Korean Job Discussion Forums

[stephensessions]

Hey everybody,

I'm coming to Korea and I've decided I want a smaller town, with the availability of hiking, a place that serves beer, a few universities, and within a close proximity to either Seoul or Busan.

Drum roll please...............CHANGWON!

I like what I've found online and have had some friends tell me if they were to go back to Korea they would live there. So the job search begins and preparations are underway!

Now I was hoping for a little feedback from people actually living in Changwon. Here are my main questions:

Do you live in Palyong-dong or do you know anything about it? (distance from downtown, is it on the 'wrong side of the tracks')

Heard of Kids Club? (got a job offer from them, want to know some opinions)

Are there many gyms? (I'm addicted to weightlifting)

Are there many trails/paths to run on? (I'm addicted to running)

How's the bar scene? (I'm addicted to dancing badly)


So, there ya have it. I'll be there soon (depending on the job hunt) and would love a few pointers/advice/opinions.
And before anyone says it, I know Seoul is great and all, but I want the smaller town.

Feel free to PM, and thanks!

Stephen

[BigBuds]

PM sent.

[just because]

[cbclark4]

IP, O'Brien's (Changwon) and Joyce's(Masan) are all the western bars I know. IP has no pool table. O'Brien's have improved their beer cooling system.

http://obriens-bar.com/changwon/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7IyWTHBtEWU (Joyce's)
http://www.webmasan.com/

http://ip-bar.com/index.htm

[BS.Dos.]

Don't know about it being a small town as the South East corner of Korea is one huge urban sprawl with Masan, Changwon and Busan being (relatively speaking) one big giant dollop of concrete, with each city pretty much bleeding into the next.

I'm sure that you'll have fun there though.

[elliemk]

I'm moving to Changwon next week as well. My new director told me there are several foreigners' bars in the downtown area. It's a lovely city - lots of gardens, parks and biking and hiking trails. The air is quite clean as well. I'm really looking forward to my new job, which used the best textbooks I've seen so far in Korea (and I've seen many) - they are based on American textbooks.

[just because]

[hellakitty]

As was previously stated there are only 2 "foreign bars" proper in all of Changwon and IP isn't so much a bar as it is an extremely tiny pub with a T.V. on the wall and a few tables. O'Briens is just alright, though you won't find much dancing there till atleast 3am when people get drunk enough and start jumping up on tables and dry humping eachother on the tiny dancefloor. I will probably get bent over for saying this but I find the crowd at O'Briens to be extremely clique-y. Sure there are some cool people and Austin is the man, but it can be alot like high school some nights, with the "cool crowd" acting like they own place. There are the same people there every night so if you don't get along with or fit in with the crew particularly well you're pretty S.O.L. As for the air there, as much as Changwon is toted as "clean city" I was advised by Koreans not to run outside because of the poor air quality. That being said, I hope you find it to your liking, even though it wasn't necessarily to mine.

[Scarlet13]

I love Changwon! I am very happy here.

[casper5]

Geez, is the air really that bad in Changwon? I was hoping it might be possible to escape the seemingly ubiquitous blanket of smog of South Korea by living somewhere along the south coast of the peninsula. It kind of sounds like Changwon is just an extension of concrete sprawl and haze like your typical South Korean city though (not to mention Tehran, Almaty, Kathmandu, Mumbai, Beijing, etc). How would you say it compares to Busan, Gimhae, or Masan as far as environmental health and aesthetics go? Do you think Gangwondo province would have better air quality potentially?
Also, is Changwon very prone to monsoons, does anyone know?

[just because]

[casper5]

Ahh, okay, well that is kind of disappointing. What if you were to expand your horizons a little more southwestwardly (say to around Geoje, Tongyeong, Sacheon, Namhae, Yeosu, Samcheon, etc)? Is there more hope of finding clearer skies and cleaner air down that way, or would you say the air quality gets worse the closer you are to China?
Thanks for all your help with these possibly asinine questions here. I appreciate it. I'm hoping to find a place that is on par to the likes of Hawaii or Japan, someplace clean and warm, I mean, but maybe this is unlikely.

[A2Steve]

I loved changwon. went to orbriens mostly. but i had a special setup. after my first coteacher pulled a midnight run, and the second turned out to be a real old flake from london, my school loved my relative normalcy so i got to keep the two bedroom apartment all for myself, lived next to a mountain and got the run of the place.

of course, my big mistake was going back to the US for short time. one day i hope to end up back in the changwon area. just the right level of insantiy and fun.

[elliemk]

I liked Changwon as well. Though I never went to O'Briens, I met many wonderful foreigners and Koreans through the Hanbit Church. The air is cleaner than some other cities in Korea, and I have been to Ulsan, Busan and Seoul. It's the only "planned" city in Korea. There are beautiful parks there. Mountains for hiking are nearby (as they are everywhere in Korea). Plus, there's a wonderful restaurant that serves sam-gyp-sal for just 5,000 won per person. It comes complete with seven side dishes and is clean and a great place to eat!

[hinesketchup]

Has anyone worked at/heard of the "English Reading Town" in Changwon? I'm on the verge of accepting a contract there...the city seems like a good fit for me, but I have heard so many hagwon horror stories at this point. I've been teaching public school in the States for 2 years, so I don't need anymore insane workplace experiences.

Any feedback greatly appreciated!