Five Lies That I Was Told or I Read About South Korea

(or at the least, exaggerations and miscommunications...)

I would like to start this off by saying this post is not a knock on SK per say.  It is more of a reiteration of a told and retold warning;  Don't believe everything you hear.  Or read.

1.  Korea is the most wired country in the world.  

I live in a small town in South Korea.  A population of about 120k.  Now I know what a small town is.  I've grown up in a town with an exaggerated 10,000 residents.  120k is not my definition of a small town, but I suppose relative to places such as Busan and Seoul?  Okay.

Before arriving in Korea I heard numerous times from numerous sources about how technologically advanced Korea is in terms of their internet.  Well, if you say so.  But they missed Sangju and surrounding areas.

2.  Korea has the fastest wireless in the world.

After spending every Friday waiting several minutes for a webpage to load, I beg to differ.  Granted the middle school that I teach at on Friday is in the middle of farm country, but to me it sounded like every inch of Korea was wifi central-- the kids might not have shoes and their parents might be in the middle of a rice field, but just walk inside their hut to find the newest computer system hooked to lightning fast internet.

I'm not saying that Korea doesn't have the fastest wireless in the world.  Perhaps in small pockets; when on the subway underground in Seoul I've had the fastest wifi on my phone ever experienced.  But either I sure interpreted it wrong or there is some major exaggeration going on within the various websites I looked at while researching Korea, because slow internet has been a constant frustration since moving here.  And neither the dorms I resided in upon first arriving or my current apartment has wireless.  But again, maybe SK just missed Sangju and surrounding areas when planning their supersonic wifi system.

3.  Cheap electronics.

This may have been a bad assumption on my part.  I assumed since it seems like half of the electronics I own were made in Korea, electronic gadgets would be fairly cheaper here.  But after glancing at TV, laptop, and even blender prices its almost always cheaper to buy it in The States and have it shipped!

 4.  Incredibly easy transportation.

This is really only a partial lie.  I think that this was again subject to exaggeration by several websites and guidebooks.  I was under the impression that you could travel anywhere in Korea within three hours, and that transportation was insanely easy here.  It's not bad, but unless you're riding the KTX to a major city, to me the transportation seems about the same as most places.  Good subway system, often having to juggle both buses and trains to get where you want to want to go, having to rearrange your plans around the fact that there are only two buses a day to where you want to go for a quick weekend trip.  It's not terrible, just the usual.

My disclaimer is I've only been in Korea for a few months-- there may yet be some secret that I've not yet discovered.    

5.  Good food.

I had several people come up to me before I left and tell me how much they love Korean food.  What were you eating?!?  There are some things I've found that I don't mind, and several that I slightly enjoy, but overall I don't think I will ever go to a Korean restaurant when I return home unless forced.  There has been nothing of yet that I am just over the moon about, and this is a change for me-- in every other country I've traveled, the different food has been one of my favorite experiences.

Again, only been here two months.  Maybe I just haven't found the right dish yet.  The vegetarian aspect is also problematic.

The exemplary so-so food:  bimbimbop

Conclusions:

It seems to me that when talking or writing about South Korea, what people are really referring to are the large cities.  Which I suppose is fair-- when I thought about South Korea before arriving I largely associated it with skyscrapers and subway systems.  But living in a "smaller" city has given me the chance to see South Korea as much more than that.  Sometimes in a positive light and sometimes not so much, but the reality of it is that while much of the population resides in places like Seoul there is a huge landscape full of farmers, run down fences, tiny schools, and areas void of the fast paced (and often very convenient) living conditions that the country as a whole is so known for.