Korean Job Discussion Forums

[endo]

Yo, i'm flying out to Korea in mid-September to look for work as an English language teacher and I will spend the first few weeks scouting out jobs from a central location in Seoul. This experience will not only allow me to meet with the perspective schools first hand, but also allow me to gain a greater insight into the location I will be living for the next 12 months.

I've done quite a bit of research about Seoul and its surrounding satellite cities (Bundang and Kangnam early favourites) and I was just wondering if any of you could recommend a location that would best meet my hobbies and interests?

These include;

-outdoor basketball courts and possible rec-leagues
-driving ranges for golf (indoor/outdoor)
-English bookstores
-plethora of internet cafes
-places to take Korean language lessons
-clean air for jogging outside
-scenic
-good people
-lots of things to do (not necessarily bars, but museums, hiking trails, ect...)
-and lastly a place where it��s easy to meet locals and expats my age (i'm 24)

A population of attractive females also doesn't hurt.

Thanks everybody.

[Mashimaro]

Sounds like paradise, let me know if you find anywhere that fits the bill

[peppermint]

Clean air pretty much rules out Seoul period. Anything golf related is wildly overpriced, and English language bookstores are few and far between.

That said, internet cafes are everywhere, and it's not hard to meet locals or expats anywhere.

I think you might want to lower your expectations if you want to find all of that and be able to afford to breathe

[endo]

[J.B. Clamence]

[Son Deureo!]

It doesn't have everything on your list, but you could do a lot worse than Shinchon, the university district of Seoul. There are a lot of nightclubs and bars with a good mix of expats and Koreans all over the neighborhood, lots of beautiful women, there are some small mountains with hiking trails behind Yonsei university, outdoor basketball and tennis courts on the University campuses, a batting cage, it's a 10 minute bicycle ride from the Han river and its biking/rollerblading trails, PC bangs (just like pretty much every other neighborhood in Korea, and a pretty good selection of non-Korean restaurants. You won't be bored here.

As for Korean lessons, there are hogwons on Jongno which is 15-20 minutes away by bus and subway, and there are also large bookstores with big English language sections (Kyobo Bookstore in Gwanghwamun and Yeongpung Bookstore on Jongno) within a 20 minute ride by subway. As for golf ranges, I know they exist, but I don't know where they are and I understand they're very expensive. For scenic you are 20-30 minutes away from the downtown palaces as well as Insadong. The air also isn't clean in any developed area of Seoul but there are mountain parks with hiking trails and clean air within 40 minutes to and hour and a half away by subway , and the Samhwa Express bus can get you to a ferry port in an hour for access to a lot of lovely islands for weekend getaways for when you need to escape the crowds and the noise.

It's not paradise, and it ain't San Francisco, but you could do a lot worse if you're living in Seoul.

[endo]

Thanks for the responses guys. I will definitely take a look at Kangnam and Shinchon when I arrive in Korea.