korea :: seoul :: general

[dismalfuture]

Kangnam-yuk CGV

[thomas_highstreet]

pretty nuts out here at the moment.. lucky my house doesnt get flooded, but got some leaks in the roof

saw one photo of gangnam (or sillim - not sure) where a whole intersection had floated up... crazy shit.

[Leeacto]

Hey guys. I've got a question that maybe you can help out with.

I'm leaving my job (in Chicago) on Nov 1 or so. They're giving a decent severance, so I'd like to take probably 2 weeks to travel. Since I was born in Korea (and adopted to US), I know nothing of it. I'd like to check it out, and heard the fall season is pretty nice.

In two weeks, would it be more fun to spend time in Seoul or Busan? I don't know anyone in Korea, so I'd probably just stay in hostels and hang out/meet people.

As far as official stuff, what would I need to get? I know this is a big travel-newb question, but my fam didn't go on vacations as a kid and I've never had time/money til now. I had dual citizenship in Korea til I was about 13 or 14. I don't know if that makes a difference.

What's some good touristy-local stuff to do?

[thomas_highstreet]

[dismalfuture]

holy fucking shit, what in the world does that have to do with water falling from the sky?

[dismalfuture]

Hey guys. I've got a question that maybe you can help out with.

I'm leaving my job (in Chicago) on Nov 1 or so. They're giving a decent severance, so I'd like to take probably 2 weeks to travel. Since I was born in Korea (and adopted to US), I know nothing of it. I'd like to check it out, and heard the fall season is pretty nice.

In two weeks, would it be more fun to spend time in Seoul or Busan? I don't know anyone in Korea, so I'd probably just stay in hostels and hang out/meet people.

As far as official stuff, what would I need to get? I know this is a big travel-newb question, but my fam didn't go on vacations as a kid and I've never had time/money til now. I had dual citizenship in Korea til I was about 13 or 14. I don't know if that makes a difference.

What's some good touristy-local stuff to do?

As far as requirements, (and don't be that dude from a few pages back who tried to fight with me about visas and then asked me the difference between an alien card and a visa) - all you need are two things: 1) a passport, and 2) a return flight with the plane home within 90 days of you arriving - you should get a tourist visa that way. Double check with your consulate for sure, because nobody in Korean immigration/consulates are in sync, they're the worst human beings ever actually, but technically, those are the rules.

As for what you should do - if you have the time and a decent amount of money ( you can slum for like 1500 a month) you could get a boarding house room or a motel room and then just eat and drink as much as you want to everyday. There's expensive shit out here, but you don't even need to see it if you can't afford to laugh it off as a novelty and partake, it's Koreans selling bottles of Jack Daniels for $150, etc. Nosebleed prices bring the tail around late at night but those girls still have to fill up on cheap food and pre-drink at normal places before hand. Theres tons of 'normal' Korea to explore and it's all cheap still, for the time being.

I've never been to Busan, never felt compelled to really, but I was born there, but Seoul has everything, the rest of Korea has nothing, basically. I've been to the countryside a few times and have never wanted to get back home so much in my life. Korean camping trips are usually weird log cabins, semi-homoerotic man groping sessions, eating basic K-BBQ and drinking makkoli and soju, waking up hungover, going home.

[Leeacto]

That's pretty much exactly what I'm looking for. Thanks a bunch.

Do you have an idea of how long it takes consulates and whatnot to get their shit together? Meaning, should I get there sooner rather than later to have stuff in order?

[JDM]

you just need to call and ask just in case

but mos tlikely if u have a us passport, you just need a return ticket and your granted a tourist visa when you enter. u dont have to apply for a tourist visa

[Boardish]

if you are travelling alone and only for two weeks, staying in an hostel might be a good option. Of course it's not always comfortable (depends which one, what kind of room, etc.), but you will meet other travelers and will be able to get some help from the staff (which is helpful if you can't speak korean obviously).

It's really easy to book online too.

