Iphone in Korea

The iPhone has arrived!!! Finally, Korea has permitted its citizens to join the iPhone craze. Starting in the end of November, Apple's iPhones have been selling like hotcakes to Koreans and foreigners alike. Little by little I've noticed that the Apple lifestyle has really been catching on in the South Korean peninsula and now its followers can finally complete their collections with this new smart phone.

Despite the craze, there have also been many negative points brought up by Koreans and foreigners alike. First, many purchasers have had issues with the functioning and support services of their iPhones. Like all newly bought Apple products, there is a warranty and you are able to receive technical support from the all that is Apple whizzes at any authorized Apple retailer. However, the problem with the iPhone is that should you come across a problem, it will need to be sent abroad and there's no guarantee how long the actual reparation might take. Another issue that people have, foreigners in particular, is that they can't benefit from the monthly payment plan for the actual telephone (over a span of 2 years.) Foreigners who are seeking to purchase iPhones independently--meaning without the help of a Korean national--are obligated to pay for the iPhone up front, which can be quite costly! Finally, iPhone users in Korea are concerned with the fact that only one cell phone service provider is available currently. (KTF)

Since the apparition of the iPhone 3G and 3Gs, blogs and websites dedicated to everything concerning the iPhone have popped up all over the Internet. iPhone in Korea, for example, is a regularly updated website that has information, tips and news about this much hyped mobile.

There are a few options when it comes to payment plans. See below for prices and what each plan includes :
~ 45,000 KRW/month --> 200 minutes of call time
500 MB of data
300 text messages
* 32 GB 3Gs = 396,000 KRW ; 16 GB 3Gs = 264,000 KRW

~ 65,000 KRW/month --> 400 minutes of call time
1000 MB of data
300 text messages
* 32 GB 3Gs = 264,000 KRW ; 16 GB 3Gs = 132,000 KRW ; 8 GB
3G = free

~ 95,000 KRW/month --> 800 minutes of call time
3 GB of data
300 text messages
* 32 GB 3Gs = 132,000 KRW ; 16 GB 3Gs and 8 GB 3G = free

If you're interested in purchasing the iPhone in Korea, it would be best to have a Korean friend that knows and trusts you to help you with this. Otherwise, it'll be a lot of cash money up front!

Enjoy the photos of our iPhone adventure!

Classroom Ideas--Lesson Plan Template (elementary)

Below is a lesson plan template that is aimed at elementary age groups, 3rd graders more precisely. It includes goals and activities for the prepositions of location. Have fun with this lesson plan and of course, feel free to add some of your own personal flair to make it your own! It also may need to be adjusted according to the level of your students or size of your class.
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It's Under the Table

Objective : Students will be able to ask and answer questions regarding the location of objects using common prepositions of location.
~ Students will be able to hear phrases containing prepositions and understand the referenced
location of objects. (Listening)
~ Ask and answer questions regarding the location of items. (Speaking)
~ Recognize, read and understand the words : box, in, on, pencil case, table, and under.
(Reading)
~ Write the letters : Kk, Ll, Mm, Nn, Oo in English and be able to distinguish the difference
between lower case and capital letters. (Writing)

Show the students pictures of a box, pencil case and table. Even better, have those items physically present to show the students when a pencil case is under a table or in a box. Using your props, ask the students questions of location, so that they may have initial experience using the prepositions of location in relation to the items you have in the classroom.

Communicative structures and language functions used :
Communicative structures
~ Location Question : Where is my pencil case?
~ Location Confirmation : It is under the table.
Language functions
~ Where is _____________________ ? It's ____________ _____ ___________.

Practice this question and answer set with the students aloud. You can ask them the question and they can give you the answer. Next, pair them into partners and give them the chance to ask each other using vocabulary that they already know to change the question and answer set, but to continue practicing the objective structures.
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Have fun with this one! It shouldn't take up too much time, but you may be able to think of things that you can add to it in order to spice it up and give the students more exposure to these grammar ideas! Good luck! If you have any other unique ideas to add to this lesson, please let us know!

