Over a year and a half ago, I began contemplating whether or
not to come teach in Korea. I told
myself that if I did go, I would want to live and teach in Seoul. Other than just over the border into Canada,
I had never been outside of the United States before and I thought that Seoul
would offer a good first experience for living abroad. My reasoning was that even though I would be
on the other side of the planet, I would still be able to maintain a lifestyle
with some resemblance to my life from back home and that I could “transition”
into a new culture. Anyway, without
detailing the whole process, I did not end up in Seoul, but rather Changwon,
and I have been happy with my decision
.
My being happy in Changwon, however, does not answer the question,
“Would I have been just as happy, or even happier, living in Seoul?” I could not answer that question until I
actually visited the city in person, so I could compare the two locations for
myself. Last weekend, after over a year
in Korea, I finally ventured up to Seoul with a few friends and I can now
reflect upon this question.
Almost immediately after dropping our bags off at the hostel
and exploring the surroundings, I could tell I was in a different city. My experiences in Korea thus far have been
that all cities generally look and feel the same, at least to a foreigner. Not Seoul, however. There are many things, positive and negative,
that set Seoul apart from Changwon (and other Korean cities).
In my opinion, the best reason for living in Seoul would be
the fact that it is an international city.
If you really cannot live without specific foods or products from your
home country, this is where you want to be.
Yes, one can find some foreign goods in other cities, including
Changwon, but they are limited in range and can be more difficult to find if
they do exist. During our stay, we dined
on burritos and Turkish kebabs when we did not want to venture far from our
hostel. One night, we splurged and
enjoyed the various meats at a Brazilian steakhouse. Although we didn’t have time to do
everything, a brief venture through Itaewon, a district of Seoul, showed that
there were restaurants and pubs from seemingly every country around the globe. German pub?
Check. Canadian poutine
shop? Check. Paraguayan food? There’s a restaurant for that too. In Itaewon, there were more foreign faces
than there were Korean ones.
Also adding to the international “flavor” or Seoul is the
amount of English spoken there. In
Changwon, some people do know a little English, but more often than not, the
Koreans there either don’t know English or are not confident in their ability
and thus pretend not to know it. I can’t
give an exact number, but almost all of the Koreans I interacted with in Seoul,
both briefly and extensively, knew at least some English and were confident
enough to use it.
Some people may consider this an added bonus (I do not), but
the effect of the international feel of Seoul is you lose some of the
traditional Korean experience. I’m not
saying it doesn’t exist, but having lived in a more traditional city in Korea
for over a year made me realize that some of it was missing.
Another thing I liked about Seoul is that there is more to
do there than any other city I’ve visited.
We were there for only 3 nights so we were only able to sample a little
of what Seoul has to offer. During our
stay, we visited 2 of the traditional palaces in Seoul. One thing I found interesting about the
palaces was they were right in the middle of downtown Seoul. I would be walking along the street looking
at modern buildings and businesses and then out of nowhere, a palace complex
would appear!
경복궁 (Palace): Notice the buildings immediately
in the background.
경복궁 (Palace): Just outside the main gate were
many government buildings, including the U.S.
embassy.
경복궁 (Palace)
경복궁 (Palace)
경복궁 (Palace)
경복궁 (Palace)
경복궁 (Palace)
경복궁 (Palace)
경복궁 (Palace)
경복궁 (Palace)
During our stay, we visited 3 museums. In addition to the Korean Folk Museum, we
explored two temporary exhibits, The Tim Burton exhibit at the Seoul Museum of
Art and Van Gogh in Paris which was displayed at the Seoul Arts Center. There are many more museums to visit and
other temporary exhibits coming soon that I would like to go back to see.
Walkway Leading to the Seoul Museum of Art
Entrance to the Seoul Museum of Art
At the Tim Burton Exhibit
At the Tim Burton Exhibit
I visited museums and palaces because those were things I am
interested in. If history and culture is
not your thing, you can still find things to do including shopping, nightlife,
hiking, and much more. Some of the
people in our group were even planning on bungee jumping until the weather
closed the facility!
All of these things to do would be pointless if people
couldn’t get there. In Seoul, it is not
a problem as Seoul has one of the best public transportation systems I have
experienced. The subway system, while
extensive, is clean, efficient, and cheap (one ride only costs about 1100 won). While it would be nice if the subways were 24
hours, it’s not a problem as taxis are everywhere and cheap as well. A 20-minute taxi ride at 1:00 A.M. was only
10,000 won. A comparable ride in many
U.S. cities would be at least 2-3 times as much.