[thomas_highstreet]

As far as requirements, (and don't be that dude from a few pages back who tried to fight with me about visas and then asked me the difference between an alien card and a visa) - all you need are two things: 1) a passport, and 2) a return flight with the plane home within 90 days of you arriving - you should get a tourist visa that way. Double check with your consulate for sure, because nobody in Korean immigration/consulates are in sync, they're the worst human beings ever actually, but technically, those are the rules.

As for what you should do - if you have the time and a decent amount of money ( you can slum for like 1500 a month) you could get a boarding house room or a motel room and then just eat and drink as much as you want to everyday. There's expensive shit out here, but you don't even need to see it if you can't afford to laugh it off as a novelty and partake, it's Koreans selling bottles of Jack Daniels for $150, etc. Nosebleed prices bring the tail around late at night but those girls still have to fill up on cheap food and pre-drink at normal places before hand. Theres tons of 'normal' Korea to explore and it's all cheap still, for the time being.

I've never been to Busan, never felt compelled to really, but I was born there, but Seoul has everything, the rest of Korea has nothing, basically. I've been to the countryside a few times and have never wanted to get back home so much in my life. Korean camping trips are usually weird log cabins, semi-homoerotic man groping sessions, eating basic K-BBQ and drinking makkoli and soju, waking up hungover, going home.

pretty much on point.

i would add though that busan is kinda cool in the summer, i mean, its got a proper beach and lots of tasty birds in bikinis etc. but that wont be happening around autumn time..

i think its worth a visit perhaps, but i definately wouldnt choose it as your base. its not really got that much there, its like an intensely watered down seoul by the sea, or a hyped small town.

these are only my opinions from brief encounters though (been down maybe 5or6 times?).... i am sure there is more to do, but if i was to take a trip out of seoul i'd rather go somewhere with a bit more contrast rather than just being a slightly less enthusiastic version of the same.... no-where to reccomend really, but some little town in the sticks would be quite funny i guess, for a visit.

for a 2 week trip, i thought you could slum for less, but adding it all up now 1500 would be a good ammount to go for. its enough for all your basic living in seoul, a quick trip, and a few good boozing sessions. maybe even cop a few pairs of 2NE1 socks with that too.

[dismalfuture]

if you are travelling alone and only for two weeks, staying in an hostel might be a good option. Of course it's not always comfortable (depends which one, what kind of room, etc.), but you will meet other travelers and will be able to get some help from the staff (which is helpful if you can't speak korean obviously).

It's really easy to book online too.

There are not really any good hostels in Seoul for the general traveler. In Asia, it's always far better to try and get a cheap love hotel room for 20-30 bucks a night if you're looking for bargain basement accomodations.

[Boardish]

There are not really any good hostels in Seoul for the general traveler. In Asia, it's always far better to try and get a cheap love hotel room for 20-30 bucks a night if you're looking for bargain basement accomodations.

I went to Seoul last year and stayed there 1 month only sleeping in hostels (tried 3-4). It's probably cheaper and better quality wise to stay in a love motel, I never tried, but at the time it was easier for me to book an hostel. Of course it wasn't as good as hostels in europe (not as much choice) but it did the job. I met koreans and other travelers there, which made my trip better. If you know no one in Korea, it might be ''easier'' to make friends and meet people in an hostel.

If I had to go back though, now that I know a bit about Seoul, I would probably go for the love motels as you can't find a decent 30$/night single room in an hostel

[madeinkorea23]

dismal and dizz, very sad i did not get to see you guys again this summer.

I just returned to the states and damn these past 2 weeks were insane. I came to realize certain things about Korea this trip though...

- money is truly like water here.

- everything was damn expensive.

- you really need to have money in korea to have a good time.

after a couple nights at ellui and hitting up karaoke's with the homies, i seriously spent about 3k USD and all i have left are some insane memories or lack of? due to blacking out so many times and many receipts that show how badly we got ass fucked price wise. Keeping in touch with some of the girls i met in korea thanks to kakao and one of them happens to be this 보더 girl that was assigned to our room at karaoke and shes 19 and she seems like a chill girl. I honestly feel bad for her but maybe cause im not used to seeing such young girls hustling like this to get their designer fix. Overall, i had fun but i'm ready to start working now back in the states but i'll def. be back in winter for some more mayhem.