Christmas in Korea

Christmas in a foreign country is almost guaranteed to be different than what you may be used to. While in Korea, Christmas is celebrated by some Koreans and foreigners alike, the festivities and events leading up to this huge holiday are somewhat different. However, many teachers here find ways to fight off holiday homesickness and create traditions of their own to get into that holiday spirit in their temporary home away from home.

You might notice in Korea that holiday decorations don't start coming out until when it's actually cold enough to wear a winter jacket. (Unlike some countries where once Halloween is over, the Christmas flair is flung out in full force.) Christmas cards, candies, ornaments and the whole lot can be found, if you go to the right places. For example, many drug stores (i.e. Olive Young, Watsons, etc.) and department stores (i.e. Lotte, Hyundai, etc.) have festive decor and products. Some special places, like Lotte World, for example hold holiday spectacles and Christmas-themed events.

When the 25th arrives, you may find that many stores are open. Additionally, many Western restaurants and luxury hotels, in Seoul particularly, offer special Christmas meals. Last year a group of friends and I trekked to Itaewon--a popular foreigner hangout spot--to feast an a Christmas buffet at Gecko's Terrace. We all got together prior to the meal to have some Christmas drinks and do a White Elephant gift exchange.

This year's Christmas experience was quite different. The celebration took place mainly on Christmas Eve. A few friends and I got together for pizza and soju cocktails and then made our way to the luxurious and world-renowned W Hotel to get our dance on to the beat of a couple of French DJs that just happened to be friends of ours. Stereoheroes were on the 1s and 2s until 4 AM...Christmas Day...and after that we were all done for the evening. Below are some pictures from our holiday fiesta. I would highly encourage you to visit the W Hotel's WooBar if you'd like to have a seat in the lap of luxury if not just for one night!

FAQs Part 4

* I went to 2 different universities/have multiple degrees. From which one should I get the original diploma/degree certificate and 2 transcripts?
It is completely up to you from which university you would like to obtain your original diploma/degree certificate and transcripts. If you transferred while obtaining your bachelor's (or higher) degree, send the documents from the university at which you completed your degree. If you have a bachelor's and a higher degree, we would advise that you send the diploma and transcripts of the degree that has the most relevance to teaching EFL. If neither are relevant, then send whichever ones you'd like. You may want to consider which university is cheapest and fastest. Just remember-your diploma and transcripts must be of the same degree and from the same university!
* I'm a (your nationality here) citizen, but I'm currently residing in a foreign country. Do I have to return to my home country to get a visa?
While it'd be ideal and less paperwork for HandS Korea, you are not necessarily required to be in your home country in order to obtain your visa. Some visas can be obtained in Korea (i.e. F2 or F4 visa.) The E2 visa must be obtained outside of Korea unless you're going to renew it. If you are in a country that is not your country of citizenship, then you must sign a waiver to allow the Korean embassy in that country to do a check on your educational background. (HandS Korea will provide you with this form.) Once that check has been done, you will be able to get your visa in the country in which you are currently located. We tend to shy away from this option as it is quite a lengthy proces, but on rare occasions, we have made exceptions.

* Why so many emails, HSK?!?
...because we love you and always want to be with you in your inbox! Believe it or not, those pesky emails are meant to help you. The HSK team has worked hard to compile information that we think would be useful and practical for you to know while preparing to come to Korea. Even for those of you who are seasoned veterans of teaching English in Korea, the first few emails are aimed at helping you get to know who we are and to understand that we're people just like you! They eventually will stop, but if you don't want to receive them, you won't hurt our feelings. Just shoot us an email and let us know that you're not interested in receiving any more HSK emails and we'll take you off of our "list."

