South Korea Local Customs

  I want to Roast more meats!
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  • I want to Roast more meats!
      I want to Roast more meats!
    by machomikemd
  • English kindergarten students in their uniforms
      English kindergarten students in their...
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  • one of my fave students showing off her artwork
      one of my fave students showing off her...
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  •   Local Customs
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Most Viewed Local Customs in South Korea

76.

Eating & Drinking   Seoul

Eating & Drinking, Seoul

 75 Reviews  Hayeong is a newly-opened restaurant perched on top of a hill at the entrance of the Jungmun Resort Complex in Jeju. The restaurant serves high-quality, roasted black pork (for which the island is... 

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77.

Customs & Oddities   Seoul

Customs & Oddities, Seoul

 59 Reviews  Unusual Male Urinal in South Korea. this male urinal is unusually long but is not the most unusual urinal here, they also have flat urinals in the ground wherein you just aim and fire hehehe.... 

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78.

Other Stuff   Seoul

Other Stuff, Seoul

 17 Reviews  Being in the subway made me open my eyes. If you ever take the subway you will notice the following: (1) There are mirror (mostly) adjacent to the platforms. I wondered why until I saw two Korean... 

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79.

Gift-giving   Seoul

Gift-giving, Seoul

 8 Reviews  bought them as gifts to female friends. it cost about 5,000 won each if your buying 5 or more and 7,000 won if youre buying one. (no haggling means 7,000 won for 5 or more and 10,000 won for a single... 

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80.

Business/Money in Korea   Seoul

Business/Money in Korea, Seoul

 7 Reviews  Korean bills come in only 1000, 5000, and 10,000 Won notes. Coins come in 50, 100, and 500 won. Since the exchange rate is around 1150 Won to a dollar, you'll see that it takes a lot of paper to pay... 

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81.

Ceremonies & Holidays   Seoul

Ceremonies & Holidays, Seoul

 8 Reviews  Buddha's Birthday usually falls in late April or early May (in 2004 it was 26 May, and in 2005 it will be 15 May). At this time, the temples of Korea, especially Jogyesa Temple in Seoul, are decorated... 

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82.

Religion   Seoul

Religion, Seoul

 7 Reviews  Although Buddhism is still the dominant religion in South Korea, there is the emergence of Christians especially among the younger generation. As such, you will find more and more churches in Seoul... 

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83.

Historical Anecdotes   Seoul

Historical Anecdotes, Seoul

 3 Reviews  Here is a little story to tell when you are having lunch at the top of Namsan Tower (it revolves and little signs tell you what you are looking at in the distance). In Guui-Dong near the Children's... 

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84.

Relationships & Connections   Seoul

Relationships & Connections, Seoul

 4 Reviews  On Korean fashion: One must at all times wear socks, major rule: never enter a home without socks to maintain the sanitation as you'll always need to remove your shoes in a tiny cramped entryway.... 

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85.

Health & Well-Being   Seoul

Health & Well-Being, Seoul

 3 Reviews  Unlike most westerners, it seems that most Koreans do not seek a sun tan. Good for them! I'm sure they have low rates of skin cancer. The primary manifestation of this trait is that, on sunny days,... 

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Reviews from VirtualTourist Members

Speak Korean and Bow to be acknowledged

by izsak02

Bowing is a common practice to show gratitude, apologies, acknowledgement, and to simply show respect. 1. Bow and say "kamsa hamnida" - thank you.2. Bow and say "anyong haseyo" - hi, hello (literally: are you at peace?. Answer: "ne, anyong haseyo" - yes, you?).3. Bow and say "anyong ikAseyo" - bye. (when the person leaves or both of you leave).4. Bow and say "anyong ikEseyo" - bye. (when the you leave and the other person stays).You could just pick one, ikA or ikE. I'm sure they wont care how you say it. It's why you said it that counts.5. I've never used the korean for "sorry" but they understand the word. Especially if you bow and say it.The lower you bow the higher respect you give... just don't give the person behind you any ideas.

Koreans

by izsak02

Koreans are very friendly people. They are also helpful, hospitable, approachable, and supportive. Some might start to giggle when approached and talked to but it might just because they're not comfortable with their english.I made quite a few good friends here. They always made me feel welcomed and always try to feed me. Probably because I'm a walking stick.Couple of nice unusual experiences I had here that are worth mentioning:1. During the World Cup while I was waiting for my wife to finish her class, I stood outside a pharmacy and tried to watch the game on their tv through the window. The staff there noticed me and they invited me in to watch with them. They even relocated their television so I could see clearly. And, they gave me snacks and coffee. How nice is that.2. I was on the bus and I just realised, I had no change for the fare. I was in the boonies outside of town so there...

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Always Have New Socks On

by jburron

Maybe it goes without saying, but if you're in a country where people take off their shoes at the door it makes sense to always have non-holey socks. So, get out a needle and thread and darn them footsie-covers, because (next to stinky feet...oh ya bring the Dr. Scholl's foot powder, too) the sight of a naked digit is quite, um, unsightly.

