Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Jackhammer96]

Just wondering, what is it like to live in a small town in South Korea? Is it fun?

I am a little worried about moving to South Korea, as I am starting to think that the culture may not be for me. I may be more open to moving to a big city however. The fact is, it is a big commitment, going to Korea for a year, and I need to make sure I am comfortable making a big decision like this.

Time away from my family is a big factor of my concern. I am starting to think I might be more comfortable going somewhere on holidays for a few months only, South Korea or not.

One of the factors I worry about is ending up being single out there. I know the dating culture is more conservative anyway (is that the right way to describe it?), but the idea of living in a small conservative town, with a lacking dating culture, is something I fear. Large cities, are obviously better for this.

I am considering a large town approximately between 300, 000 and 500, 000, (i.e. Jinju) but I am still unsure about this.

Can anyone give me advice on this? Is it possible to adapt to such circumstances? i.e. traveling to more towns and cities.
This is a big worry for me.

[Hokie21]

Why is being single such a worry? What about the culture do you think may not be for you? Why do you want to come to Korea?


I'm going to make a huge assumption here but from the sound of your post and your concerns I don't think you're ready to commit to 1 year abroad.

[Janny]

Oh, dear.

Please do yourself and BIG favour and get a job in Seoul. From your post I think you have no understanding of what you'll be facing in your time in South Korea.

South Korea is a racist country, and yes there are many foreigners there but you need to have a buffer to protect you from the many, many discomforts, misadventures and unfriendly interactions you will face. That means having a friend or two right off the bat from your school. It also means having a place to go (restaurant, shopping center, park, whatever) that you enjoy and can go to when things get sad.

You will not easily find these things in a small city. The parks are small, barren of grass and have thin, sad trees and large freaky cartoon character signage everywhere. The shopping centers are small and filled with cookie-cutter name brands highjacked from China or the West and sized far too small for the typical Western body. The Korean restaurants are filled with diners who will stare openly or discreetly at you while you eat...and assuming you like Korean food, that may be your only pleasure source (it was dweji galbi and kimchee for me). In Seoul, these problems are eliminated. Lots of options for the foreigner tastes and needs.

People who are comfortable spending time alone, who enjoy the trials and discomforts (as a 'challenge myself' sort) of learning a new culture and language, who have already traveled, who have a thick skin and roll with things easily...they can make it in non-Seoul Korea.

I was NOT one of those people. The ugliness of the buildings, the poorly-planned environments, the crowded cacophony of bling-bling avenues and open-sewer sidewalks, the relentless staring of young and old, the insecure, infantile interactions I had with everyday Koreans, the idiotic lack of logic and rationality, the laughing in my face when I tried to speak Korean.....the list is long.

I coped by securing a great, large apartment and a great job. I rescued a shelter cat and brought her home with me. The lightning fast internet ensures that you are able to foster a rich online 'life' so to speak (Skype, games, downloaded TV and movies, chatting, community forums..). In Seoul, I found a few places to go to eat that made me happy (in Itaewon, the foreigner district) and places to shop for food that also satisfied me (Costco, Itaewon). Itaewon and Hongdae, in Seoul, were always places with large concentrations of foreigners on any given evening when I felt like socializing. Not hard at all to meet friends and lovers there. There is a large social network of foreigners and Koreans, forming clubs and groups and meet-ups...but it's based in Seoul. All the best cultural offerings (performance, music, art) are in Seoul.

There is none of this...well, very little of this...outside of Seoul. My first year was in Gwangju, southern Korea, a larger city but still nothing like Seoul. I was MISERABLE for one full year and then I went back to Canada. As a teacher who needed a job, I went back to Korea, but chose Seoul. It made a huge difference and I ended up staying for a long time.

Good luck. If you can, choose China. That's my final piece of advice. I'm there now after many years in Korea and it's completely cool.

[andrewchon]

That's right, small towns are no fun. In fact Korea is no fun except for USFK bases.

1. Korea is not Disneyland.
2. Busan is not Miami
3. You'll be coming here to work. Granted, all work and no play gives you blueballs, but there are treatments for that.

Put it simply: If you rely on other people to amuse yourself, then working overseas in a non-English speaking world is tough. Coming to Korea should be about you becoming self-reliant. Does that scare you? It ought to be.

[mayorhaggar]

I live in a rural town of about 20,000. I've lived in big cities for the last 10 years (Chicago, LA, San Francisco, Oakland) so when I was assigned this town I was pretty worried that it would really suck. But in general it hasn't been too bad. There's actually a few really good restaurants in town though otherwise there's nothing to do here. Getting out of town requires an 80 minute bus ride to the nearest big cities, then you can transfer to a bus or train. Seoul or Busan both take about 3 hours to get to in total...not great but at least it splits the difference.

Definitely having a boyfriend/girlfriend or close friends you can hang out with is key. A small town will have fewer foreigners and thus fewer chances to meet interesting people, and you may be an hour or more away from the nearest big city. I wouldn't depend on dating Koreans or making friends with them, lots of foreigners do it but it's not for everyone.

If you don't think you can hack it in a small town then by all means do what you can to end up in a bigger town. If you apply to EPIK and don't want to run the risk of being in a small out of the way town, apply to the provincial level cities: Busan, Daegu, Daejeon, Gwangju, Incheon and Seoul. They'll be more competitive but they do hire a lot of people.

[FDNY]

Here is my reply from the "Off-Topic Forum" on the same subject:

[mayorhaggar]

I like living in cities but I'd go insane in Seoul, too many people, too many cars, too much pollution.

If I had my pick I guess I'd have tried harder to get into a city like Busan or at least Daejeon. But in my rural Chungbuk town I really like my school, my apartment isn't horrible (I have a bathtub and a shower curtain, omg!) and the people I work with are really great, and I've met some great people in the town. All that stuff is a huge gamble here and I feel like I kind of lucked out on that stuff.

Main thing I miss about city living is being able to go to any of dozens of good restaurants for dinner. But I go to Seoul or Busan or other places every other weekend and get my fill of urban dining and shopping.

[Cacille]

I live in a little larger town, 44,000 people.
What Janny said is completely true when it comes to the "people who are comfortable spending time alone...." part.
The rest is her opinion, but definitely that part is TRUE.

I happen to be one of those people so small town life is fine. My town is also growing, has a few good americanized restaurants (4. Total, not counting pizza or chicken places).
The food mart here keeps getting better and better too, in just a year it's improved by leaps and bounds! So if you're in a rural but nice sized town and you are the type of person Janny said, you'll probably do fine.

[young_clinton]

[Steelrails]

[Allthechildrenareinsane]

[Underwaterbob]

You know what non-Koreans in small Korean cities do? They say hello to you when you come across them in the street. Seoul long ago hit the point where you're just another face to be ignored unless I know you.

All this "life is hell in Korea outside of Seoul" nonsense comes from antisocial people who just don't know how to have fun.

[TheUrbanMyth]

What the last half-a-dozen or so posters said.

As for myself personally, I enjoy living in small towns. Granted it's not for everyone. But it suits me just fine. To list just one thing. More opportunities for me to practice my Korean...even if I do get the shocked face "you can speak Korean?" look at odd times.

[Who's Your Daddy?]

If you're under 30 I'd stick to the cities of say 500,000+ people, after 30 you are more comfortable being alone.

[wishfullthinkng]