* I'm a vegetarian. Can I survive in Korea?
Some Koreans might be taken aback should you mention that you're a vegetarian. Food allergies and food lifestyles haven't quite yet caught on here. Fortunately, there are some options for you vegetarians out there. There are several vegetarian restaurants with Korean and other international menu options. Any Indian restaurant should have veggie options and even within the Korean cuisine, there's several choices for vegetarians. On the same note, vegans might find it a bit more daunting of a task to fulfill their vegan needs. While international supermarkets don't lack in Seoul, the quantity becomes less when you move outside of the Seoul metro area.

* I'm worried that 2.1 million to 2.4 million KRW won't be enough to survive and pay my bills both in Korea and back home.
You're not alone in this category. Many people try to bargain with schools to earn more than the general pay offerings. Their attempts are generally not met with success. While yes, 2.1 million KRW is nowadays approximately $1800 USD, we also ask you to remember that your apartment deposit and rent are paid for by your employer. Your income tax deduction is only 3.3% of your monthly gross salary. AND...Korea's not that expensive! (Especially when your rent is paid by someone other than yourself!) A one-way taxi ride across the city at normal fare period is less than 20,000 KRW. A one way bus/subway ride the same distance is 1,100 KRW (less than $1!!!) A hearty and filling meal at your local gimbap restaurant is 4,000-6,000 KRW maximum. Pair of jeans in a local shopping market is approximately 20,000 KRW. Things are affordable here and most teachers find themselves able to pay credit card bills, student loan bills, etc. and live comfortably!

Seorae Maeul Christmas Market

Seorae Maeul is a French neighborhood in Seoul, located in Banpo-dong, Gangnam-gu. It's just a small street with a variety of cafes and restaurants with a French flair. The sidewalks are adorned with the colors and pattern of the French flag and the street signs are all in Korean as well as French. Seorae Maeul (village) is home to many French expatriates who work for international companies, are restaurant proprietors, etc.
On Saturday December 5th, the inhabitants of this quarter set up their annual Christmas Market, or Marché de Noel from 10 AM to 4 PM. A lively festival with Koreans, French and others gathered together in Gingko Park. The space was small and crowded, but it was for the best as Seoul experienced its first real snow that Saturday morning. Some French friends of HSK joined us and the snow really added to the Christmas theme of this get together.Smiles were all around and there were a lot of traditional French products for the purchasing. Some included rillettes, vin chaud, and homemade crêpes with nutella. If you couldn't make it to this year's Marché de Noel, I'd highly encourage you to give it a try next year!

Teheranro Shut down

For those of you who are familiar with the roads around Gangnam station (green line 2); you may know or have experienced the heavy traffic on the two main roads intersecting this major subway station and popular hangout for many Koreans. The two main roads are : Gangnamdaero and Teheranro. Teheranro leads towards COEX mall and Jamsil stadium and in both directions, is very often jam-packed full of vehicles (especially around 9 AM and 5 PM.)
One day this year, the Seoul metropolitan transportation system offered relief from this usual mayhem. From Yeoksam station to Samsung station, Teheranro was closed off to all vehicles except for buses, taxis and motorcycles. It was definitely a sight to be seen as pedestrians roamed freely on the usually traffic jammed boulevard. Vendors and different organizations set up booths and were selling food and coffees and there were various activies to participate in on this day.
Furtheremore, buses passing by Teheranro offered free fare from 7 AM to 6 PM. I'm not sure if other major roads in Seoul do this, but it was definitely a sight for sore eyes and made the commute to work much quicker and efficient!