[dismalfuture]

haha. Korea's been expensive for awhile now man, I guess you don't come around often enough... 3 stacks in 2 weeks is pretty good, considering all you did was hit up water joints with people.

[madeinkorea23]

haha yeah i never understood how expensive korea was until this year since we actually went to clubs and sooljibs. One night, my boy just took care of a 2000dollar tab for me and another friend at a karaoke and i still had to use 3000 for like a total of 4-5 nights of going out. Weekdays i stayed home usually but man was it hard to hang with korean style drinking. lets try meet up next time dismal!

[JDM]

can anyone direct me to a shop that will fix my wallet? the stitching came apart

[dismalfuture]

could try the repair shops around Myongdong that run alongside CGV across from Lotte, they all repair designer bags.

[realz]

Heres an event that might interest everyone here. Major Lazer is dope.

August 11th 2011

D SUMMER NIGHT (Dry Finish D 1st Anniversary Party)

1 international dance music duo. 2 K-pop mega stars. 1 Hollywood rocker. 4 Live DJ’s. 2 mega producers. 2 Visual artists. 1 towering cake. 1 ton of confetti. 1 6 ft†ladder. 20,000 bottles of beer on the wall. 4000 party people. 1 stage. 1 night only.

LIVE! Performances by :

MAJOR LAZER (featuring Diplo & Switch)

GD & TOP (featuring G-dragon & T.O.P.)

THE PRETTY RECKLESS

DJ Sets by :

DJ MURF & CHOICE 37 (Seoulcialite/YG)

BENJAMIN (Seoulcialite/TTLS)

BRANDON NEVILLE (Seoulcialite)

This invitation does not guarantee admission.

Please arrive early as this event WILL reach maximum capacity.

FREE EVENT!!! [email protected]

LIKE! THE FACEBOOK.COM/SAGENCY FAN PAGE FOR YOUR CHANCE TO WIN VIP TICKETS.

[ROYALEFATALE]

is the entire korean party scene one big late pass? plz someone tell me there are smaller clubs/bars with future/relevant music?

[ruach]

Goddamn Taebaek in the summertime is great. Lower 20s with little humidity. It is going to be hard to beat the memory of drinking with old coal miners at some seedy noraebang.

[kcsnacks]

dismal and dizz, very sad i did not get to see you guys again this summer.

I just returned to the states and damn these past 2 weeks were insane. I came to realize certain things about Korea this trip though...

- money is truly like water here.

- everything was damn expensive.

- you really need to have money in korea to have a good time.

after a couple nights at ellui and hitting up karaoke's with the homies, i seriously spent about 3k USD and all i have left are some insane memories or lack of? due to blacking out so many times and many receipts that show how badly we got ass fucked price wise. Keeping in touch with some of the girls i met in korea thanks to kakao and one of them happens to be this 보더 girl that was assigned to our room at karaoke and shes 19 and she seems like a chill girl. I honestly feel bad for her but maybe cause im not used to seeing such young girls hustling like this to get their designer fix. Overall, i had fun but i'm ready to start working now back in the states but i'll def. be back in winter for some more mayhem.

man i found korea to be cheap! but then again i was with my gf and her friends most of the time and had many things paid for.. and didn't wild out as hard as you.. but i ended spending abour 2,300,000 won over two weeks with a grand in aud left over on my last day, and even 900 korean bucks left.. i guess it depends where you go.. i wish i got to drink alot more than i did alcohol prices in aus are ridiculous

[ruach]

Came across this English article article about a Tibet restaurant in Myeongdong and all of the redevelopment craziness going on there. Interesting read: http://koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/special/2011/07/177_91687.html

I've been to the restaurant a couple times now and it is really great. Definitely recommend it.

