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50ptoes
Joined: 05 Jan 2011
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 Posted: Thu Feb 03, 2011 10:38 am Post subject: Any other parents out there? |
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| I'm moving to Korea with my 1 year old and just wondered if there are any other foreign parents of little ones living here...for future reference, questions, or hanging out? |
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Space Cowboy
Joined: 27 Mar 2010
Location: On the blessed hellride
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| Posted: Thu Feb 03, 2011 4:56 pm Post subject: Re: Any other parents out there? |
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| 50ptoes wrote: |
| I'm moving to Korea with my 1 year old and just wondered if there are any other foreign parents of little ones living here...for future reference, questions, or hanging out? |
I have a son. For families with young kids, Korea is better in some ways (than the US, where I'm from) and worse in others. Almost all of the large department stores have very nice playlands. There are museums, parks, amusement parks, zoos, aquariums, beaches, movie theaters, and most of the other fun family attractions that one can find in the developed world. Most of these attractions are very reasonably priced. On the negative side, you have to be, in my opinion, more vigilant: Korea is full of hazards that would be lawsuited into submission in the US.
Seoul, Busan, Daegu, Incheon, Daejeon, and Gwangju, at the very least, will have plenty to offer in the way of entertainment, as well as expat families who can show you around. Where will you be living? |
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ttompatz
Joined: 05 Sep 2005
Location: Kwangju, South Korea
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| Posted: Thu Feb 03, 2011 5:22 pm Post subject: Re: Any other parents out there? |
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| 50ptoes wrote: |
| I'm moving to Korea with my 1 year old and just wondered if there are any other foreign parents of little ones living here...for future reference, questions, or hanging out? |
There are enough of us with kids.
If you are coming as a single parent, daycare may be a concern until the child is old enough for Kindy (about age 3).
. |
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PatrickGHBusan
Joined: 24 Jun 2008
Location: Busan (1997-2008) Canada 2008 -
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| Posted: Fri Feb 04, 2011 5:20 am Post subject: |
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There are lots of foreigner with children in Korea (mixed kids or not).
You can live well.
Finding a daycare is doable but you need to research this. By the age of 3, kindy is available and there are many excellent places.
Good luck! |
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BoholDiver
Joined: 03 Oct 2009
Location: Canada
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| Posted: Fri Feb 04, 2011 6:34 am Post subject: |
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Get used to having your kid touched by strangers. If you want to fight about it, go for it. Just be aware.
It is relatively safe for kids as far as violence but way less safe for traffic accidents, uneven sidewalks, faulty wiring, etc. Someone else mentioned about lawsuits. Yes, if this were a western country, it would happen. |
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nzbradly78
Joined: 23 Mar 2009
Location: Czech Republic
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| Posted: Fri Feb 04, 2011 4:52 pm Post subject: |
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I have two kids, not mixed-race. It's pretty horrible here for young ones. There aren't many options for outings, very few parks, and kiddy items are quite expensive. Daycare is also expensive.
Adding on to that, you will be approached, people will touch your child, and staring will get pretty intense at times. You will also get a lot of unwanted parenting advice.
Also, be aware of the air pollution, especially the yellow sand from Chinareally affects young ones. My kids have been sicker here than anywhere we've lived (New Zealand and the US). The older apartments are quite damp which also affects their respitory systems.
I know I'll get flamed by all the apologists saying that raising kids in Korea is so much better, but that has not been our experience. |
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eamo
Joined: 08 Mar 2003
Location: Shepherd's Bush, 1964.
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| Posted: Fri Feb 04, 2011 5:56 pm Post subject: |
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Well, things might be different for single-race families in Korea....I don't know about that.
But I do know that there's quite a bit of support for international families in Korea. For example, government supported daycare. My 21 month-old daughter goes to daycare absolutely free. We used to pay half the cost, like all parents in Korea, approx 380,000 per month. But since January 2011 the Korean government introduced 100% subsidy for only the children of international couples. Now we pay nothing! |
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cyui
Joined: 10 Jan 2011
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| Posted: Fri Feb 04, 2011 6:20 pm Post subject: |
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That is awesome! Great News' for our future kids' ( there will be 3 educations').
