Korea Trek III : The Search For Wok......

Well, it turns out choosing a job can be quite annoying, even stressful! The aforementioned Tropical Island Dream fell through, partly due to our wonderful Scottish accent, to a Canadian couple. Don't be shocked by this mild discrimination however, as you will soon find out that Koreans have the potential to be quite racist, to some degree, and it is prevalent in many corners of the country! Indeed, there are numerous stories of coloured teachers being left stranded at the airport once their skin colour was noted, and signs such as "No Foreigners" on the threshold of many city stores. But we're prepared for this stuff, and the majority of Koreans are reknowned as being some of the most warm-hearted and welcoming people on the planet.

The actual search, which has been going for about 2 weeks almost, has thrown up about 100 different jobs, all of which have had something wrong with them. There's no point taking a job for a year, only to spend the whole year regretting not holding out for another few days for a better contract. The amount of different locations we have been offered has been staggering, and before even touching down on the peninsula, I feel my Korean geography is pretty decent! Off the top of my head (so excuse any spelling mistakes) we have had the chance to work in.........

Seoul, Busan, Daegu, Cheongju, Daejeon, Miryang, Yansang, Gwangju, Jinju, Incheon, Pohang, Ilsan, Mokpo, Ilsan, Bundang, Jeju-si, Ulsan, Masan City, Gumi, Guri, Suwon, Yongin, Uijebonju, Yeonsu, and Ansan.

Our dream of a beach looks to be over, as there are an oddly disproportionate amount of job offers for Busan, the 2nd biggest city (pop. 4.5mil) , and home of about 6 beaches.

So if we can't be by the sea, there's no point accepting a medium sized city, so our attention has turned towards Seoul. A ridiculously huge cosmopolitan metropolis, Seoul prides itself on being an international monster of a city, while still playing host to the vast majority of cultural landmarks and historical items. As with most Korean cities, it's vast concrete jungle is still literally shoulder to shoulder with endless forested mountain ranges and important temples. So even though we may add to the 12million populace, it will be very close to the countryside also.
And it goes without saying, in terms of nightlife, attractions, and activities, Seoul is well known to be at the top of it's game.

So then, we continue to look! A position in Ilsan seems promising, and it is a mere 15-20minute cab ride from the nightlife district of Seoul that most appeals to us, Hongdae. Fingers crossed!