Looks confusing, doesn't it? It was actually quite easy to navigate!
Nothing is perfect in this world, and Seoul is no exception. I would have to say the biggest drawback is
how crowded it can be. This should be
expected in a city of over 10 million, but it can be aggravating
nonetheless. During rush hour, it took
almost 15 minutes just to exit the subway because so many people were trying to
merge into the stairwell to leave the station.
The area around our hostel became crowded at night due to all of the
bars and clubs in the area. Even the
museums were crowded, especially the Tim Burton exhibit. It was so crowded that after you purchased
your ticket, you had to get a number which assigned you a time to enter the
exhibit to avoid a mass of people entering at once.
I also did not enjoy the weather while I was there. It was much colder in Seoul for the 4 days I
was there than any day I spent in Changwon.
I knew it would be colder in Seoul, but I did not realize by how
much. In addition to the cold, it snowed
a lot our first day there. The snow
itself is not a problem for me, but rather, the snow removal, or lack
thereof. The plows only cleared the main
roads in Seoul and nobody did anything about the side streets, alleys, and
sidewalks. The result was the massive
volume of traffic condensed the snow down into a sheet of ice so everyone was
driving and walking on a city-sized ice rink over the next few days. It came as no surprise to me when, after the
snowstorm, I saw many people, especially women (probably due to their poor
choice of footwear), with casts and slings around their limbs. I enjoy the milder and relatively snow-free
winter in Changwon much better.
Snow.....
More snow.....
Even more snow. And this was just the beginning!
While I think I would have enjoyed living in Seoul, I think
I am happier in Changwon. In Changwon, I
get a more traditional Korean experience along with some modern amenities. If I need the international feel, I can
always hop on a bus and take the 45 minute trip to Busan. If I can’t find what I am looking for in
Busan, Seoul is not difficult nor expensive to get to from Changwon.
RANDOM HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE TRIP
- While Johann and I
were planning to take the bus for the four hour journey to Seoul, we ended up
taking a taxi instead! Why, you
ask? We arrived at the bus terminal in
Changwon and a taxi driver asked where we were going. We told him we were going to Seoul and he
offered to take us for the same price as a bus ticket. It turns out, he had a fare from Incheon
airport (near Seoul) to Changwon and he had to make the return trip with or
without a fare so it made sense for him to get something for the return trip. As a result, Johann and I took the longest
taxi ride in our lives!
Our Transportation From Changwon to Seoul
Our Taxi Driver
-
This was the first time I had ever stayed in a hostel. I was nervous having only seen them in the
movies, but I had a great experience. It
was cheap and clean, and the owner was very friendly. It also was cool chatting with other
travelers from different parts of the world.
I would definitely stay in a hostel again, and when I go back to Seoul,
will stay in the same hostel again.
-
The area around our hostel was full of graffiti. This was significant to me because I had not
seen any graffiti (besides bathroom stalls and classroom desks) during my time
in Korea. The graffiti can most likely be
from the students from nearby Hongik University, a school known in Korea for it’s
top-notch fine arts program.
Graffiti Near Hongik University
Graffiti Near Hongik University
Graffiti Near Hongik University
Graffiti Near Hongik University
-
Upon exiting the folk museum, we saw the most disturbing statue. What the children are doing, I don’t know,
but it looks like something a catholic priest would have designed. Of course, we foreigners had to have our fun
with it!
Why is the kid in front lifting his shirt? And why is
kid in back pulling down his pants?
Of course we had to have our fun!
Somehow, the cigarette and 50,000
won note seemed appropriate!
-
We were sitting in the hostel, getting ready to start our day, when a
Korean asked if we would like to join him for some dog meat for lunch. He looked surprised when all of us responded enthusiastically
at once. On the way to the restaurant,
we all named our dog we were eating.
Mine was Scooby Doo. The meat was
served in a salty soup and tasted a little like roast beef.
보신탕 (Dog Meat Soup): According
to Koreans, eating this increases virility!
I felt more manly afterward!
- We ended up doing the traditional New Year’s countdown on the street. We were late getting back from our tourist activities and couldn’t figure out where to go. We ran out of time and rang in the New Year with some random people in the streets of Seoul.
View From Roof of Hostel
Downtown Seoul (Near City Hall)
I don't know why the police had to stand guard
over every statue!
Creekfront Walk (Near 동대문)
