Korean Job Discussion Forums

[chronicpride]

Hopefully, this thread gets some good feedback, as it would be interesting to hear more about the people that live/work here and visit this site. I've seen similar threads on other country forums, so I figure why not give it a whirl here?

The questions are:

1. How did you wind up in Korea?

2. How long have you been living here?

3. What do you like and dislike most about Korea? (this will be easy for some, but please add both a like and dislike.)

4. What is your favorite place in Korea and why? (Maybe a city that you lived in or visited, a cultural site, a hidden getaway, etc..)

5. What is your favorite place in Seoul? If you've been.(Specifically. Not just 'Hongdae'. Doesn't have to be the default entry of bar/restaurant, but could be a place that you have some personal attachment to. But if your favorite place is actually a bar, well, feel free.

6. What is the first thing that comes to mind that you can do here, but not back in your hometown?

7. What do you miss most from your life back home?

I'll start.

1. Desire to travel and explore a new culture, but not without some ability to pay off old debts and saving for the next jump elsewhere. General frustration and boredom of the rat-race office culture of back home.
2. 2 years
3. Likes: The food, the women, the East meets West mix. The positive aspects of Confucianism in the culture (insa, jeondaemal, filial piety, etc..). (god, this list used to be a lot longer. See dislikes) Dislikes: Not really Korea-centric, but the onset of boredom, after you adapt a fair bit, and the 'newness' fully wears off. And trying to recapture the 'honeymoon' feeling again. The close-mindedness many Koreans have about global culture. The negative aspects of Confucianism (how they regard male-female relationships, the restraint of showing emotion/smiling/laughing, etc..)
4. I like a lot of places, but a special spot is a beautiful galbi-jjim restaurant outside of Geochang, that has individual dining shacks surrounding an immaculate garden. Andong Folk Village was a good time, especially if you stay overnight at a minbak there. I can think of lots, but I'll keep it short.
5. I like studying and watching people. So, the subway is for me.
6. The whole idea of sitting on a floor, eating grilled pork intestines, getting wasted on soju, making your way to a noraebang, asking the ajumma to order 'norae-girls' to come sit, sing, and drink with us, then head to a nice massage parlor (not cheap barbershop-style), get a blind masseuse to go to work on you for an hour, before you are taken to your private jacuzzi room for the next girl. Then, head to a jimjilbang to shower, soak, and sleep on a floor with snoring Koreans, who probably just had a very similar night. Wake up, shower/soak again. Go to a convenience store and drink one of those Korean herbal hangover remedies, and then start my day.
7. The act of not having to explain everything in minute detail in non-teaching situations. Being able to say a brief conversation in one minute, as opposed to taking the extra 5-10 minutes in Korea, after having to think about the vocab level of the listener, speaking clearly and slowly, and being mindful of the korean phonetical understanding of english words.

[tomato]

1. How did you wind up in Korea?

It was either here or the rescue mission.

2. How long have you been living here?

5 years.

3. What do you like . . .

1. teasing silly children without fear of arousing sexual abuse hysteria
2. the challenge of dealing with the language barrier
3. learning Korean folk instruments
4. learning Korean sign language

and dislike most about Korea? (this will be easy for some, but please add both a like and dislike.)

1. strangers who think I'm a helpless infant
2. store clerks who think I'm a helpless infant
3. dingbat English school directors
4. dingbat Korean English teachers
5. dingbat foreign English teachers

4. What is your favorite place in Korea and why? (Maybe a city that you lived in or visited, a cultural site, a hidden getaway, etc..)

In Kumi, I lived 2 blocks from a park and a library.

5. What is your favorite place in Seoul? If you've been.(Specifically. Not just 'Hongdae'. Doesn't have to be the default entry of bar/restaurant, but could be a place that you have some personal attachment to. But if your favorite place is actually a bar, well, feel free.

I hate Seoul. It abounds with strangers who think I'm a helpless infant
and store clerks who think I'm a helpless infant.

6. What is the first thing that comes to mind that you can do here, but not back in your hometown?

In Hongseong, when one of the children squeezed my appendage and said, "����," I retaliated in kind. The director was standing right in front of me and she didn't say boo.

7. What do you miss most from your life back home?

1. the Saturday morning opera broadcasts
2. Taco Bell
3. buttermilk

[peppermint]

1. How did you wind up in Korea?
After finishing uni I got my dream job, and realized that it wasn't all it was cracked up to be. I got a case of the "what nexts?" and figured that Korea would be a good place to think about that.

2. How long have you been living here?
Around 2.5 years.

3. What do you like and dislike most about Korea? (this will be easy for some, but please add both a like and dislike.)
I love the actual teaching part of my job, I've made good friends here, and it's easy to get used to the relatively carefree lifestyle here.

I hate the fact that I'm seen first and foremost as a race and not a person. ( It's been thrown in my face a lot recently)

4. What is your favorite place in Korea and why? (Maybe a city that you lived in or visited, a cultural site, a hidden getaway, etc..)
The folk village at Munei. It's tiny, really isolated but has great scenery and it's peaceful. I also like the irony of the drive in movie theatre just outside it.