HSK Restaurant Review--Macaroni Market

Looking for a place to grab some gourmet mac and cheese? Macaroni and cheese from a box not doing the trick for you? Well, Seoul's got a great dish that can be found at Macaroni Market in Itaewon. Macaroni isn't the only exciting thing on the menu at Macaroni Market. (In fact, there's only one macaroni option on the menu.) The gourmet baguette sandwiches, poultry and meat dishes, and desserts are also worth taking a look at.
Once entering Macaroni Market, you'll feel as if you stepped into a contemporary and branchée lounge. The lighting is dim, the furniture is simplistic, and the music is calming. Although the seating is limited for the amount actual space in the restaurant, there is a lively buzz coming from the crowd. In addition to the restaurant, there is also a separate room that serves as a lounge. It includes plush furniture and dampered fluorescent lighting with more upbeat electronic music. The staff at Macaroni Market are dressed in simplet yet chic black pants and white collared shirts and are very happy and eager to accommodate as much as possible.The menu consists of somewhat of a variety of dishes, which makes it hard to identify exactly what genre of restaurant it is. Judging from the couple of times I visited there, I would classify Macaroni Market as contemporary Italian. The nice thing about Macaroni Market is that it uses authentic ingredients without resorting to Korean ingredients in order to appease the Korean palate. For example, the macaroni and cheese dish comes with 3 or 4 different kinds of imported cheeses and is garnished with french-fried onions. Delicious!
Every time I frequent Macaroni Market, I opt for the hearty and satisfying macaroni and cheese. Other dishes to try are the baguette sandwiches and the eggplant bruschetta. (The bruschetta choices change from day to day and rarely disappoint.)

To get to Macaroni Market, take exit 2 from Itaewon station (brown line 6) and walk straight past the Hard Rock Cafe and Helios bar and restaurant. You'll see Praha restaurant on your left and Macaroni Market is right above it.

Furniture shopping

Kiss My Kimchi made me think about moving and getting furniture recently. Not many teachers have an apartment with room enough to fit a couch, but I started looking around at good deals and for those of you who can manage to fit a small or full-sized couch in your apartment, here's some solutions!

First, Sadang Furniture Street is chalked full of owners who have small furniture stores ranging from chairs to bed sets. It was recently featured in the Joongang Daily newspaper. Sadang Furniture Street store owners boast cheaper prices than your average retailers and home furnishings at reduced prices, especially attractive to new home owners. To get to this furniture fiesta, take the subway to Isu station (olive green and light blue lines 7 and 4 respecitvely.) Take either exit 1 or 14 and you will see a medium-sized street full to the brim with small shops and vendors hanging around waiting to make their next sale.

Next, perhaps an even more economical option is Gmarket, which is an online shopping outlet with many different vendors competing for the cheapest prices of many different items. You name it, Gmarket has it. This Internet sales site has affordable prices and very quick delivery. You can also contact the sellers directly with questions and special delivery requests. (Also very practical for those of you with bigger shoe sizes and who are looking for cheap shoes in your size.)

Next is Craig'slist Korea, which is a well-known site for anything and everything. Often times, one can find FREE furniture for your apartment. The downside to Craig'slist is that you usually have to arrange for your own delivery on larger items. Prices are usually negotiable and like Gmarket, most sellers on Craigslist are able to be contacted with questions and special requests.

Finally, there's the most economical and perhaps most physically demanding option : dumpster diving. While you'll be hard up to find a dumpster in Seoul filled with couches, TV stands, reclining chairs, etc., you will often see things placed out on the side of the street for the garbage collectors to pick up. These things are more often than not OK for the taking. A helper or two may be needed in order to get the actual item from its place to its future home, but it's much cheaper than delivery. Give it a quick wipe down with bleach/cleaner and water and it's good to go!

These are only a few of the many options that exist in Korea for furniture seekers. Happy furniture hunting!

Thanksgiving in Korea

The holidays can make it particularly hard to be away from your home, family, and friends while you're in Korea. However, Korea's expat community has gathered together to help foreigners and Koreans alike observe and enjoy foreign holidays as traditionally as possible. More and more, restaurants, hotels, and caterers offer home delivery, specially prepared traditional meals, and holiday promotions to celebrate certain holidays.

This year, American Thanksgiving was no exception. Hotels such as the COEX Intercontinental and the Grand Hilton in Seoul offered Thanksgiving meal buffets which included turkey and all the fixin's and then some. The only downside to these festive options is the price. The cost for one person ranged from 50,000 KRW to almost 90,000 KRW!

