. Missing the Super Bowl because you're teaching.

Limitations: Citizenship.

[Captain Corea]

The good: The Subway system in Seoul
The bad: The drivers in Seoul
The limitations: Are up to you

[thebearofbundang]

The Good: Food, friendly people, close proximity to other countries, great hiking mountains, people who care about their appearance, respect for elders, nice parks (In Bundang where I live), public transportation system, costumer service, low taxes..

The Bad: Traffic in the big cities, pollution in the big cities, very little personal space, noise, apartments rather than houses, smokers everywhere, no waiting in line, vomit on the streets..

Limitations: Zero.

[Who's Your Daddy?]

The Good: Low taxes and crime, easy to advance.
The Limitation: Little non-ESL work, low ceiling on advancement.

The Bad: I'll pass, everyone living here knows these things.

Basically in 5 years you can be at the top of the ESL profession with nowhere to go.

[le-paul]

good - no effort whatsoever to curtail copyright infringement (there are a lot of dvd rooms, games rooms, singing rooms etc for ent.).
Lots of mountains.
Western food.
Good B roads to ride a bike on.
Overall convenience.
My gf who is so hot that i don't really need to eye up other girls.
Cheapness.
Access with regards to asia, generally.
girls wearing next to nothing.


bad - littering.
Every parent treating their child as if their shit doesnt stink, unless it comes to giving them a guilt trip or a beating themselves.
Dangerous driving.
Confucianism at its most convenient.
Hot girls wearing next to nothing.
That police thing that stops you from looking at porn.
The weather is absolutely shitty most of the time.
over crowding ( when partaking in anything extra curriculum).
racism.

what was the other heading?

[PatrickGHBusan]

The positives:

The Food
Pretty good employment market
The people in general
The countryside
Nearby hiking
Baseball (it is fun going to games)
Public Baths and hot springs
Nearby interesting travel destinations
Public Transit
Excellent train service
Low taxes on your income
High level of convenience in the larger cities
Savings potential
Afforable Taxis
Respect for elders in general terms

More personnal but...my inlaws (great people).
Our former apt with an ocean view
Family support from my wife's family
No having to own a car for the most part
Ease of travel in-country
Extremely kid-friendly in terms of activities and facilities or kids being accepted and welcomed (ex: restaurants later in the evening).

The negatives:

Pollution
Traffic
Noise in certain areas
Crowds in certain areas - seasons
The rain season and August (otherwise known as the oven / sauna month in Busan)
Some work related issues
Dealing with the odd angry old man
Price of coffee
Driving in the larger cities, especially in Busan.
Lack of seatbelt culture (changing slowly but still not something I like)
Increased cost of living, especially groceries and clothes.



The limitations: are up to you

[jphill9990]

[FDNY]

[Steelrails]