Korean Job Discussion Forums

Kurtz · Joined: 05 Jan 2007 Location: ples bilong me

I live in a poorly built, one-room type dwelling in a big city.

Some of my neighbours seem to live at night. My upstairs neighbour who I think is either a *beep* or a noraebang assistant (I see several women at about 8PM wearing short dresses and climbing into cars with dark tinted windows) often comes home at 3PM. I know it's this time as just about every night I hear her stumbling in her high heels, and then her door slamming, and then her thumping about her room like she is still wearing high heels. The TV then starts up, and sometimes her male friend/pimp/boyfriend or whatever starts screaming for reasons unknown.

My neighbour of my left, well I sometimes doubt if anyone does live there, perhaps some office guys just rent it out, but anyways, seems like there is often some kind of late night card game going on, as I hear mad yelling at random intervals.

In short, I'm a light sleeper, and getting woken up in this madhouse on a regular basis is proving not very beneficial for my health and my teaching is suffering too (teaching kids on 4-5 hours sleep is murder!).

I've tried earplugs, doing heaps of exercise, (sex doesn't seem to help either) but I still keep waking up at ungodly hours, and staying awake.

I've thought of moving, but I might be faced with the same types of neighbours elsewhere as that is what these one-room buildings attract, cheap rent for cheap people.

Am I alone in my insomnia?

phoneboothface · Joined: 26 Apr 2009 Location: Korea

move asap. other people have this problem too, some of them post about it and most of them can't take it and move out. cool you're getting laid.

KYC · Joined: 11 May 2006

No kidding. My walls are paper thin and my neighbors are loud as hell. My next door neighbors are the worst. I've been woken up to screams of what seems to sound like they are being raped, high pitched yelling at 3 am, and constant bickering between women. Of course the Korean neighbors don't do shit about it. Everyone just pounds on the walls, but that doesn't stop them.

One night, I was really pissed. I took my food waste garbage and left it at their front door. Now whenever they wake me up in the wee hours, they get a nice little surprise.

RACETRAITOR · Joined: 24 Oct 2005 Location: Seoul, South Korea

I've always been louder than my neighbours.

Ukon · Joined: 29 Jan 2008

I live in a building filled with college kids....I get noise complaints for watching movies at night....I wish the folks in my building were a bit more exciting...

And get some decent ear plugs....I would be susprised if you could hear anything with ones that block 20 decibles.

travelingfool · Joined: 10 Mar 2008 Location: Parents' basement

Noisy neighbors can ruin your life, especially if you have to wake up early. My neighbors only made noise between the hours of 11pm and 6am. Well, they would only start as soon as I tried going to bed and stop when I had to wake up. Also, they only made noise on Sunday through Thursday nights because I had to wake up early the next day. If there was a holiday and I could sleep in, I wouldn't hear a peep out of them. Ear plugs won't help with the constant thud noise which is so common in those poorly built office tel type places with wood floors. It's no surprise why everyone is so uptight in Korea......because nobody can sleep!

okokok · Joined: 27 Aug 2006

^ I hear ya. For 3 years I put up with noisy neighbors in my last apartment. Family of four with 2 little girls that NEVER stopped running around and a mother who stomped around all day long. Not just your average children noises but pure insanity and seriously nonstop. Never could I sleep past 7am either, holiday or not, because they would be up creating a ruckus at that time. Never an opportunity for a nap or anything. The dad was a taxi driver or something and made noise through the night. This was actually the second family to live above me during that time, with some young boys being there previously causing the same sort of nuisance.

My wife asked them many times politely to try to be more considerate. I wanted to stay out of it since I know as soon as they see a white face it becomes an excuse that 'oh, he's a foreigner and too sensitive". After waiting 3 years so we could get maximum profit, we sold the place. After the sale but waiting to move, one night I was half-knocked out on the bed after a long day and little sleep the previous week, and the damn kids were jumping off of the sofa or something right over my head. I had had enough, so I stormed upstairs, banged on the door, got in the b***h's face (within millimeters) and did my best crazy act ever. After giving her a serious piece of my mind and scaring the living daylights out of her, I walked away. My wife was around the corner and told me later that after I was finished the ajumma yelled to her kids to 'run more.... run around more!!!' They didn't. In fact, the family went away for a few days immediately following that. For the last couple of months that I lived there, I hardly heard a peep from upstairs. It shows you what they were capable of.

