Tefl in South Korea

cloneslad wrote: »

Hyperbaby

you are in Gwangju, have you met these people? Please for the love of god track them down and tell them I love them.

I could watch boring people on youtube all day, my girlfriend on the other hand wants to, and I quote 'put my thumb through their eyes'.

I've just discovered they have a blog, my god, I can't wait to read it.

I actually admire people for taking the time out to make these videos, I'm sure they help out a lot of people before they first move to korea.

ha ha this really cracked me up and i dont know why

I've got just under a week before I head off, so trying to get everything together now; have a few more questions for the oracle

I was thinking of bringing over an extension cable/multi-socket flex (the ones with 4 sockets and the lead which you plug into the wall socket); I was thinking that this way I could just get one adaptor to provide me with 4 outlets. Does anyone know if that would work; or would it overload the wall socket; or not provide enough power to the extension lead?

Is there anywhere here in Ireland that I could pick up an adaptor? Did I read that the sockets in korea are like those "on the continent" in Europe e.g. germany?


Also, has anyone flown through Abu Dhabi (I think you mentioned that you had cloneslad); I'm just wondering what the duty free is like in the airport; would it be possible to pick up something like a harddrive there for a reasonable price, or perhaps even a laptop?


Oh, ya, and it's probably a bit late to be asking this, but do I need to get any inocculations before coming to korea?

roosh wrote: »

I've got just under a week before I head off, so trying to get everything together now; have a few more questions for the oracle

I was thinking of bringing over an extension cable/multi-socket flex (the ones with 4 sockets and the lead which you plug into the wall socket); I was thinking that this way I could just get one adaptor to provide me with 4 outlets. Does anyone know if that would work; or would it overload the wall socket; or not provide enough power to the extension lead?

That's what I did when I was going over the second time. It's very handy to have and saves on adapters and finding sockets to stick them in.

I brought over two of them. I bought them in asda for about €5. I also bought the ones with the power surge protection on them for added safety.

Is there anywhere here in Ireland that I could pick up an adaptor? Did I read that the sockets in korea are like those "on the continent" in Europe e.g. germany?

Most electronic stores - currys, argos, pc world or the likes will have them. They are the normal round sockets / plugs found in europe and on electric razors at home. They look like this

Also, has anyone flown through Abu Dhabi (I think you mentioned that you had cloneslad); I'm just wondering what the duty free is like in the airport; would it be possible to pick up something like a harddrive there for a reasonable price, or perhaps even a laptop?

Yeah, it's actually quite decent. There are a lots of shops there. I came very close to breaking an expensive camera when I was there, so I just put it back on the shelf and walked away. They had hard drives, laptops, playstations etc.

The hard drives (from what I remember) weren't very expensive, I don't think they were as cheap as you'd get them online but they were a reasonable enough price. As for laptops, I didn't really take an interest in them. I bought a netbook from dell before I went to Korea. It cost me €250 inc delivery and it was great to have with me as it was so light, small and easy to carry with me everywhere.

Oh, ya, and it's probably a bit late to be asking this, but do I need to get any inocculations before coming to korea?

No, you'll be fine. I never got any, though you would be recommended to get hepatitus A and B done, especially if travelling around s.e asia too. (it's too late to do this now as it takes 3-6 months to get all the boosters). You'll also need about 3-4 other shots if you're going s.e asia bound.

I would get on to it though shortly after you arrive, as they can be expensive enough to get and it's nice to break down the price into smaller amounts over the course of time.

Oh and a big tip for you, if you are going anywhere that requires malaria medication, be sure to go to your doctor for your prescription of tablets while you still have your health insurance. I got 6 weeks worth of tablets (9 tablets I think) for 10,000won. My friend paid 180,000 for 15 tablets. He was paying more per tablet than I was for 9.

I'm starting with EPIK next week; the reason I went with EPIK as opposed to a private school was because I wanted to work regular hours.

I used reach to teach recruitment agency, and they were extremely helpful, and a guy I did the CELTA with used them as well - he's gone through the phone interview stage already, so it appears to be going well.

You can apply directly through the Korean consulate also, but it might be just as handy to go through an agency.

Obviously I haven't worked with EPIK yet, so I can't really recommend them, but as I say, the working hours were what dictated my decision.

roosh wrote: »

Does anyone know if a visa debit card will work in Korea? I presume it should, but don't want to take it for granted. Just wondering if I can lodge money to my account and then draw out won at an ATM, or would I be better off carrying euro in cash?

It will work, though most likely it won't work on every machine.

You'd be better off taking a lump sum of Euro in cash and converting it to Won upon arrival. Then you can find machines that will definitely take your card and you can withdraw some money there, should you need it.

Galway1987 wrote: »

livinginkorea wrote: »

Anyone hear about the Asian Games in Suwon this weekend? Would love to have a look and meet some people. The Tanaiste will be in Korea this weekend too for trade and such.

Yes, i'm playing in them. It's going to be a class weekend.

Which team are you playing for?

I just found out that I will be teaching in an elementary school in Yongsan-gu, Central Seoul. Does anyone know what this area is like?

There are 42 teachers in my school. Does anyone know if that would indicate that there might be other foreign teachers there?

I have to do orientation starting 21 October. Anyone know how long that takes? Is it one week?

Thanks.

I'm going to the AGG too!

what's the story with the public school year, does anyone know; what holidays do the kids get?

Just checked and my summer holidays were July 20th to august 24th with two weeks holidays and camps the rest of the time.

Be warned also, if your school is decent and gives you a few days extra instead of desk warming, DO NOT tell and of the other foreign teachers in your area as a lot of them can end up complaining and your days off will disappear. It's how desk warming came about.

ekevosu wrote: »

I'm in elementary and our winter holidays are from 28th December till feb 6th or 8th or something. As you're in gangwon you'll have three weeks to take during that time and probably do a camp or two the rest of the time. For the public schools here in my county anyway you must take the holidays in blocks, not a couple od days here and there. Also if you take a week where there happens to be a public holiday, that will count as one of your days so beware.

ekevosu wrote: »

Just checked and my summer holidays were July 20th to august 24th with two weeks holidays and camps the rest of the time.

Be warned also, if your school is decent and gives you a few days extra instead of desk warming, DO NOT tell and of the other foreign teachers in your area as a lot of them can end up complaining and your days off will disappear. It's how desk warming came about.

cheers ekevosu, I was wondering what kind of holidays the kids got and what normally happens when they are on hols, but it appears as though "camps" is the answer.

one of my best friends is getting married on August 31st next year, so I'll have to try and blag something for that. is there anywhere that has a list of the public holidays for 2012 do you know?

cloneslad wrote: »

Our good friends in Gwangju made another song.

Aww, I need to meet these people.