5. What is your favorite place in Seoul? If you've been.
A tea shop in insadong that doesn't seem to have a name.

6. What is the first thing that comes to mind that you can do here, but not back in your hometown?
Travel easily, both within the country and internationally. ( I live on an island and for some reason getting off the island costs a small fortune)

7. What do you miss most from your life back home?
Diversity in people and things. I miss being able to go to a grocery store and be bewildered by the sheer variety of veggies.

[Ilsanman]

1. How did you wind up in Korea?

I wanted so badly to get out of my hometown and see something other than its boring self, and this was the easiest way out.

2. How long have you been living here?

Total time of 17 months.

3. What do you like and dislike most about Korea? (this will be easy for some, but please add both a like and dislike.)

LIke: women
Dislike: Xenophobia and corruption

4. What is your favorite place in Korea and why? (Maybe a city that you lived in or visited, a cultural site, a hidden getaway, etc..)

I like many places, but none of them are so great that I want to go too often. Hard to answer, so I won't.

5. What is your favorite place in Seoul? If you've been.(Specifically. Not just 'Hongdae'. Doesn't have to be the default entry of bar/restaurant, but could be a place that you have some personal attachment to. But if your favorite place is actually a bar, well, feel free.

I go to Universalis in Hongdae often. I like Sinchon for bowling alleys and Artreon movie theatre. I go to Kyobo bookstore often.

6. What is the first thing that comes to mind that you can do here, but not back in your hometown?

Drink on the street.

7. What do you miss most from your life back home?

Drive

[VanIslander]

1. How did you wind up in Korea?
A Korean man helped me when no one else wouldn't after my car broke down one cold snowy New Year's Eve on a dark rural highway. Two months later I accidentally googled across a job posting for Korea and six months later I was on my way!

2. How long have you been living here?
Since the late fall of 2002.

3. What do you like and dislike most about Korea? (this will be easy for some, but please add both a like and dislike.)
I like the spicy food and the kids the most; I dislike the darker side of being treated like a guest (a guest is always seen as an outsider, strange, distrustful, etc).

4. What is your favorite place in Korea and why? (Maybe a city that you lived in or visited, a cultural site, a hidden getaway, etc..)
This gorgeous island. There's over a dozen great beaches a few minutes away, clean air, lots of sunshine (I mean: LOTS, three weeks without a cloud in the fall and spring); two winters of NO snow; it's location relatively close to Busan (one hour ferry), Namhae Island (two hours by bus), Jiri Mountain (two and a half hours).

5. What is your favorite place in Seoul? If you've been.(Specifically. Not just 'Hongdae'. Doesn't have to be the default entry of bar/restaurant, but could be a place that you have some personal attachment to. But if your favorite place is actually a bar, well, feel free.
Haven't gone there. Don't plan to, except for the Elton John concert, in and out.

6. What is the first thing that comes to mind that you can do here, but not back in your hometown?
Norebang!

7. What do you miss most from your life back home?
My family.

[the_beaver]

1. How did you wind up in Korea?

Couldn't get a job in Japan.

2. How long have you been living here?

Since 1995.

3. What do you like and dislike most about Korea? (this will be easy for some, but please add both a like and dislike.)

Like -- enormous holidays and freedom (and the meat dishes)

Dislike -- never allowed to really fit in beyond a few close circles (but that's not necessarily bad because I'm not into M.T. and ���� �� shit).

4. What is your favorite place in Korea and why? (Maybe a city that you lived in or visited, a cultural site, a hidden getaway, etc..)

Seoul. Ullung-do for a getaway.

5. What is your favorite place in Seoul? If you've been.

Tongdaemun market.

6. What is the first thing that comes to mind that you can do here, but not back in your hometown?

Get paid for enormous vacations.

7. What do you miss most from your life back home?

A good howling blizzard.

[Zyzyfer]

1. How did you wind up in Korea?

Was stuck doing dead-end grocery store work back home in a military town. Realized that it was too much of a struggle to make simple ends meet and that every job in my hometown required someone with experience in the field. Went to my uni's Career Management Center and inquired about work overseas. First person to contact me was some recruiter for work in Korea...while I wanted to work in Japan with a friend, I was running out of money and didn't have a lot of time to be picky. Bam.

2. How long have you been living here?

Arrived in October 2001, but I've spent about 6 months total back home and travelling around.

3. What do you like and dislike most about Korea? (this will be easy for some, but please add both a like and dislike.)

The thing I like the most about Korea is the people I've met while I've been here.

The thing I dislike the most is the inability for the average Korean to dare to be different. Even a small step to be individual would be great.

4. What is your favorite place in Korea and why? (Maybe a city that you lived in or visited, a cultural site, a hidden getaway, etc..)

Geomun Island, because it's as relaxing as other "island" communities, but quite close by. Probably the most beautiful place I've seen in Korea thus far.

5. What is your favorite place in Seoul? If you've been.

That's tough. I don't really like Seoul that much.

6. What is the first thing that comes to mind that you can do here, but not back in your hometown?

Drink on the street.

7. What do you miss most from your life back home?

Pulled pork BBQ sammiches and my old friends.