Last edited by cyui on Fri Feb 04, 2011 6:24 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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definitely maybe
Joined: 16 Feb 2008
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| Posted: Fri Feb 04, 2011 6:23 pm Post subject: |
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| eamo wrote: |
Well, things might be different for single-race families in Korea....I don't know about that.
But I do know that there's quite a bit of support for international families in Korea. For example, government supported daycare. My 21 month-old daughter goes to daycare absolutely free. We used to pay half the cost, like all parents in Korea, approx 380,000 per month. But since January 2011 the Korean government introduced 100% subsidy for only the children of international couples. Now we pay nothing! |
We just filed the paperwork for our son. He's about the same age, and will be starting up at daycare in the mornings in March. |
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cmr
Joined: 22 Mar 2006
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| Posted: Fri Feb 04, 2011 10:15 pm Post subject: |
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| eamo wrote: |
| ...But I do know that there's quite a bit of support for international families in Korea. For example, government supported daycare. My 21 month-old daughter goes to daycare absolutely free. We used to pay half the cost, like all parents in Korea, approx 380,000 per month. But since January 2011 the Korean government introduced 100% subsidy for only the children of international couples. Now we pay nothing! |
REALLY!
Please, tell me where you got the information for that. Where do you apply? I have two children attending kindergarten.... |
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BoholDiver
Joined: 03 Oct 2009
Location: Canada
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| Posted: Fri Feb 04, 2011 10:55 pm Post subject: |
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Partially agreed. My daughter has done well at the preschool. I sort of expected her not to be accepted but she was.
Agreed with lack of parks and bad air quality. I am looking forward to seeing how she reacts in Canada to having more parks and cleaner air.
She is very healthy but gets sick about every 2 months. I suspect that is to do with herself and other kids at the preschool being little germ factories and never washing their hands.
Yes, baby items are a total and complete rip-off. Get care packages sent.
| nzbradly78 wrote: |
I have two kids, not mixed-race. It's pretty horrible here for young ones. There aren't many options for outings, very few parks, and kiddy items are quite expensive. Daycare is also expensive.
Adding on to that, you will be approached, people will touch your child, and staring will get pretty intense at times. You will also get a lot of unwanted parenting advice.
Also, be aware of the air pollution, especially the yellow sand from Chinareally affects young ones. My kids have been sicker here than anywhere we've lived (New Zealand and the US). The older apartments are quite damp which also affects their respitory systems.
I know I'll get flamed by all the apologists saying that raising kids in Korea is so much better, but that has not been our experience. |
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definitely maybe
Joined: 16 Feb 2008
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| Posted: Fri Feb 04, 2011 10:55 pm Post subject: |
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| cmr wrote: |
| eamo wrote: |
| ...But I do know that there's quite a bit of support for international families in Korea. For example, government supported daycare. My 21 month-old daughter goes to daycare absolutely free. We used to pay half the cost, like all parents in Korea, approx 380,000 per month. But since January 2011 the Korean government introduced 100% subsidy for only the children of international couples. Now we pay nothing! |
REALLY!
Please, tell me where you got the information for that. Where do you apply? I have two children attending kindergarten.... |
We went to the local dong office and got everything sorted out. Actually, my wife did. I didn't do anything. |
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eamo
Joined: 08 Mar 2003
Location: Shepherd's Bush, 1964.
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| Posted: Sat Feb 05, 2011 12:40 am Post subject: |
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| definitely maybe wrote: |
| cmr wrote: |
| eamo wrote: |
| ...But I do know that there's quite a bit of support for international families in Korea. For example, government supported daycare. My 21 month-old daughter goes to daycare absolutely free. We used to pay half the cost, like all parents in Korea, approx 380,000 per month. But since January 2011 the Korean government introduced 100% subsidy for only the children of international couples. Now we pay nothing! |
REALLY!
