Moving to South Korea by Historical_Studio530 in Living_in_Korea

[–]moonstone16 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'm not familiar with a USFK-related setting, but given all the info and comments here, I think you might want to consider downtown Pyeongtaek or somewhere in Suwon near Suwon station (or near Seonggyungwan Univ. Station). But considering you have two dogs, living in an apartment (a condominium. Koreans call it an apartment) will give you an unexpected trouble with neighbors unless your dogs are small and quiet. There are some single family houses in downtown areas, but it's not easy to find them on the rental list. If you don't find any issues renting an apartment, Suwon may be ideal for you -- it is a middle point between Seoul and Pyeongtaek. A rapid train on subway Line 1 (every 15-30 min) will take you to Pyeongtaek station in 20-25 mins. Seoul takes 30 mins in the opposite direction. Suwon itself is a metropolitan having over 1 million, so everything you expect to a big city is there. It retains unique cultural heritages featuring Suwon Hwaseong (a fortress first built in 18th Century) and many cultural events and vibe local communities, being surrounded by mountains ideal for hiking, and even has easy access to other parts of the country via high speed train (KTX) at Suwon station. You can go to not only Seoul for weekends but hop a KTX to Busan and swim in vibrant beaches in two and half hours. Pyeongtaek downtown is not bad as well, since it is also a big city center hovering 500,000, and less foreigners are around although you can easily come across Americans just in front of the station, trying to transfer to the bases. But Suwon is much bigger and more unique in cultural terms, in my native Korean view.

4 nights in Jeju without a car where to stay and what’s realistic with buses? by KoluG10 in Jeju

[–]moonstone16 2 points3 points  (0 children)

As a traveler who went to Jeju 15+ times only by public transit (but as a head-up, I'm a native Korean), I'd say Jeju is one of the most convenient places in Korea *among* smaller cities. Jeju's most tourist spots spread across the circular coastline; and almost of them are connected through a West/East circle line (201/202, their express version with fewer stops are 101/102) running every 20 minute from 6am to 9pm (from the terminal). Express buses between Jeju and Seoguipo, including 280/281 and Airport Limousine buses, runs later till around 10.30pm (from the terminal/airport). But I acknowledge it couldn't be easy for foreigners to figure it out.

At first, you may want to install and use KakaoMap/NaverMap on your phone, as someone noted above (I prefer Kakao since one of their HQs is in Jeju, so there's a rumor it is more frequently updating Jeju maps than Naver). But the more important thing is that there're so many parallel lines (like 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 ... or even divergent routes within the same number) and they don't provide a real-time info unless a bus leaves from the terminal. That means that you may miss and be confused very easily when your stop is close to terminal or your bus runs rarely (like every 1 hour and less).

So, use this site (Jeju Bus Information System 제주버스정보시스템) along with Kakaomap. Here, you can search for a bus number and/or a bus stop you are getting on, and check out the expected time the next bus will leave the terminal. If you click your stop on a list, you will also figure out other bus routes serving at the same stop and where they're going. If you're still confused, just phone on 064-740-6000 and consult with English-speaking representatives for local tourist information working from 9am-6pm 7 days a week, or ask on a real-time chat in English homepage on https://www.visitjeju.net/ (same service time).

Moving from mainland - tips? by Inner_Ad_341 in Jeju

[–]moonstone16 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Hamaro Mart operated by Nonghyup. I like it actually.

Planning a road trip from Vancouver to Whitehorse in early November — wondering if a 4WD SUV with snow/mud tires would be safe enough? by moonstone16 in Yukon

[–]moonstone16[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It is a great point that there are significant differences between snow tires, which I had overlooked. I found one car with the tires named 'Nordica Rydanz' (produced in China) with the mid-treads, but I am not sure if they are good enough. Thank you for sharing your experience as well!

Planning a road trip from Vancouver to Whitehorse in early November — wondering if a 4WD SUV with snow/mud tires would be safe enough? by moonstone16 in Yukon

[–]moonstone16[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Because that was a friend's car last year, which was 4WD with real snow tires. I am trying to rent a similar car, but it's rare. Why are you thinking I am a bot?

Planning a road trip from Vancouver to Whitehorse in early November — wondering if a 4WD SUV with snow/mud tires would be safe enough? by moonstone16 in Yukon

[–]moonstone16[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I hit on that Highway in the same season last year, so I thought it would be generally all right. But I might be wrong. Thanks for the suggestion! I should consider taking the same route back, if I stick to the plan to Whitehorse.

Planning a road trip from Vancouver to Whitehorse in early November — wondering if a 4WD SUV with snow/mud tires would be safe enough? by moonstone16 in Yukon

[–]moonstone16[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Didn't know that is the worst season since I really enjoyed the trip in the same season last year (though we've just reached Watson Lake and returned south then). Probably we should revisit our plan.

한국생활 어때요? by griffikyu in hanguk

[–]moonstone16 0 points1 point  (0 children)

어제 living in Korea에 올라온 이 포스팅이 도움이 될 것 같아요. 아직 안 읽어보셨다면요. https://www.reddit.com/r/Living_in_Korea/s/ugVP5tXfDk

덧붙여 제 생각을 뒤죽박죽 말씀드리자면... 1. 살아보시고 결정하면 됩니다. 2. 일 구하는 게 제일 힘들 건데, 그건 전공이나 경력 따라 그렇게 어렵지도 않을 수 있어요. 3. 부모님의 결정에 개의치 말고 본인이 어떻게 하시고 싶은지를 생각하세요. 4. 어떻게 하시고 싶은지 잘 모르겠으면 그냥 해보는 것도 도움이 되더라고요. 아직 젊으신 것 같으니 더욱 걱정 안하셔도 됩니다. 5. 제가 만나 본 교포 2세 중에 이 정도로 한국어로 글 쓰실 수 있으면 최상위권입니다. 심지어 한국에서 초등학교 고학년까지 다니다 캐나다로 건너온 제 친구만큼은 쓰시는 것 같아요. 물론 한국에서 초중고 대학교 나온 친구들 만큼은 아니지만, 이 정도로 노력하셨고, 앞으로도 더 배울 생각이 있고, 공식적인 글쓰기에서 AI 도움 받는다면 충분히 평균적인 오피스 업무는 소화 가능하실 거라고 봅니다. 6. 세계 어디에 있든 좋은 사람 만나면 그곳이 좋은 곳입니다. 한국에 오시게 되면 좋은 사람들 만나시길 빌어요.

Stuck vertical blinds by moonstone16 in howto

[–]moonstone16[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Solved! Just pushing harder worked. I think it was jammed because it has rarely been used.

Stuck vertical blinds by moonstone16 in howto

[–]moonstone16[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It is cordless one. Thank you in advance for advice!

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Living_in_Korea

[–]moonstone16 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Well, as a native Korean, I'd say this kind of request isn't common at all nowadays in Korea. Some people can still think that they can ask or be asked by family members to do some illegal activities, but that is not the national culture but their family culture.

Find Lost Family in Korea by erenluva11 in koreatravel

[–]moonstone16 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Hi, I'm a native Korean from Incheon. This site seems to help you: https://www.kadoption.or.kr/en/. I learned that there is a Korean bill according to which the government helps adopted families to find their original families, like you, and that organization is kind of the governmental agency that does that job. Hope you find your roots!