Fanny & Neil do South Korea: karaoke

A guide to Gwangju (광주), and to a lesser extent South Korea.
A definitive guide to Gwangju (광주) and South Korea is impossible as a lot businesses don't last long.
Places pop up and disappear faster than the cherry blossom bloom so this guide is going to go over the broad strokes and focus on bigger establishments than tend to last longer.

Transportation:
The public transport in Gwangju is pretty good and easy to use.
What you need is a "hanpay" card that you can use on both the subway and buses.
You can pick one up from any convenience store (7/11, CU, G25) and charge it at the store, subway stations and even online. Note, this card is for Gwangju and you'll probably need something similar if you travel to different cities in Korea.
https://www.hanpay.net/

(Image from www.gwangjunewsgic.com)

Supermarkets
There's the big 3; Lotte mart (lottemart.com), E-mart (emart.com) and Homeplus (homeplus.co.kr).
All these stores are basically departments stores with sections for food, electronics, clothing etc.
However, they are relatively expensive and you'd be better going to a local mart 마트 (SMmart - www.smmart.kr) for food. In addition, be aware the big 3 don't open the 2nd and 4th Sunday of each month.

School / Household Supplies
The best place to pick up anything for the house or school is a dollar store type place called Daiso (다이소)
www.daiso.co.kr
Image result for Daiso korea

(Image from seoulistic.com)

Clothing / Electronic Stores
There are many clothing shops in the Gwangju city center. The city center which can be reached via the subway station 금남로4가 (Geumnamno 4 Ga). There are many local shops but also big brand stores such as H&M, Uniqlo and Zara with staff that general speak more English.
There is also high-end clothing at Sejong Outlet which is right next to the Sangmu subway station.
In addition, there is also U-Square which is the biggest mall in Gwangju and houses the bus terminal as well.
For electronics there is a huge department store called Kumho World near U-Square. www.ikumhoworld.co.kr

Banks
There are many banks you can sign up with but we'd recommend KEB.
KEB (or the Korea Exchange Bank - 외환은행) www.keb.co.kr/main/en is a bank that specifically caters to foreign business thus has more English speaking services and even online banking.

Cinema
There are many cinemas that you can visit in Korea, including Lotte Cinema, Megabox and CGV.
We personally recommend CGV (http://www.cgv.co.kr/reserve/show-times/eng/).
CGV tends to have more English speakers and most have ticket machines with an English option.
There is also this great site http://cineinkorea.com/movie/index.php that provides times in English.

Doctor / Dentist
For a dentist there is
http://mediphildent.com/
Next to usquare/shinsegae. There is a footbridge close to shinsegae on the main road. Cross the bridge and you will see a bank. The entrance is where the IDk Bank is and on the 6th floor.

Fitness
There are no big gym brands in Gwangju so most places are local.
We go to Star Fitness which is located on the 6th floor above SMmart.
It's only 5 minutes from Sangmu subway station.

Karaoke
There are many great Korean Karaoke/Singing rooms or locally called Noraebang 노래방.
In the city center there is an 'Alien' themed room which is is in the building next to the Burger King where the arcade games area is (35.147004, 126.916903).Below is a guide to the controls that you'll find in the different rooms:
http://www.korea4expats.com/article-noraebang-machine-functions-english-translation.html

Other Resources:
The best resource for life in Gwangju is the GIC Gwangju International Center (eng.gic.or.kr)
We personally recommend their Korean Classes.
Social media is also a great resource, especiaaly the Gwangju group
https://www.facebook.com/groups/2330675731/

Immigration
Address: 광주출입국관리사무소행정실 광주광역시서구쌍촌동
627-1 Gwanju Immigration Office Seo-gu, Ssangchon-dong, 627-1
Relocation Date: Monday November 4th, 2013
Phone Number: +82 62-605-5333
Public Transportation -
Bus #16, 19, 69, 72, 760, stop @ Honam University Entrance (호남대입구) - Subway stop @ Uncheon Station (Honam University) 운천역 (호남대입구), Exit 4
Hours:Open from Monday to Friday from 09:00 am until 18:00 pm. Closed for 1 hr between 12:00 pm and 13:00 pm for lunch. Open on Saturday from 09:00 am – 13:00 pm. Closed on Sundays and Holidays.
*TIP* Smiling and being friendly seems to speed things along considerably. These people have a difficult job…try not to make it more so by yelling at them.
-Fingerprinting, if you need it, can be done at any of the large police stations…not the little “on the corner” ones. Print out the card from your government’s website and head on down. The one I know many people go to is at the end of Art Street nearest the Culture Center construction. Big place with a wall around it.
-Immigrationis where you go to renew your visa. You will fill out a form at the desk when you go in. Check the “Extension of Sojourn” box. Take a number for Residence and wait. Cost: 30,000 won. Bring your passport, copy of contract, and your school’s business license. Many schools will take care of this for you…this is for those that don’t.
-You can also get a new ARC here. Same form as the renewal, different box. Will cost @10,000. Bring a picture on a white background. They have a photo booth outside the office if you forget.
-Same form for changing your address as the above two items.
-If your Visa is an E-2, it is tied to your place of employment. You work in Korea with your school’s permission. Working at another job without it is illegal. Some programs like EPIK have understandings with other schools. Other opportunities may come up through your school. Try to find out what your school allows. Private tutoring is generally not allowed unless you are an F visa holder.
(great guide from Brian Burgoyne)

Facebook:
Below is an awesome list from the (https://www.facebook.com/groups/2330675731/) gwangju fb group.

