I went to Korea. It was awesome. I lived in Uijeongbu (close to Seoul) and taught young Korean students at a private after-school academy. Here’s (some of) my story in 58 posts. If you’re here because you’re contemplating a move to Korea, first of all CONGRATS, and secondly DO IT! I hope this blog continues to serve as a helpful resource for those no longer able to fight the wanderlust.
āIām a big believer in improvising and getting lost.ā – Anthony Bourdain
mykoreaquest 
hi! I’m loving your blog! A friend of mine and I have an interview with ECC academy in Uijeoungbu… do you enjoy living outside seoul? We were hoping at first to find positions in Seoul but it seems harder then we had hoped… Is there any advice you could give us?
Thanks!
Hi Barbara! Thanks for reading, that’s exciting you have an interview. I know a lot of people would like to be in Seoul, but I am very close to Seoul in Uijeongbu. It takes about an hour on the subway and I usually go into Seoul every weekend. I like being in Uijeongbu – it is surrounded by mountains and a bit quieter – it is nice to come home to after a day / night in the city. There are not as many foreigners here, but I have met a lot of people and Uijeongbu pretty much has everything you need. We even have a huge Shinsegae department store and a new monorail that goes around the city. I don’t know much about ECC, my advice would be to ask during your interview if you can talk to a current teacher there. Every school is different. Let me know if you would like to talk more or Skype!
Good luck!
I would love your email or skype! We have a some more questions (if you don’t mind!!) Thanks so much! Your blog has been super helpful!
It’s amazing what you find when you spend time getting lost.
Very true, I am known to sometimes plan too much, it is good for me to let go and get lost.
I am not even sure how I came across your blog but I am from Boston and live in uijeongbu. I like to read about your adventures and start to plan mine because I just got here in july. Well I thought I would atleast say hello. Hope all is well.
Thanks for reading Ryan! We should meet up at some point, are you on the Uijeongbu FB page (Uijeongbu Crew)? I am having a roof party the first weekend in October, let me know if you’re around.
I joined the facebook page. What day is your party? I would love to meet some local people because I don’t know too many people here.
It may not seem like it at times, but there is a good group of foreigners here. I will try & find you on the FB page. It is the Friday after Chosok, October 5th.
I find your blog very inspiring, and have nominated you for the “Very Inspiring Blogger Award!”
To accept your nomination and award follow the steps in the link below:
http://derikandamandagrove.wordpress.com/2012/12/18/very-inspiring/
Thanks so much! I needed this, I have been ignoring my blog and this is the perfect motivation. Thanks again!
š Well, you deserve it.
I’m new to town, and being the sort who gets dinged up from time to time, am very interested in your friendly helpful acupuncture doc. Could you share?
Welcome Dan, thanks for reading! I have a business card somewhere, I will search around for it. I haven’t been to see the dr. in some time but I do highly recommend trying acupuncture in Korea. I went to a clinic close to a Lotte Mart in Uijeongbu, but if you ask around there are oriental clinics all over the city. I will try and find the correct contact information for you. Good luck!
I stumbled upon your blog months ago and found it such a motivation to continue in my quest applying to Chungdahm. Since then, I’ve been accepted and leave sometime next month…seeing your posts once again has given me the confidence that I’m making the right decision! Is there any way I can email you with some questions about basic logistics and tips for settling in?
This is the best kind of blog comment! I am so glad you decided to venture to the Land of Kimchi. Email away at drmeserve@gmail.com or I am on Twitter @devanrosey. There are so many fantastic people / resources to follow about life in Korea. Be well!
Hi,
I was reading some of your posts and the one “Call Me Maybe” really cracked me up. I am working on a project through my company and we are gathering some input from various English teachers. My company is WorkNPlay and you have a great way of story telling about your writing. If you would be interested in contributing some writing or want to know more please email me at tom.worknplay@gmail.com.
Tom Sollitt
WorkNPlay
Thanks Tom. I will be in touch!