Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Gringo17]

Hello everyone, I just signed a contract to go to Pohang in a few weeks and I'm pretty psyched about it. However, I just found out I'll be the first foreign teacher at the school I'll be teaching at so I was hoping I could find some other teachers in Pohang to meet up with when I got there who could throw me a few pointers and possibly show me around? I currently plan on getting there a few days before my contract starts so that I can get adjusted and explore a bit. Please shoot me a message if you have some time to kill in Pohang and are feeling a bit charitable. Thanks in advance!

[thegadfly]

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/lifeinpohang/

http://forums.eslcafe.com/korea/viewtopic.php?t=8763

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=20060404568

http://forums.eslcafe.com/korea/viewtopic.php?t=198985

I think the Yahoo group is pretty dead, but there are a few links to get you started.

I would suggest going to English club, first round once or twice -- stick around for second and third rounds if you are up for that -- but English club has a pretty good cross section of folks -- Koreans and foreigners, drinkers and non-drinkers, from several walks of life....

Which section of town are you living in? I am in I-dong, near the new city hall. I would bet that, while you may be the only foreigner at your school, you probably won't be the only one in your neighborhood....

Welcome to Pohang!

[sirius black]

Very tight knit group of teachers there. You also have military and some foreigners from the huge steel plant there as well.

You may want to go to TILT, where the majority of teachers hang out near the beach in town.

There are also a couple foriegner bars in the downtown area. The Facebook group for Pohang is a good place to start to tell people you're in town.

[FDNY]

I think Pohang would be my worst nightmare location in Korea with the exception of Ulsan. You are like the furthest possible distance away from civilization (i.e. Seoul) that it is possible to get. Also you will be landing at Incheon Airport and then how many ungodly hours down to Pohang?

That being said, if it is your first time in Korea it will probably be surreal and fun.

Guaranteed if you decide to stay in Korea for a 2nd year, you will looking at Seoul jobs.

[sirius black]

[thegadfly]

Train from Incheon to Gimpo is about an hour, and is pretty easy to get to. Flight from Gimpo to Pohang takes 45 minutes in the air.

I dated a woman that lived in Seoul, and for a while I spent weekends with her. My work-week is Sunday to Thursday, and so I was able to get to Seoul on Friday morning, and stay until Sunday morning (as my flight to Pohang got me back a few hours before I had to be to work). It was a little pricey, but I actually spent LESS time traveling to and from Seoul than I used to spend traveling IN Seoul, from one side to the other. You DO have to worry about rain, though, as the Pohang airport will cancel flights for bad weather, so make a plan B if traveling in the rainy season.

Yes, taking the bus to Pohang sucks (6 hours, all told, with the bus breaks at rest stops) -- so don't take the bus if you don't have to.

[sirius black]

Although I wouldn't recommend someone new to the country to try this route, there is another option. The KTX high speed rail line goes to Gyeoungju (40 minutes from Pohang) from Seoul Station in about 2 hours. There is a special bus that is always waiting at the Gyeoungju station for about 5 or 6 bucks if I recall that goes to Pohang. Its much cheaper than air and at 2 hours from Seoul its not bad at all

[Highwayman]

I found the bus to be OK. Some of them leave late at night, so you can actually do an overnight bus trip, taking around five hours from the station across from the CGV in Pohang.

Others have pretty much nailed the advantages of living in the place. It's actually quite a nice place in some ways. The expat teacher crowd hangs out at Tilt, which is easy to locate across from the beach. Check out their Facebook page.