A small collection of groups around Gwangju (with which you may become involved):

Nerd Culture:

Arts and Entertainment:

Buying/Selling/Trading:

Athletics:

Gwangju Hikers: https://www.facebook.com/groups/895350487188528/?fref=nf

Restaurants/Cafes/Taphouses:

Tequilaz:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/tequilazr/
Corona Mexican Food:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/146972625500831/
The First Alleyway:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/345509095224/
Alley Tap House: https://www.facebook.com/allytaphouse?ref=profile
Able Taphouse: https://www.facebook.com/abletaphouse?ref=ts&fref=ts

Voyagers: https://www.facebook.com/voyagersgwangju?fref=ts

Jobs:

Gwangju-Jeolla Job Bank:https://www.facebook.com/groups/154136797947014/

Community:

Global Families of Gwangju:https://www.facebook.com/groups/1415320322015004/
Jeolla-do Travel Advice:https://www.facebook.com/groups/551274054925072/
Gwangju-Jeolla Pet Sitters:https://www.facebook.com/groups/138227567287/
Gwangju Language Exchange:https://www.facebook.com/groups/258201910995284/
Gwangju EPIK Teachers: https://www.facebook.com/groups/4951693838/
Ladies of Gwangju and Vicinity:https://www.facebook.com/groups/gwangjuwomen/
Gwangju Korean Learners Club:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/338781432841101/
GIC Talk:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/191633644281304/
Jeollanamdo Readers & Speakers Club:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/152066238290044/
Gwangju Heath Care: https://www.facebook.com/groups/519690444837832/
광주동부 "피해자 전담경찰관" Victim Support Officer (Gwangju Korean Police Officer for Crime Victim Support): https://www.facebook.com/victimsupportcop?fref=ts

Gwangsangu-ers: https://www.facebook.com/groups/129079153968737/345627412313909/?notif_t=group_activity

Gwangju Community Builders: https://www.facebook.com/groups/452871204866054/

Ecology:

Gwangju Birds Korea:https://www.facebook.com/groups/birdskoreagwangju/
Gwangju Window Gardens:https://www.facebook.com/groups/572225996206954/

Clean Gwangju: https://www.facebook.com/groups/CleanGwangju

Lifestyle/Well-being:

So our friend and past colleague had moved to Suncheon at the end of last year. He's invited us out to visit whenever we're free. The last couple of months have been busy but finally we decided to take him up on the offer and take the 2.5 hour bus trip there.

We woke up a little later than we intended to and ended up getting there around dinner time. Ashley and his wife Amy picked us up at the bus terminal and then we all took the bus to a buffet restaurant. I can't quite recall the name but it was popular so we had to wait a little bit. After a nice buffet dinner, we decided to go for karaoke.

At first we entered an establishment that reminded me of those 80s karaoke lounge from Chinese shows. There's a huge stench of old ladies' perfume and there were booths covered with purple velvet. Most of the patrons were well into their 50s? After stepping into this place, we quickly realized this was not what we were looking for so we said our goodbyes and hightailed out of there.

The next place is very much the typical karaoke place so we planted ourselves down for the next two hours and belted ballads, rock songs, etc. It was a great way to spend a Saturday night! After sufficiently wrecking our vocal cords, we headed back to A&A's abode. Their apartment is in a newly developed complex - even area. Everywhere around that area looked so new and clean! And their apartment was gorgeous! It was a three bedroom, with 1 bathroom and an ensuite, an open floor plan of the living and dining/kitchen space. Amy told me that she bought a lot of her future online - I wish I could do the same but alas she is Korean so it's a lot easier for her.

After a night's rest, we spent the next morning walking around their area. It's very spacious with very tall buildings. There's not much traffic or people walking around because it's still new and people are slowly moving in the area. But because it's so far from the city center (very much a suburb), most people would need to have cars as the buses don't run that frequently. After walking around the area and having some lunch, Ashley decided to take us to the Suncheon Bay Gardens. It took us a long time to find a cab, reminded me a bit like Vancouver (lol). Amy almost had to call a cab for us but eventually we found one and started off on our adventure.

This garden is not little, it was massive! We were too early for many of the flowers to be in bloom but I bet it would be so beautiful come spring and summer. There were lots of people there and we spent a good few hours and still couldn't walk around the whole place. One very interesting thing we did here was ride the SkyCube. It's a compact unmanned streetcar. It sits on tracks above ground (like a skytrain!). It takes about 12 minutes to get from the garden to the next stop. It fits about 8 people and costs $5 for a round trip. According to the brochure because it's run on electricity, it's suppose to protect the Suncheon Bay (world top 5 wetland) from exhaust and traffic congestion. From this experience, we also learned that Suncheon wants to be known as one of the most green cities in the world. As we were walking through an exhibition hall, I saw Vancouver named as one of the top green cities in the world. Made me miss Vancouver a little bit and feel a bit proud of my hometown. (both pic on the bottom if found via google)

After we got back to their apartment, Amy had make a wonderful roast chicken dinner for us! By the way, she has a full size oven that I am completely envious of! After thanking our hosts, we headed to the train station to head home. Unlike Gwangju, after buying our tickets we had to line up to get a seat on the bus rather than having it assigned. Needles to say, the station was super busy! Never knew so many would head back to Gwangju on the same night.

Fanny & Neil do South Korea

Sunday, 23 August 2015

A guide to Gwangju (광주), and to a lesser extent South Korea.

Saturday, 22 August 2015

A Sangmu (상무) guide.

Monday, 16 March 2015

Suncheon