Korean Job Discussion Forums

[plato's republic]

Does anyone live or has anyone lived in Incheon? What's it like? How far is it from Seoul and is it connected to the capital by subway? Are there any decent bars/clubs around town?
I would also appreciate any links regarding entertainment/nightlife/things to see & do regarding Incheon.

Thanks

[Saxiif]

The Newark of Korea.
*shudders*

[Son Deureo!]

I lived there for a year and was pretty happy with it. You have to live near public transportation, though (both the subway and Samhwa Express buses going to Seoul). Some parts of Incheon aren't so well connected to the grid, so you could end up feeling isolated. I lived two minutes from the subway and 5 minutes from the Samhwa, so I could always get to Seoul on the weekends and I found there was quite a bit to do in Incheon when I couldn't be arsed to go to Seoul.

Plus you've got Chinatown, the Yellow Sea Islands, Bupyeong-gu, and plenty of other fun places to hang out in Incheon. I've posted about Incheon before in these threads:

http://www.eslcafe.com/forums/korea/viewtopic.php?t=25603&highlight=Incheon

http://www.eslcafe.com/forums/korea/viewtopic.php?t=22245&highlight=Incheon

http://www.eslcafe.com/forums/korea/viewtopic.php?t=4856&highlight=Incheon

In a few of these I and other people blast Incheon. It is dirtier and less exciting than Seoul, but it's less crowded and friendlier. It does have its charms. I can honestly say I made a lot more friends in Incheon than I've met since I moved to Seoul.

And it's still close to Seoul.

[plato's republic]

Son Deureo,

thanks for the links, yep Incheon does get a bit of a hammering it seems but there surely must be some decent places in which to hang out and meet people.

Does the subway go all the way to Seoul? How long does it take? Are there shopping malls and cinemas around town?

[Son Deureo!]

Incheon is a pretty big city, so quite literally your mileage may vary. There are effectively two subway lines in Incheon, the Incheon subway (running North-South) and the west end of Seoul's Line 1 (running East-West). The two intersect at Bupyeong. If you're on the Incheon line it will take up to 20 minutes to reach Bupyeong and from there about 40-50 minutes to get to most places of interest in Seoul (Shinchon, Jongno, Gangnam, Itaewon, etc.). If you live far from the subway, add your bus, taxi, or donkey ride time to that.

Many parts of Incheon are also directly connected to Gangnam, Shinchon, and Seoul Station by Samhwa express bus, which takes about 40-50 minutes to get anywhere. They cost a bit more, but they're worth it.

Shopping malls, erm, I only really know of two in the whole country, one in Seoul and one in Ilsan. There are marketplaces and department stores (including Walmart and Carrefour, the goldmines for Western food) in both Incheon and nearby Bucheon, though. You can get just about anything you need.

Places to hang out? Goose Goose, Scores, and Oof Bird are pretty OK foreigner bars. Very friendly places. Plus there's always Starbucks. BTW, all of these are in Bupyeong. As with anywhere in Korea, it's not hard to convert any local watering hole into your own hangout.

I had a pretty great year in Incheon, and I still miss it sometimes. Gotta be near public transport, though.

[Scott in HK]

You can cut down on travelling time by getting express trains out of incheon....they stop at every other stop or something like that...speeds things up quite a bit...

I like in Incheon now...near Inha U....you can get most things here..but still head off to seoul for clothing...as i am kind of...husky...but everything else we get here...

[Son Deureo!]

That's right, the Juan-Yongsan express runs along Seoul Line 1 and can cut a lot of time off your trips to Seoul.

[riverboy]

I've been here for three years and never go to Seoul. I've mad a whack of friends and found my wife here.. I hate the pollution, but I'm from the country.
I have no desire to move to Seoul, but I intend on spending a year or two in Sokcho on the East coast.

[plato's republic]

Whereabouts in Incheon is Wondang? Is it anywhere near the Bupyeong area or is it out in the middle of nowhere?

[bucheon bum]

[plato's republic]

Can anyone in Inchon tell me where Wondang and Wangji(k) are?

[buddy bradley]

[plato's republic]

Nah...don't be daft, they were Yanks.

[Cohiba]

Here are two relevant posts I put up a while back about Incheon:

1/
I know this post is about Ichon, but I have to
put my 2 cents in here. I have lived in Incheon
for years and I agree that it is a city with almost
no redeeming qualities. The people who live here
have to be the most cultureless, boring hive drones
in all of Korea. And yes, garbage everywhere.
No decent foreign restaurants, no good bars. Its
one saving grace is the islands of the coast. They
are great for camping.

2/
Think twice before you live outside of Seoul. "In Seoul" and
"outside of Seoul" are like two different countries. Seoul
is an interesting place with variety and venues for most
tastes. Outside of Seoul you will find a homogenous Korean
culture. I don't mean this in a bad way, but you will never
find things like: brown bread, good beer, bars with good
tunes, English book stores etc.

Remember the FFF RULE. FFF=Fun For Foreigners.

If FFF in Seoul = 100, then FFF decreases at
1/distance. So 2km from Seoul FFF=1/2(100)=50;
10km from Seoul FFF=1/10(100)=10. This rule is
a rule for nightlife, food and foreign products only.
Nature etc. is on a different scale altogether.

This means you will be wasting a lot of time commuting
to Seoul. This is especially a drag if you have been
boozing on a Friday night and there are no buses or
trains.

I, unfortunately, live in Inchon where the FFF factor
is almost in the negative range. I know!

[buddy bradley]

I live in Incheon and while it's not bad, it's difficult meeting other foreigners. Then again, I've yet to go out in Incheon as I've been commuting to Seoul most weekends.

I'll be going out this weekend though to that Goose Goose (what a retarded name) bar with my homies, yeah that's right we like hip-hop and dress like gangstas, so what?!