Life In Korea (한국의 삶)
What to know about life in Korea from the places to shop to being pregnant in Korea. Here is everything you need to know to live in Korea. (쇼핑하는 곳부터 임신하는 곳까지 한국 생활에 대해 알아야 할 것. 여기 당신이 한국에서 살기 위해 알아야 할 모든 것이 있다.)
-
The Wonderful Service Helping Foreigners In Korea
It’s inevitable that there will come a time when you just cannot figure something out here in Korea and in those moments, a personal assistant that can point you in the right direction and then even do everything to get you set up would be the dream, right? Well, it doesn’t have to just be a dream. If you’ve been in Korea for some time, you’ve likely heard of Wonderful. Need a personal assistant in Korea? Need someone to help you do everything from ordering chicken for delivery or planning a weekend away? The company started by Maria Lee, an American expat, was originally named Ask Ajumma. She saw a need…
-
What To Do If You’re Staying In Seoul For Seollal 2025
This year, 2025, Seollal, or the Lunar New Year, falls on January 29, 2025. Seollal is a big family holiday here in Korea so it’s important to know what to expect, what is open and what is closed. Most Koreans head back to their hometowns to see family and if they celebrate in the traditional fashion will wake very early in the morning and hold a ceremony to pay respects to their ancestors in which they will dress in traditional Korean clothing, or Hanbok, and bow to an altar table set with all kinds of food including meat, fish, vegetables and fruit. My Korean family will partake in this very…
-
Korean Superstitions & Halloween Events 2024
It is the season of superstitions, gruesome tales of death and dismemberment and scary costumes. Superstitions (미신) change from country to country and culture to culture so while stepping on a crack may not break your mother’s back in Korea, whistling while you walk just might! Are you ready for Halloween in Korea? It’s a bit different, but still fun fun fun! Celebrate Halloween (할로윈) in Korea or just learn about the Korean superstitions you should be aware of, or beware of. We like to get out and about have fun with the rest of them so I’ve compiled some of the popular Korean superstitions to beware of this holiday…
-
Housing & Money: A Guide To Getting A Place In Korea
Having lived in Korea for ten years, I’ve gone though numerous housing arrangements. I started off living in school provided housing which worked out fabulously for my first year and have gone from renting to now owning while in Korea. My second job was horrible, the owner didn’t even look into finding me the housing that was promised until a month in (I slept on an amazing friend’s floor during that time) so I ended up taking a flat cash stipend and found my own room to rent from someone. It was during that time that I learned just how horrible it could have been to live in school provided…
-
The Korean Bath House: The Etiquette Inside A Jjimjilbang
Korean bath houses are one of those topics that come up in conversation and it seems while there is high interest, most foreigners that come to Korea just don’t know what to expect and only have visions of sitting around naked and uncomfortable with a lot of people. Sure, there’s nudity in a Korean jjimjilbang (찜질방) but that’s not the only thing that happens in a Korean spa. I’ve visited a mokyoktang, or neighborhood bath house, a number of times and also been to more high-end one time experience Korean spas that are perfect for tourists. Both have their purposes and are equally essential for a good beauty ritual if…
-
FishisFast: The Mail Forwarding Service You Cannot Live Without!
Over the years in Korea there have been times when there’s something I just CANNOT find and want to get from the States. There was that time I put out a call to get some Cow Tales shipped to me and then that time I was looking for maternity clothes that I just couldn’t find here in Korea. In those times, Fishisfast would have come in handy. Things like fitted bed sheets, peanut butter M&Ms and a few other specialty items can arrive at your door in just days… once you sign up and order them and all that jazz. While sites may offer global shipping, those costs can add…
-
10 Years In Korea: How I’ve Lived Abroad For A Decade Happily
Living abroad is amazing, scary, enlightening, humorous, lonely and from there the list of adjectives could just go on and on. Traveling abroad is one thing but most that take the adventure know that at some point they’ll go home which can effect an entire outlook on how they experience a place. Living abroad takes a whole host of adjustments and immeasurable levels of acceptance in many ways. (This page contains affiliate links. That means if you click on them and purchase something, I will get a percentage of the transaction at no cost to you. Thanks for the support!) I wrote an article for Groove Korea Magazine in October…
-
Korean Hangover Cures: The Drinks, Soups, and More!