Several restaurants offered a special T-day food fare as well as more affordable options. American-style and ethnic restaurants alike offered Thanksgiving buffets and set menus for approximately 40,000 KRW per person.

Finally, there's the DIY option. Many restaurants and the USO offered catering and delivery for a small fee. HSK and friends opted for this one and ordered 3 meals (2 turkey and 1 ham) with all the sides for a grand total of about $200 USD. Divided by 15 people attending the celebration, the total cost per person only came to about $15 USD. This was by far the most economic and seemingly traditional choice!After the dinner, we enjoyed cards, lively and animated discussion and drinks. Not quite the same as home, but a very nice second.

Fan Death TT

In ever culture there are myths and urban legends. In Korea, a major ongoing story is Fan Death. It is said that should one leave an electrical fan running over night with all windows closed, those inside the room could potentially perish due to suffocation or hypothermia. There is much debate surrounding this myth as many are convinced that it is real while others staunchly state that it is impossible.

Today, you'll hear the facts and you can make up your minds for yourselves!

There are many theories regarding this topic. A few of the many include :
~ The Korean government imposing this idea to reduce the waste of energy.
~ The circular motion of the fan blades can create a vacuum in which all the room's occupants' air will be taken from them because of this vacuum. The life is literally sucked out of them.
~ The fan blades cut up all of the oxygen molecules making them unusable to the beings that need them and therefore, those in the room will suffer from oxygen, or suffocation.

A Korean government organization also at one time supported this belief by making an official statement saying that fan death was one of the top 5 reasons for injury or accidents in the summer.

Many experts in the medical field deny this idea and claim that it is only folklore. Some also go as far as to blame the Korean government for propagating this ridiculous notion. In an excerpt from the Korean Joongang Daily newspaper, Pr Gord Giesbrecht states :

"It's hard to imagine death by fan, because to die of hypothermia, one's body temperature would have to get down to 28 [°C], drop by 10 degrees [Celsius] overnight. We've got people lying in snowbanks overnight here in Winnipeg and they survive. Maybe if someone was elderly and they were sitting there for three days in a sealed room with an electric fan turned on. Someone is not going to die from hypothermia because their body temperature drops two or three degrees overnight; it would have to drop eight to ten degrees." In addition, "the only way to verify whether someone had really died of hypothermia during the night would be to take a core body temperature the following morning. Waiting three days while the body was in the morgue wouldn't work because the corpse's temperature can drop during that time."

However, the writers for the well-known blog Ask a Korean! asserts that some professional medical opinions may be mistaken. They admit that it is rare, but not completely unheard of. They say that if in a completely enclosed room with no air flowing in to replenish your body and only air in mass quantities is being pushed on to your body, you risk catching hyperthermia. They compare it to the operation of a turbo-overn, but in the opposite sense. (Cool air instead of hot air.)

With all these contradictory assertions being made, how can we know whether fan death is real or not? I suppose there is no real way to find out unless you feel like putting the fan on high and sealing off your room. Are you willing to take the risk in order to prove this supposed urban legend false?

*Note : HandS Korea has chosen to take a neutral stance on this one! ^^

Watch Korean movies & dramas for FREE!

Having a hard time finding Korean films and/or dramas with English subtitles? Interested in discovering more Korean titles?

As you may have already learned, it's sometimes difficult to find the variety of Korean films that you may want. However, there is a site called http://www.mysoju.com/ that will fulfill all of your Korean cinema needs. Korean dramas and movies are divided into two categories (dramas and movies) and further categorized into alphabetical order, most popular and newest.

A couple of HSK favorites are the films Dirty Carnival and Seducing Mr. Perfect (with the dashing Korean-American, Daniel Henney). Check out these films or suggest more to add to our soon to arrive "Movie Review" section!

In addition to Korean films and dramas, there are also Taiwanese, Japanese, Hong Kong and Chinese films for you to view. (These films also have English subtitles.)

