Pack light!

We recommend you only bring a light load of clothing and essentials with you to Korea (pack mostly relevant to the season you will be arriving in). You can pretty much find most things you will need within the country, though you might be limited to a narrower selection of those things. Remember, you will eventually be leaving Korea, and so will your stuff so the more you bring, the more you'll have to take with you or get rid of when you leave. And you'll likely want to shop a little in Korea because the shopping there is insane!

There are a few things that are difficult to find in some areas so we'll leave you a few tips here to help you get along.

Shoes

If your feet are really wide or any bigger than a size 11 US, you will probably find it difficult to find shoes that fit you at times (depending on the style you want). They ARE out there, but it'll sometimes be a bit of a trek to find them. Most shoe stores only stock up to a size 12 and they'll often be out of that size because some other guy with big feet already bought the last pair. Many brand name stores will special order them if you pay for them up front.

Don't be offended if you're walking up to a shoe store and the guy comes at you making an "X" with his arms saying, "Big size, NO!". It just means that he caught a glimpse of your goliath feet and immediately knows he doesn't stock your size. One sure shot for buying large shoes is to take a trip to Seoul (if you aren't already there). Take subway line #6 to Itaewon. There, you'll masses of shops selling big size everything! Many of the clothes are thug wear style, but there are plenty of shops and tailors that should have what you are looking for.

Big Size or Plus Sizes

The same goes for clothing in bigger sizes. Most Korean shops sell only what is "in style" at the moment, or what the stars are wearing. Most of this clothing may look like it's designed for the underfed so finding a store that stocks what you would think is a "normal size" is often a rarity. They ARE there, but again, a good search is needed. If you find yourself stuck for good quality, bigger size clothing, Itaewon in Seoul is your best bet.

Other

Most of the household things you might find yourself needing over time can usually be found at a foreign or local supermarket or megastore like Carrefour, Emart, Hyundai Deparment Store, Lotte Department Store, etc. There most often is a foreign goods section in the underground level of these stores that will stock some of the things you miss or need from home.

Most of these CAN be found but are quite expensive or very limited in selection.

Deodorant, condoms, block cheddar cheese, margarine (korean margarine is gross), seasoning salt (actually most western spices are nearly non-existent there), cinnamon, Advil (Tylenol is quite popular there), Clamato Juice (can only be purchased at Cosco and it's super expensive!)

Cosco is a great place to do your western goods shopping! Anyone can get a membership for about 30,000 won and you'll find most of the food from back home that you miss.

If you have anything we've missed, please let us know so we can share the information with all of the teachers in Korea. Email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it