Korean Job Discussion Forums

[teacher85]

I am trying to decide between two jobs: one in Incheon and the other in Daegu. I would like some general opinions about living in these two cities. Is there a large expat community in Daegu? Also, is it easier to save money in one city than in the other? Thank you!

[Cohiba]

NEVER live anywhere except Seoul (or close to it)

Remember "Cohiba's Rule" (Now better than ever!):

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 homogeneous Korean
culture. I don't mean this in a bad way, but you will never
find things like: French, Greek, Indian or any other ethnic
foods. Markets that sell sherry, pate, pastrami, ricotta cheese.
Specialty shops that sell cuban cigars, European pies, cold
cuts or rye breads. Just to name a few things.

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 near Seoul where the FFF factor
is almost in the negative range. I know!

Daegu is much further away from Seoul and therefore a much
less desirable place to live.

[Yu_Bum_suk]

I much prefer Daegu to Incheon, but like Cohiba said, it's a lot further from Seoul. However, with the KTX you can actually get to Seoul as fast as from the remote parts of Incheon.

[coralreefer_1]

I would say it would be easier to save money in Daegu, simply because there is less to do here. Less places to buy hard to find items, and less convenient access to Seoul, which can suck a person dry if they don't know how to control their spending well.

Daegu has several areas where there are known to be sizable foreign teacher communities. Mostly in Susung-gu, areas such as Beomeo, Beomul, and Siji have a decent number of foreigners.

I'm not a teacher, but other than work, my life living in Daegu and the life of a teacher living in Daegu are not likely to be much different. Of course there are plenty of places to eat/drink/make merry and even after more than 4 years here I am still finding rare gems out there I haven't discovered before (Finally found out about a Mexican restaurant that has been near my home all this time I never knew about)

I imagine the only real difference between the 2 cities other than material differences (restaurants/shopping/etc.. would be the local population. Koreans are Koreans but Daegu and other southern cities have a different kind of lifestyle (think of the difference between Atlanta and New York)

Good luck with your choice, and let us know if you will be coming to Daegu.

[nomad-ish]

if that's really the only two choices you have, i'd say go for incheon and demand to be put in the bupyeong area. there's quite a few foreigners in bupyeong, along with some foreign hang-outs (aka bars) and the station on the line to seoul.

[Straphanger]

Think twice before you live outside of Seoul. "In Seoul" and "outside of Seoul" are like two different countries. Seoul is an armpit with the same boring bars filled with the same damn foreigners. Outside of Seoul you will find a homogeneous Korean culture. I don't mean this in a bad way, but you will never find things like: poorly executed French, Greek, Indian or any other ethnic foods that have been significantly modified for Korean tastes. Markets that sell sherry, pate, pastrami, ricotta cheese aren't available, but seriously, what are you going to do with ricotta cheese when you don't have an oven to cook a lasagne? Specialty shops that sell cuban cigars, European pies, cold cuts or rye breads can be easily made up for by the fact that there's a Subway at the train station. Just to name a few things.

The AA RULE: AA=Armpit of Asia.

If AA in Seoul = 100, then AA decreases at 1/distance. So 20km from Seoul AA=1/2(100)=50; 100km from Seoul AA=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 won't need to waste a lot of time commuting to Seoul. This is especially great if you have been boozing on a Friday night and there are no buses or trains, you can just take a call car for 5000 won!

Edit: Missed one.

[Chet Wautlands]

I've met plenty of foreigners who are happy to live outside of Seoul. Sometimes living in a small city where there are not a lot of English speakers is a great idea. I'm just outside of Seoul, and sometimes I feel like I'm still living in Canada.

[teacher85]

Thank you everyone for your feedback. I am leaning towards taking the job in Incheon.

[Forward Observer]

Lean harder, Daegu is the hottest place in Korea during the summer.

[Sector7G]

Seoul is great for sure, and has all the variety that big cities can offer. But Busan and Daegu are pretty cool too.

I don't have first hand knowledge of Incheon, but there was one thread on this board likening it to the armpit(or worse) of Korea.

[pogoro]

I have lived in both places, and much prefered Daegu. It has a large and active expat community, and many things to do and see in the city and locally. You can experience the heart of Korea as well as modern amenities. I found the people to be much friendlier and, compared to Incheon, many more people spoke English or tried to. Daegu is in the centre of Korea and it's easier to go any direction for a weekend trip. You can't get anywhere from Incheon except Seoul. Personally I think Seoul is over-rated. "Seoulites" tend to be snobbish about Daegu. Daegu is the third largest city in Korea, but it doesn't even get mentioned on the weather news, let alone newspapers.

[Ukon]

Stick to Seoul, Busan, and Daegu...pretty much every young newbie I've met who decided to live else where said they wish they lived in Seoul. Only Daves do I meet the rare individual who dislikes Seoul....some perfer Busan or Daegu, but most I met, want Seoul.


I saw Screw both and hit Seoul.....if you for whatever reason don't like Seoul(not likely)....you can always move to daegu next year....

Some believe outside seoul is "real korea", but that's BS...Seoul is the Cultural hearth...all roads lead to Seoul....Not Daegu or Inchon....

[kasain]

I lived in Seoul and Dague. Seoul was like living back in teh states Orange County. It was ok for awhile. But then I lived in Dague, I liked it. It has almost everything Seoul had. I will say the woman on average were prettier as well.

[Ukon]