HSK Restaurant Review--Via di Napoli

Via di Napoli

Seoul is littered with Italian restaurants that claim they are "authentic" Italian cuisine. However, in my experience, this is not always the case. Many of the dishes offered in these "traditional" Italian eateries are severely disappointing and very catered to Korean tastebuds. While I appreciate complimentary pickles before every Italian meal as much as the next guy, sometimes this appetizer choice isn't always perfectly paired with your favorite risotto or preferred pasta dish!
In my neverending quest for a veritable Italian restaurant that tells the truth when it touts the most authentic Italian cuisine in Seoul, I came across a new place not far from my domicile thanks to KissMyKimchi : Via di Napoli. We went for an early dinner and entered a Sicilian rustic cavern with romanesque arches adorning the interior. We each ordered a different dish and decided to share it, so we could all experience the authenticity of Via di Napoli. I ordered a fresh Tuscan salad and my friends ordered a pizza and a chicken paella dish. For dessert, we shared a pine nut meringue pie.
I found the salad to be fresh and tart with avacados, peaches and mascarpone cheese to top it off. A light vinaigrette gave the dish an extra kick. The pizza was the hit of the evening. I usually find pizza in Korea to be a bit bland and the tomato sauce just doesn't do anything for me. However, the tomato sauce for this particular margherita pizza was a pleasurable mix of sweet and sour, which in my humble opinion, is the way any tomato sauce on a pizza should be! The one disappointment was the chicken paella of which the majority was encrusted to the side of the dish and extremely bland, even after squeezing some fresh lemon juice over it. The pine nut meringue pie had mixed reviews, but it certainly held true to its title. The pine nuttiness was very present and appreciated more by some than others.Overall, the experience was a delectable treat despite the paella disaster. If you're looking for a real Italian pizza in Seoul, hit up Via di Napoli and you won't be disappointed!

To get to Via di Napoli, take the subway to exit 5 of Samseong station (green line 2). Walk straight for about 300 meters and take your first right on the first major intersecting road that you approach. Walk another 300 meters until you see the Oakwood Premier hotel and Seven Luck Casino on your right. Across the street, you will see Via di Napoli. It is located on the B1 level.

Climbing Yongmasan

Yongmasan

South Korea is a very mountainous country. Even within a major city, like Seoul, there are many opportunites for hikers and nature lovers to explore Korea's topography. Koreans young and old also enjoy a good hike to get the blood flowing and to benefit from some fresh air.
Yongmasan (Yongma Mountain) is one of the many places to go hiking. (Achasan is also another place that is frequented by avid hikers.) Yongmasan is just inside the Seoul borders and can be accessed by subway in Seoul.In order to take advantage of a lovely fall day, HandS Korea and a friend took a short subway ride to Yongma Mountain to do some exploring and enjoy a traditional Korean meal afterwards.
To get to Yongmasan, take the subway (olive green line 7) and descend at Yongmasan station.

Cafes--Deux Crèmes

Deux Crèmes

Seoul does not lack in restaurants and cafes. Many Koreans and foreigners alike are gourmands and are always in search for that new and chic restaurant or lounge to please their palates. Sinsa-dong (신사동) is one of the neighborhoods that is a host to a cornucopia of fabulous restaurants--some over priced and some truly touting the best--where a large portion of the trendy Seoulite community gathers for food and drink. One of HSK's favorite spots is a café and pâtisserie called Deux Crèmes.
Deux Crèmes is a small, but smart café that offers a variety of beverages and more importantly...tartes! This French-inspired locale is one of a kind and offers a variety of fresh-made tartes ranging in flavors from chocolate cream to fig and beyond! They also have an extensive champagne and wine list (availability sometimes varies.)
To get to Deux Crèmes, take the subway (orange line 3) to Sinsa station. From exit number 8, walk straight for approximately 5 minutes and take a left on Garosu-gil. Deux Crèmes is on the left hand side.