I still remember the first time I got sick in Hyehwa. It was a freezing December night, my throat felt like broken glass, and I walked into a clinic near Hyehwa Station thinking I could just point at my throat and grunt. The receptionist handed me a clipboard full of Korean forms, the doctor spoke … Read more
I still remember standing in a Hyehwa bank branch, clutching a stack of papers, sweating through my shirt while a teller politely told me my alien registration card wasn’t enough. I had already been rejected at two other branches that week. If you’re a foreigner trying to open a bank account in Korea, especially in … Read more
I still remember my first week in Bundang back in 2014. I stood at a bus stop near Seohyeon Station, staring at a digital display that seemed to be counting down the arrival time of a bus that simply never showed up. I had no idea that I needed to flag the driver down, or … Read more
I still remember the sinking feeling in my stomach when my real estate agent in Daejeon Dunsan told me, “You need to pay 10 million won in cash by tomorrow, or the landlord gives it to someone else.” I had just arrived with two suitcases, a confused look, and absolutely no understanding of how the … Read more
I still remember the pit in my stomach when my first boss in Suwon handed me a sealed envelope that felt way too thin. I opened it in my one-room apartment near Suwon Station and realized I was missing half my overtime pay. I was young, my Korean was terrible, and I genuinely believed that … Read more
I still remember the sheer panic of my first week in Pyeongtaek. I had just finished unpacking a mountain of Amazon boxes and a week’s worth of takeout containers from the local restaurants outside Camp Humphreys. I carried two huge black trash bags down to the curb, feeling like a normal adult. Ten minutes later, … Read more
I still remember my first week in Yongsan. I walked into a massive E-Mart near Yongsan Station, confident after years of shopping in the West, only to walk out 40 minutes later with nothing but a pack of tissues and a mild panic attack. I couldn’t figure out why the staff looked at me like … Read more
I remember standing in the middle of Hyehwa Station exit 2, clutching a melting latte, completely paralyzed by the sheer speed of the elderly woman power-walking toward me. I tried to step left; she stepped left. I stepped right; she stepped right. I froze, expecting a polite nod or a “sorry,” but she simply clicked … Read more
I remember standing at Suwon Station, sweating through my shirt in the middle of August, holding a map and looking completely lost. I was trying to find a specific restaurant recommended by a friend, but I couldn’t read the signs fast enough to keep up with the crowd. An elderly man stopped, looked at my … Read more
I still remember the sweat dripping down my back during my first week in Pyeongtaek. I had just arrived at Camp Humphreys, I was running on zero sleep, and I was trying to navigate the local bus system using a paper map because I didn’t have data. I walked into a random phone store near … Read more