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| Which city would you move to? |
| Busan |
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17% |
[ 3 ] |
| Seoul |
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41% |
[ 7 ] |
| Neither |
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41% |
[ 7 ] |
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| Total Votes : 17 |
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phatrick
Joined: 18 Apr 2006
Location: Busan
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 Posted: Wed May 03, 2006 6:52 pm Post subject: Where would you choose to live? |
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I am hoping to be in Korea for teaching in July/August and I am trying to decide between Seoul and Busan. I have read some of the information in the FAQ's but they are quite old now.
The beaches and slightly warmer winters are pulling me to Busan. I want an active nightlife, good shopping, friendly people around, nice size foreign population, and cultural activities. Can anybody give me any good or bad points between the two cities? Something that might sway my decision towards one or the other! Thanks... |
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ttompatz
Joined: 05 Sep 2005
Location: Kwangju, South Korea
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| Posted: Wed May 03, 2006 7:19 pm Post subject: Re: Where would you choose to live? |
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| phatrick wrote: |
I am hoping to be in Korea for teaching in July/August and I am trying to decide between Seoul and Busan. I have read some of the information in the FAQ's but they are quite old now.
The beaches and slightly warmer winters are pulling me to Busan. I want an active nightlife, good shopping, friendly people around, nice size foreign population, and cultural activities. Can anybody give me any good or bad points between the two cities? Something that might sway my decision towards one or the other! Thanks... |
The two biggest, ugliest, dirtiest, most poluted cities in the country?? Why would anyone in their right mind choose either one of them? |
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seoulsucker
Joined: 05 Mar 2006
Location: The Land of the Hesitant Cutoff
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| Posted: Wed May 03, 2006 7:39 pm Post subject: Re: Where would you choose to live? |
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| ttompatz wrote: |
| The two biggest, ugliest, dirtiest, most poluted cities in the country?? Why would anyone in their right mind choose either one of them? |
Because not all of us are nature-loving bunny huggers. 
I choose to live in Seoul because it's where the action is. I did the country thing last year, and while I did appreciate the clean air, I was bored out of my freaking mind.
I suppose if you're married or not into nightlife it may be a wiser choice, but for a young swinging di(k like me, Seoul is where it's at. |
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the_beaver
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
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| Posted: Wed May 03, 2006 7:51 pm Post subject: Re: Where would you choose to live? |
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| seoulsucker wrote: |
| Because not all of us are nature-loving bunny huggers. |
Yep. |
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sadsac
Joined: 22 Dec 2003
Location: Gwangwang
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| Posted: Wed May 03, 2006 9:01 pm Post subject: |
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Seoul is a grubby wanna be city. Busan is just okay. Give me the more rural areas any day.  |
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seoulsucker
Joined: 05 Mar 2006
Location: The Land of the Hesitant Cutoff
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| Posted: Wed May 03, 2006 9:11 pm Post subject: |
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| sadsac wrote: |
| Seoul is a grubby wanna be city. Busan is just okay. Give me the more rural areas any day. |
I'm not quite sure I understand your post here...do you mean Seoul is full of "wannabes", or it isn't much of a city at all? |
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phatrick
Joined: 18 Apr 2006
Location: Busan
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| Posted: Wed May 03, 2006 9:31 pm Post subject: |
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| I have nothing wrong with rural areas. A rural area might not be to bad in a couple years down the road, but it's definately not what I want my first year there! |
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seoulsucker
Joined: 05 Mar 2006
Location: The Land of the Hesitant Cutoff
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| Posted: Wed May 03, 2006 9:34 pm Post subject: |
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| phatrick wrote: |
| I have nothing wrong with rural areas. A rural area might not be to bad in a couple years down the road, but it's definately not what I want my first year there! |
Good call. I did Seoul for a year, small town for a year, now I'm back in Seoul. You'll definitely get more of a "Korean" experience in the small towns, but it helps if you have developed a basic command of the language and an understanding of the culture before you throw yourself to the wolves. |
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xeno439
Joined: 30 Nov 2005
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| Posted: Wed May 03, 2006 9:39 pm Post subject: |
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| Busan kicks azz. Just visited there last week. |
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JongnoGuru
Joined: 25 May 2004
Location: peeing on your doorstep
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| Posted: Wed May 03, 2006 10:08 pm Post subject: Re: Where would you choose to live? |
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| the_beaver wrote: |
| seoulsucker wrote: |
| Because not all of us are nature-loving bunny huggers. |
Yep. |
I believe no Canadian who says this.
| seoulsucker wrote: |
| sadsac wrote: |
| Seoul is a grubby wanna be city. Busan is just okay. Give me the more rural areas any day. |
I'm not quite sure I understand your post here...do you mean Seoul is full of "wannabes", or it isn't much of a city at all? |
Whether he meant one or the other, both descriptions seem to a certain extent fair and accurate to me, someone who's been here a while.
A City of Wannabees, Not Really a City at All
Within the historic four gates there lies Seoul, the city. Beyond them lies a drab, featureless, characterless eyesore of apartment complexes that house Korea's millions of urban peasants, farmers in business suits. They are the Wannabees, they want so much to be seen as urban and urbane and civilised like their cousins residing North of the Han River. They express this desperation in all sorts of pathetic ways, such as paying obscene sums to live in lifeless concrete highrises and driving European cars. (Yes, we of the true Seoul drive them too, but to us it is just our way, and not a juvenile attempt to assert, broadcast or affirm our high status.) But our lowly south-of-the-Han cousins have no trees, no roses, no ponds, no hotel-catered swanky c0cktail parties in the garden. And their children are as crass, grasping, impatient, arrogant and shallow as farmer-to-businessman overnight-millionaire "rich peasant" children the world over tend to be, indeed more so. Sad horrible creatures, those Seoulites south of the Han. An embarrassment to all Asians.
Outside the four gates, and actually, outside of Jongno-Gu (and part of Seongbuk-Gu and parts of Chung-Gu and... ) isn't really a city at all. It's an unattractive, soulless, overpopulated agglomeration of once-separate and distinct villages that have lost all memory or colour. Inhabitants of those regions are rightly viewed with a mixture of contempt, pity and suspicion.
Busan? Don't really know. Had fun the few times I've been there. Seemed aight. |
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whitebeagle
Joined: 09 Feb 2003
Location: UK
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| Posted: Thu May 04, 2006 6:53 am Post subject: |
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| Seoul. Hands down. So much more to do. Especially if youre new and finding your feet/making social connections etc. |
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the_beaver
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
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| Posted: Thu May 04, 2006 7:39 am Post subject: Re: Where would you choose to live? |
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| JongnoGuru wrote: |
| I believe no Canadian who says this. |
Why? I'm pretty averse to nature. I mean, I'm glad it's there so that I can watch it on Discovery and Survivor, but as something to experience hands on it just sucks ass. |
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