There is also a new squat/venue that is operating as the protest central for the area. Right next to (the now closed) Chungang Cinema. They are going to start having concerts from next Friday. Just after I leave.. https://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=262972263717765

[madeinkorea23]

man i found korea to be cheap! but then again i was with my gf and her friends most of the time and had many things paid for.. and didn't wild out as hard as you.. but i ended spending abour 2,300,000 won over two weeks with a grand in aud left over on my last day, and even 900 korean bucks left.. i guess it depends where you go.. i wish i got to drink alot more than i did alcohol prices in aus are ridiculous

korea can definitely be either cheap or really expensive. Its fun to grab cheap soju with friends and have really good cheap food but we just wanted to go crazy this time and each night would come out to like 2000 bucks which is why the money just kept leaking out of the pockets. clubbing, room salon's, etc are crazy pricy. But then again, clubbing in korea is cheaper than clubbing in Vegas. Just went to a booking club in Ktown this past weekend in LA and i must say, it made me realize how much i miss korea.

[ruach]

Definitely depends on how you approach things. I just got back from a two week trip and managed to spend just under $500. Looking at my transactions, I'm not quite sure how I managed it. I am able to stay for free, but still ate tons of amazing food, did an awful lot of drinking, and took a couple trips outside of Seoul.

[thomas_highstreet]

IMHO the fun to be had in Korea is getting sideways in suljibs and cooking up intense amounts of Sam gyup sals at the pension with the broz. - though I guess my life has changed quite a bit since I first visited Seoul in 08...

I never got the appeal of room salons and night clubs though.. Aren't they a bit outdated? Surely it's clubs and motels with a loose beaze these days?

[beatplusmelody]

How would you boys suggest getting from Japan to Korea? Cheapest way possible of course. Am spending 30 days in Japan and have some friends in Korea who would be happy to host me so I’m thinking about crossing it off my list of places given the opportunity.

[ruach]

You can take a ferry from Fukuoka to Busan for about $100. The trip from Busan up to Seoul is also cheap. The only costly thing could be getting to Fukuoka, depending on how far you are from there and how quickly you want to get down there.

[raddy]

I've always wanted to do the fukuoka-busan hydrofoil thing -- I'm pretty sure the JR "fast" one is 24000 yen round trip which ended up not being much cheaper than flying. (It's not on JR pass either)

My guess would be the cheapest way is the japan air pass from wherever to fukuoka, assuming that 100$ per hop thing still exists, and then taking a cheap overnight ferry.

[eddyz]

i think jeju air offers osaka to Jeju now?

I've been away from Korea for a month now, and I miss Samgyupsal + soju so much. Is just not the same elsewhere.

[thomas_highstreet]

It depends where your flying to and from..

I've done Seoul Tokyo, Seoul Osaka, Busan Kyushu, Busan Fukouka..

What I'd say is if your trying to do it on a tight budget make sure you factor in every costing.. Sometimes the boat trip doesn't save you anything atall after you cost the domestic transit both sides.

And don't use the slow ferry, I made that mistake once. Well worth the extra few quid to use the Beatle/kobee foils. Better stil fly.

I only use the foils when I'm already in busan (my gyaldem is from the south) and need to quickly renew my visa and don't want to have to do all my social calls in Tokyo.

If you don't mind the long travel you will save a bit, but I've seen very good airfares from Nagoya to Seoul which would be cheaper all in all as you won't need two long distance train rides.

If you want to do that you can take a cheap overnight bus (willer travel) from Tokyo to Nagoya, fly out to Seoul and it's like the price of two beers to get anywhere in Seoul from the airport on the coaches.

Boat = sweaty, tiring, only worth it if your already in fukoaka and heading for busan. Take the foil not the scummy ferry.

Nagoya flight = probably best balance of cost/comfort, might even run cheaper than the foil if domestic travel needed.

Proper flight (direct, no hassle) = self explanatory.