Korean Job Discussion Forums

[eventually]

hello!

i've been in the country for less than a month, i live in a small area, and the big issue i'm having right now is social life. there are nice foreigners here, but not many and they all seem to have their own things going on.

i hate spending my weekends alone in my apartment - i came here to get out and adventure! however, more easily said than done, i'm finding. i don't live in Daejeon, but i'm not too far and i'm willing to make the trip if i could meet a wide variety of people in the process, but i don't know the first thing about the city or its night life, activities, etc. usually in my home country if i found myself in this situation, i'd join a club or group. any suggestions or ideas for how to do something similiar here? i looked on Meetup.com and found nothing going on, except in Seoul.

thanks!

[Zackback]

Find a girlfriend in the small area that you live so going to Daejeon won't be so pressing (?)

[eventually]

"Hey, I'm having a difficult time meeting very many people."

"Easy solution: get into a relationship."

hm...aren't you putting the cart before the horse, there? i mean, don't get me wrong, that would be ideal, but i don't think it's in the cards for me at the moment.

[amnsg2]

Are you on the Daejeon peeps group on facebook? That's a good place to start. Post what you want to do and ask if anyone is up for it, and scan the posts to see if there's anything interesting. You could also ask the friends you have if you can do something with them sometime.

I'm having a similar problem- I have plenty of friends in the Daejeon area and some more up in Seoul but I can't seem to find a way to break into my new town. I'm just really awkward and doing the above things are hard! You'll settle in soon enough, it's early days.

[Trip]

None of the Toastmasters clubs in Daejeon meet regularly on the weekends, but if you can make it to a meeting, you will probably meet people who have things going on during the weekends.

Here are the clubs:

http://reports.toastmasters.org/findaclub/searchresults.cfm?Country=Korea%20%28Republic%20of%29&State=&City=Daejeon

Schoolmasters was created for teachers, and Daedeok TM usually has some foreigners in it.

Lively crowds usually hang out at Sponge bar near the Galleria. Sit at the bar, get sloppy, and meet some folks.

[eventually]

thanks. i'd really just like to find some activities or groups already going on. i feel uncomfortable imposing myself on Daejeon Peeps (i am on there) given i haven't actually met anyone from there yet. i saw a few trips posted that look like fun, but i'd feel awkward joining in.

what is this ToastMasters thing? that's very close to what i'm looking for in that it's an already established club, group, or activity, except i'm not sure what this is and it looks quite Serious. is the group only for 'teachers' for foreign TEFL teachers?

[Trip]

Read this first: http://www.toastmasters.org/Members/MembersFunctionalCategories/AboutTI.aspx

Then understand that clubs that are open to the public (as opposed to corporate-sponsored clubs) usually involve a lot of networking and partying after the meeting. Lots of good friends met at TM clubs. I even know of some married couples that met there.

Some clubs can be boring if they are full of business people. Other clubs focus on the social side of things, discussing interesting ideas, and having fun together.

From what I've seen lately, Schoolmasters may be your best bet if you want to try a club. Lots of their new club leaders are westerners. There is no obligation to give speeches just by visiting, either, and they allow anyone to come (not just teachers).

In Seoul, we have a few clubs that meet in bars. I don't think they are doing that in Daejeon yet, but they should.