Please, tell me where you got the information for that. Where do you apply? I have two children attending kindergarten.... |
We went to the local dong office and got everything sorted out. Actually, my wife did. I didn't do anything. |
I should be more explicit about this......For a start, it's not really confirmed yet. But the confirmation is expected this month. The actual free daycare places should start from March.
It's not for any kind of nursery.....It's only for the very basic daycare center's that are typically found in an apartment on the ground floor of some apartment complexes. Fancy private kindergartens which do a lot of teaching and field trips etc won't be covered by this.
It's only paid if both parents are in full-time employment.
My wife was told to keep checking our Dong-office website for the confirmation and instructions to apply. There's also some complicated hoops to jump through with Shinhan Bank who are involved in this somehow. |
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definitely maybe
Joined: 16 Feb 2008
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| Posted: Sat Feb 05, 2011 1:01 am Post subject: |
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| eamo wrote: |
| definitely maybe wrote: |
| cmr wrote: |
| eamo wrote: |
| ...But I do know that there's quite a bit of support for international families in Korea. For example, government supported daycare. My 21 month-old daughter goes to daycare absolutely free. We used to pay half the cost, like all parents in Korea, approx 380,000 per month. But since January 2011 the Korean government introduced 100% subsidy for only the children of international couples. Now we pay nothing! |
REALLY!
Please, tell me where you got the information for that. Where do you apply? I have two children attending kindergarten.... |
We went to the local dong office and got everything sorted out. Actually, my wife did. I didn't do anything. |
I should be more explicit about this......For a start, it's not really confirmed yet. But the confirmation is expected this month. The actual free daycare places should start from March.
It's not for any kind of nursery.....It's only for the very basic daycare center's that are typically found in an apartment on the ground floor of some apartment complexes. Fancy private kindergartens which do a lot of teaching and field trips etc won't be covered by this.
It's only paid if both parents are in full-time employment.
My wife was told to keep checking our Dong-office website for the confirmation and instructions to apply. There's also some complicated hoops to jump through with Shinhan Bank who are involved in this somehow. |
That's odd. We found out about it through another foreign-Korean couple here in Uijeongbu. The received a refund from the 어린이집 their son was going to after about three months, then had some paperwork brought to their attention that enabled them to get full coverage for everything except their child's supplies. They filled my wife in on it, then she went down to the dong office in the fall. They asked for some documents, etc., and gave us a list of the day care centers where the program was available. Then we looked at a few places and got on a few waiting lists. My son's spot was confirmed at our first choice a few weeks ago. He's going to a smaller one because it's nearby and he's still young, but our friend's kid goes to a bigger one.
Also, I'm employed, but my wife hasn't been for over two years and is starting grad school in March. |
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eamo
Joined: 08 Mar 2003
Location: Shepherd's Bush, 1964.
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| Posted: Sat Feb 05, 2011 1:53 am Post subject: |
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| definitely maybe wrote: |
That's odd. We found out about it through another foreign-Korean couple here in Uijeongbu. The received a refund from the 어린이집 their son was going to after about three months, then had some paperwork brought to their attention that enabled them to get full coverage for everything except their child's supplies. They filled my wife in on it, then she went down to the dong office in the fall. They asked for some documents, etc., and gave us a list of the day care centers where the program was available. Then we looked at a few places and got on a few waiting lists. My son's spot was confirmed at our first choice a few weeks ago. He's going to a smaller one because it's nearby and he's still young, but our friend's kid goes to a bigger one.
Also, I'm employed, but my wife hasn't been for over two years and is starting grad school in March. |
It would seem, as is often the case when dealing with Korean bureaucracy, that any given clerk in any given office will say different things! Although it could just be that the program is more advanced in Uijeongbu than here in Bundang-gu........who knows.
Anyway, good to know that it's actually happpening. |
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