Korean Job Discussion Forums

taobenli · Joined: 26 Apr 2004

I'll be staying with a Korean family for three months for free. They're very nice to let me stay there, and I want to bring a gift. But I'm having to be a bit last minute about it. Now it's late here and stores are closing, and I'm going to the airport tomorrow before they open again. So, I'm limited to the Safeway near my house for nice chocolate, cookies, things like that, and the duty free shops at the airport.

I'll be staying with a grandmotherly lady, her adult son and his wife, and their fifth-grade twins. What's something (or two or three things) that would please the whole family? I don't have much room in my suitcase and it can't be too expensive (as much as I'd like it to be), since I'm a student and have already broken the bank for this trip. Any ideas or personal experiences with giving gifts to strangers that went over well?

Thanks for you help!

jhyum · Joined: 23 Apr 2007 Location: Anyang

My parents always made me bring my relatives vitamins and beef jerky. They really liked that for some reason. But also a bottle of wine is great, and maybe some T-shirts that have some sort of logo from your city or state. Oh and candy and chocolates, and coffee, because the coffee in Korea isn't that great from what I hear.

K-in-C · Joined: 27 Mar 2003 Location: Heading somewhere

Honey is a great gift. It is very expensive in Korea. Maybe you can get the Billy Bee kind or something with fruit flavor. Make sure to put it in the under luggage and NOT in your carry on. It is a liquid and will thus be confinscated. A picture book of your country is another idea.

Dev · Joined: 18 Apr 2006

Sour gummy bears and any kind of yummy foreign candy that you can't buy here.

ttompatz · Joined: 05 Sep 2005 Location: Kwangju, South Korea

cosmo · Joined: 09 Nov 2006

maeil · Joined: 09 Jan 2006 Location: Haebangchon

I find the honey in Korea to be terrible. Water-thin and not at all flavorful. I like a good teaspoon in my tea, but I've stopped using the Korean variety altogether as I just ended up disappointed.

Ah, I'd love a good wildflower honey.

aldershot · Joined: 17 Jul 2006

toilet paper

Treefarmer · Joined: 29 May 2007

a book about japan

sojourner1 · Posted: Tue Jun 05, 2007 6:45 am Post subject:

Boendeggi!!!!

When I first met my director, I gave her a big bottle of Missouri home grown honey and a honey bee pin in a nice box, only for her to offer the honey back to me 3 months later! I told her it was a gift to enjoy as it's unusually high quality natural honey derived from wild flowers in a rural field.

I then took a look at that expensive honey in Emart and HomePlus and it looks sick compared to the rich Missouri home grown honey.

I know Koreans like Scotch whiskey and cocnac as a specialty item so that make an appreciated gift.

Atavistic · Posted: Tue Jun 05, 2007 7:07 am Post subject:

My parents just visited for a week. I have a family here that has adopted me as one of their own. Husband is a few months older than me, wife one year and one week older, kids 3 and 2 Western age. On parents day, I was invited over for dinner with the husband's brother and their parents. His parents called me a daughter and his kids are like my nieces and nephews.

Anyhow...

My parents brought this family a stuffed loon toy for the daughter (the loon is our state bird), a Minnesota Twins baseball cap for the son, a t-shirt for the wife, and Minnesota shot glasses for the husband. He's the one who taught me how to drink soju. ^^ We also gave the family some local candy (nut rolls), a big bag of mixed American candies (even though you can get some of that here), and a state magnet. Honestly, I think there was more, but I can't remember.