5 Things We Wish We Knew Before Coming to Korea

1. The Korean school mentality isn't "oh look, it's Winter, let's turn on the heat and be warm;" it is that the germs need to be aired out to prevent sickness, which is more important than personal comfort. So this means, no matter the temperature, the windows WILL be open at school and probably other public places/places of work. We wish we would have known that despite the fact that it is 20F, the windows in the hall are always open (and classroom depending on your teacher), and heat is only sometimes on. That would have been nice to know while packing-bring LOTS of WARM WARM WARM sweaters to wear in school. We have heard that some schools refuse to turn on heat until December (really sad if it gets cold in November) or make you come in when you are the only teacher there during winter vacations with no heat. At school though all the Koreans (teachers&students) do just run around in their winter jackets all day while wearing blankets and holding electric hand warmers that look like ipods.

Winter coats are worn all
day due to the freezing cold. 

2. There are stores here that have clothing to fit a westerner. So in other words, you do not need to bring your entire wardrobe. Yes, pants will probably be something you would want to bring if you have long legs or a larger waist size, but both of us have bought a many articles of clothing while here without any issues. Maybe if placed in a small town it will be more difficult, but there is always the option of going to Seoul for a weekend for a shopping excursion, you can find clothes for any body type there. Also, don't bother bringing any socks other than athletic ones. We promise the ones you buy here will be far warmer and cuter than anything you bring from home. This does not however go for shoes... see number 3.

3. Although we knew that we would be changing to indoor shoes every day at work, somehow we didn't fully grasp the importance of bringing shoes that would be easy to take off upon arriving at school and slip on when going home. Flip flops and flats served us well until winter hit, but as it began getting colder, the need for warmer slip-ons became apparent. We both brought leather boots for the colder months, but sadly they don't slip on and off easily and we resorted to purchasing Ugg-style boots. Although we both managed, this is not the easiest task when you don't live in Seoul and your foot is larger than a women's 8. Moral of the story: if you are larger than an 8 bring something like this with you!

4. If you are like us and have recently arrived in Korea or are getting ready to come, you are in luck. Fairly recently (mid 2012) a trade pact between the US and South Korea finally kicked in, lifting tariffs on a wide range of products made in the US that were impossible/near impossible to get in Korea before. Many of the things that used to be impossible to find are now here, such as fluoride toothpaste, Doritos/Pringles/other western snacks, fitted sheets (very expensive still), various brands from home like Clean and Clear or Neutrogena, etc. Western food (burgers, pizza, pasta) is also much more common now, which is nice when you need a break from Korean everyday. Even things that aren't common in stores (e.g. Mountain Dew, Root Beer) can be found here and there in restaurants.

5. Working evening hours at a hagwon isn't as bad as it may seem. Teachers working at hagwons (private academies) work evening hours instead of regular school day hours, something neither of us were keen on for various reasons. One of these reasons was that we assumed most people would be working a normal 9 to 5 schedule so it would be hard to meet people if we worked nights. However, this isn't the case. There is a large community of expats working at hagwons so there is plenty to get involved with and plenty of people to befriend during the normal working day. We are still very glad we ended up working at Sahmyook Elementary School, but realize that working at hagwons wouldn't have been the end of the world.