Have you enjoyed a night out in Seoul before? If you have, then you know that nightlife in Korea is insane. There are Korean drinking games and will go until sunrise. Before the Hangover Popsicle was introduced, Koreans already had some hangover cures up their sleeves that, I can say from experience, work pretty well. With numerous alcoholic beverages available at varying price points from as cheap as W1,000 and sold at convenience stores in Korea, it’s no wonder that people are out having a party constantly. You can even have that party on chairs and tables right outside of the convenience store itself. Oh the convenience and trouble that…
-
Time Flies & A Passport Says Goodbye
Time flies. That’s it. Time just flies. Ten years ago, about this time I was sitting in front of a camera in a photo shop to get some passport photos so that I could then head to the post office and mail in my documents to receive a passport. I’d had one previously which I’d used to travel to Europe a couple of times with my family and with my senior class, but I needed a new one to start my adventures in Asia. I had gotten a job in Seoul, Korea and I was getting all the odds and ends wrapped up and making appointments to get the things…
-
KMF Korea Providing Self Defense Classes in Seoul
I recently had the pleasure of meeting and working with Gideon Roth the regional director and foreign representative for Krav Maga Federation Korea, the only official Wingate Institute accredited Krav Maga school in Asia. With fourteen years of experience in Krav Maga, he is the most experienced instructor in Korea and he wants to spread the word that he has self-defense classes for you. Learn more about Krav Maga in Seoul and the self-defense classes they offer: (This post contains affiliate links, which means I receive a certain percentage of a sale if you purchase after clicking at no cost to you. Thank you for your support.) Basic Info Address:…
-
What To Do If You’re Staying in Seoul for Chuseok 2024
(UPDATED for 2024) Chuseok, one of the biggest holidays in Korea, is coming up and many Korean families will head to their family homes to be thankful for the good harvest by eating lots of food and playing traditional games. Often tourists and foreigners in Seoul are left wondering what will be open during Chuseok and what they can do. Here are some ideas for what to do this year for Chuseok in Seoul which is a five day holiday that spans September 14th to September 18th. Chuseok, or the Korean Thanksgiving, is one of the best times to STAY in Seoul in my opinion. Seoul is a fairly new…
-
What’s A Mother To Do? No Changing Tables In Korea
It's fairly easy to take her out without causing much of a scene, but one thing I've noticed again and again is that wherever we go, if she were to need a changing, there wouldn't be anywhere to do it. Bathrooms just aren't equipped with the necessary changing table and though in the past five years bathrooms around Seoul have generally seen a big upgrade in cleanliness, they are far from clean enough to change a baby if there isn't a changing table available. What's a mother to do?
-
The Addresses Are Changing in Korea… Again
You may remember that last year the addresses changed in Korea. Streets were renamed and buildings were given numbers in order to establish some semblance of order. Anyone in Korea, foreigner and Korean, will tell you that though an address will get you in the general area, they are not all that helpful, well they weren’t, if you wanted to find a location. Buildings that were built well after the one next door and the one down the street were given the next number on the list even though that meant it would be 200 and between 35 and 36-2. And so, the system was overhauled. However, and that should…
-
Finding Comfort with Create Wellness In Korea
Looking for medical services in Korea with a holistic approach and English services? Create Wellness is the place for you. With locations in both central Seoul and Pyeongtaek, Create Wellness has Chiropractic, Osteopathic, Naturopathic doctors and physical therapy and therapeutic and sports massage services in English to for the foreign community. Get checked out in Korea with Create Wellness. Find out about holistic healthcare in Korea: (This post contains affiliate links, which means I receive a certain percentage of a sale if you purchase after clicking at no cost to you. Thank you for your support.) Who is Create Wellness? Create Wellness promotes a holistic approach through a combination of…
-
10 Things to Know Upon Arrival in Korea
From getting lost just steps from the front door to signs in another language being of no use for navigation, moving to a new country can be daunting. There are a lot of things you learn AFTER you come to Korea and plenty of them are easy enough to figure out and a ton are definitely good to know BEFORE you get here. Here’s what you should know if you’re moving to Korea and there’s a nifty packing list at the end of this post too. Wondering if you should learn Korean before you move to Korea? Let me fill you in. Wondering about the best apps for transportation in…
-
Did You Know: Walking On The Right Side is the Left… Or Is It?
Have you ever gone to take a walk in Korea and come face to face with a local and wondered how that happened? I’m sure you’ve taken plenty of walks on plenty of sidewalks back home but wherever you came from, you walk, people walked, and you managed to pass each other. Why isn’t it so easy in Korea you might wonder. Why is there a weaving sort of system on sidewalks instead of a rule on which side of the sidewalk to walk on? There is a reason and one that you might not realize actually. (This post contains affiliate links, which means I receive a certain percentage of…
