Korean Job Discussion Forums

[cerchier2003]

Hello all

I think this is my first post in the Korean Forum but I have been reading posts and whatnot for over a month.

I will be arriving in Korea in January to teach at E&C Foreign Language Institute in Chungju. If anyone has any info on the city or school I would appreciate the replies. Personal experience would be great.

I've searched this forum but found nothing except a couple brief mentions about the outdoor activities in Chungju.

Thanks again
cerchier

[peppermint]

I don't know anything about the school, but I've got friends in Chungju, so I'll fill in what blanks I can.

Smallish city- only around 100,000 people, and a fairly close knit foreigner community. It's fairly easy to get to Seoul or where ever by bus.

[ajuma]

You might want to check the spelling. Is it ChEONG Ju... or ChUN Ju? These are two different cities in two VERY different places. Both have a fairly large foreign contingent. I know that Cheong Ju has lots of "foreigner stuff" like WalMart, Subway, etc and several unis. Chun Ju is near Iksan and is the gathering place of foreign teachers in a 50 mile radius (as there is NOWHERE else to go!!).

[cerchier2003]

The spelling is correct. It's Chungju. Cheongju is a relatively short distance away though. The closest city, according to my map, is Jeungpyeong.

[ajuma]

Could you possibly write it in Korean? So many cities have similar names. If you don't have Korean font, try cutting and pasting from another site.

[cerchier2003]

I have the website. Here's the link-

http://www.chungju.chungbuk.kr/English/

BTW, thanks for helping me-both of you. If the city is also listed under another name that will help my search.

Peppermint-do you know if there is a decent amount of enterainment, stores, restaurants around? I'm not expecting Seoul but for the size-is there anything to do outside of outdoor activities?

Thanks
cerchier

[peppermint]

I haven't been there in a year or so, but I know they've got a great E-mart ( wal mart knock off), there are the usual Korean restaurants, and a Pizza hut, and a McDonalds, but as for other stuff, I don't know. Everywhere in Korea has a lot of bars I think, but I don't really know if there's any one that expats hangout at. I seem to remember a movie theatre, but it might have only had one screen.

Basically, the rule of thumb when considering a Korean city is to drop a zero off of the population and that's about how big the city feels. Chungju is around 100,000 or so, but it feels more like 10,000.

[ajuma]

Wow! THAT Chung Ju I've never heard of! I know Cheong Ju and Jeon Ju (which USED to bed spelled Chon Ju). Sorry I can't help you out! Looks like it's kind of in the middle of nowhere!

[JennyJJ]

Uh, changed my mind about what I was going to say. Never mind . . .

[tommynomad]

I lived in Chungju for eight months from 2001-02.

Nice little place. Pep' was right about the feel. It's about 140 000, feels like about 14 000. You'll constantly run into the same people. It has a cool little downtown of 4 blocks where everyone goes to stroll and meet friends. Some shitty movie theatres, but lots of nice video bangs to make up for it. Good restaurants abound, especially in the blocks north of the bus terminal.

The bus connections to everywhere are excellent, but Chungju is only served by mugungwha (commuter) trains.

The martial arts festival in October is world class. The sports complex at the top of town (10 mins by slow bike from the bottom) has tonnes of courts, and you can always pickup with basketball, soccer, or Korean soccer.

I brought my bike over and had a blast riding outward from the city. There are three parks and a lovely lake within easy riding distance. Temples are tucked away everywhere and are very welcoming. The farmers' fields south of the city (past the tracks) are also a great place to ride and meet people. In town cycling's a bit dodgier, as Chungju is the bad-driving capital in a nation of bad drivers (a local told me it has the highest vehicular fatality rate in the nation). That said, the roads are insanely wide and you needn't abide by any traffic rules.

I never went to the ski hill because I'm not really a day-tripper. I heard it was pretty minor even by Korean standards.

Foreigners (at least back then) hung out at Zyzzix Bar and at a second-floor coffee shop above the pedestrian-only street (both downtown) The cafe has free Internet terminals and an espresso maker.

There are about 50-60 foreigners living there now. There's even a nice Korean-Canadian couple who run a Canadian-curriculum elementary school in Chilgum-dong. Canadaland or something like that.

[John Henry]

[cerchier2003]

tommynomad-thanks for the info. According to your description Chungju sounds like a good place for this first-time teacher. Small, but with enough decent activities and people to hold my interest for a year. I'm not a city girl, like to visit though, so it's good to know there are easy links to major cities too.

Thanks again,
cerchier

[Underwaterbob]

I've been in Chungju for a month now and it is my first time teaching.

I love this place. It's small enough to not be overwhelming, and at the same time not particularily boring. There are about forty foreigners altogether and a good portion of us get together fairly often at bars and movies and things.

Do you know which academy you will be teaching at? I imagine we'll be in touch since we are pretty close knit down here.

���� is the city name in Hangul.

It is very easy to get buses to pretty much anywhere as we are smack-dab in the middle of the country. Chungju is the water source for much of South Korea so it is kept clean. No industry, which is nice considering some of the horror stories I've heard about Seoul.

Prolly see you soon.

Jason

[FUBAR]

[jajdude]

Is Taejon the nearest big city? How far would that be on bus?