I want to mention too that during my time in that apartment, there was always drilling and hammering going on somewhere. It was a large building so there was no way of knowing, but it seemed that someone was running some sort of construction business out of their apartment or something. Always on Sundays too... again with a 7am start.

Anyways, we finally moved to a much nicer, newer (and more expensive) apartment last week. I always told my wife I want to live on the top floor, but it's not so easy when you are looking to buy a place that you think is a good investment as well and we got this place for a good price. We now live on the 12th floor of a 14 floor building. Thankfully, no kids seem to live above us. But there is a stomper of course who paces back and forth for hours. And last night there was shouting and power vacuuming(???) going on upstairs after 12:30am. My wife reluctantly phoned security since we don't want to have the bad blood here that we had at our old place. After the phone call they piped down. This morning I was awoken to drilling and hammering. We've only been here for a few days.

Moral of this long story........ I really don't know.

travelingfool · Joined: 10 Mar 2008 Location: Parents' basement

^^I think the moral of the story should be to avoid Korea if you are a light sleeper.

My worst neighbors in Korea were when I worked a split shift. There was no peace, ever. Every hour of the day or night there was some kind of noise. Yelling, loud sex (though that never lasted long), drilling, hammering, sawing, slamming doors. Why do people close doors when they can slam them, right? Always something. I have pretty bad insomnia even under idyllic conditions. The problem is that once the noise starts you get all angry at how rude and inconsiderate people are. My first response was always, "You have got to be kidding!". Once my adrenaline got going there was no chance of being able to go back to sleep.

Forward Observer · Joined: 13 Jan 2009 Location: FOB Gloria

The answer is simple. You need to find a place to live that's quiet. They exist, you just have to look. I was in your position 13 years ago, so I understand what you're going through. There are quiet places to live in Seoul/Korea. I currently live on one of the quietest neighborhoods (all residential) I've ever seen in the city. Sure, we get the occasional drunken guys yelling at the top of their lungs walking around outside, but it never lasts more than a few minutes and it's maybe once every two months.

JJJ · Joined: 27 Nov 2006 Location: Seoul

Are you alone....nope. I have had, maybe, a handful eight hour sleeps since '06. Ususally when on pain killers for my back...nice.

To Forward Observer....you are a lucky duck. I envy you.

Yu_Bum_suk · Joined: 25 Dec 2004

This is one thing I sure don't miss about urban living in Korea. I have more bad neighbour stories to tell about half year of living in Incheon than in the rest of my life put together.

Move to the countryside and live in a house. A distant yappy dog or a Saturday kerajoky sing-a-long in a nearby parking lot will be about the worst you'll ever have.

tzechuk · Joined: 20 Dec 2004

Not currently - but when I was in London my upstairs neighbours were very loud with their music. They were good about it when I asked them to turn it down.. but I kept having to do it!!

Unfortunately in Korea, there really aren't that many places that are quiet.. but I would look around, for sure - may be move into an officetel.. those are usually quieter.

Draz · Joined: 27 Jun 2007 Location: Land of Morning Clam

My upstairs neighbors have a piano and it can be pretty loud, but they don't play it in the middle of the night. Bless them.

Sergio Stefanuto · Joined: 14 May 2009 Location: UK

Koreans understand only one thing - noise.

travelnguy · Joined: 27 Sep 2007

We live in a large apartment building. For most of the day and night, the apartment is quiet. Late at night, when the kids above us get home from their Hagwans, we hear running around for about two hours. It also sounds as if tables and sofas are flying around the apartment. But, we say nothing.

We have two beagles. At about 11pm, I start throwing their toys and the beagle begin to howl and bark. It annoys even me. But, soon after the howling starts, the furniture stops being moved around. I tell the dogs to be quiet. It's peaceful for the rest of the night.