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Getting a better exchange rate on your salary.

by jburron

A bud of mine just explained how his friends who were teaching in Korea got a good deal on their exchange rate. Employees (especially teachers) are typically paid in won (KRW), but sometime have liabilities (e.g., car payments) in USD, EUR or CAD. As well, many expats are temporary and would rather have their savings in their home currency--not only for convenience, but because emerging markets (aka developing) countries have a tendancey to devalue (lose value in their currency) rather than revalue (strengthen). Put simply, currencies like Korean won are more likely to go from 1,000 to 2,000 than 500 KRW/USD.Anyhoo, here is the strategy: most people just put some money in a CAD or USD account in Korea (converting it in the process) and then move/wire it to their Stateside (or otherwise) account. What these guys did was open an HSBC or Citibank account (HSBC is pretty prevalent in Korea,...

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Odd greetings--until you know their origin

by jburron

Koreans sometimes seem to say some strange things. For instance, a couple of gyopos ('Koreans' born outside of Korea to Korean parents, fluent in English and some proficiency in Korean typically) I know started their emails to me with "Are you still alive?". I was taken aback as they were asking advice or such in the body of the email and it seemed pretty rude to say that in the first line (or even at all) as it implied that I was ignoring them or something. (Gee, I AM senstive, aren't I?)Anyhoo, I asked my (Korean) wife about it and she had an interesting cultural/historical spin. Since Korea has been overrun by invaders circa 700 times in its history (e.g., 1910-1945 Japanese Occupation, 1950-1953 Korean War) you never know if your good buddies or relatives are dead or alive so when they'd see one another again it wasn't a 'howdy-do' or 'long time no see' it's more of a 'I can't...

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Korean Currency - Won (Not "Lost")

by SLLiew

Again, you will be an instant millionaire in South Korea.US$1 = 951 Won (KRW)Coins : ₩10, ₩50, ₩100, ₩500 Rarely used ₩1, ₩5Cash transactions are rounded to nearest ₩10 Banknotes: ₩1000, ₩5000, ₩10000

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Motorcycle delivery

by ant1606

This is the fastest way to move goods in traffic-stuck Seoul. Amazing loads of all kinds can be seen around including, but unfortunately not pictured, a 2-seater sofa and huge flower crowns. One appeared to be a moving painting unit, as it was carrying a couple of benches, air-spray gun with a bundle of hoses and, of course, a good sized 80-liter (20-gallon) air compressor. Sometimes we refer to performace bikes as "bombs" but in Korea I finally saw the real ones carrying cooking gas tanks!Motorcycles usually obey traffic signs and lights, except for those delivering food. This service must be quick and these guys ride like I've never seen before!

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Road Signs (5 photos)

by nicolaitan

Road signs in rural and moutainous areas are often where you find them and often of native materials, rather than more traditonal signs on poles. For examples of images 1 and 5, please see my Korea page warnings and dangers tip. For a great example of image 4, visit my Seoul page for the travelogue on "The Flying Ramyen Truck". And, in image 3, note the face on the auto driver - nice artwork. Images 3, 4, and 5 are on the road between Wonju and Chuch'on which is NOT the straightest smoothest flattest road on the face of the earth.

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Admiral Yi

by nicolaitan

Korea's greatest military hero is honored with statues throughout the country, this statue in downtown Seoul. He is admired for his courage, perseverence, and loyalty despite betrayals and shifting fortunes created by his associates. Best known outside Korea for his modifications of the turtle boats, he is renowned by military historians for his repeated victories against Japanese invaders despite smaller numbers of ships and military forces. Geobukseon, or turtle ships, were boats covered with metal plates and spikes to repel enemy soldiers as well as arrows, cannonballs, and bullets. At the prow, a large figurehead of a dragon contained multiple cannons and was used to ram enemy craft. Among military historians he is famous for his tactical skills - his greatest victory saw 12 turtle ships repel a Japanese fleet of over 130 craft, sinking 31 of them. He died in the last battle of the 7...

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Ice Skating (5 photos)

by nicolaitan

Whether in public parks, flooded rice paddies, dammed creeks, or the North Han River itself, winter and the bitter cold bring out huge crowds of ice skaters. Often the parks and dammed lakes are prepared as ovals for practising speed skaters as well as casual participants. Note the wooden skates used by the children in the rural northeastern quadrant of Korea, skating on the rice paddy.

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Top 3 Hotels in South Korea

Lotte Hotel Seoul  Seoul

 7 Reviews and 699 Opinions  We stayed here for a week. It is very nice but DO NOT have your laundry done by them, a piece of... 

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The Westin Chosun Busan  Busan

 4 Reviews and 150 Opinions  My wife and I have stayed twice at the Westin Chosun within the last three months. The rooms are... 

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Youngpyung Resort  Kangwon-do

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Questions and Answers

Angrylilazngrl profile photo

Q:  Hi all, I am traveling to South Korea from 4/15-4/21 for a friend's wedding on 4/19 in Seoul. The majority of the wedding... 

dreamybd profile photo

A: Have a nice trip and fun. Be sure to visit the two tourist kiosks to get maps and guides. One is next to the express bus terminal while the other is beside the main train... 

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