6 REASONS WHY SOUTH KOREA IS IN FACT THE SAFEST IN THE WORLD

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Korea is the only divided nation in the world. Some people seem quite worried saying the ceasefire can be broken anytime, while Koreans themselves look completely carefree. They insist actually there is no country safer than South Korea. Sure enough, in a survey to the foreign visitors in 2014, public safety got the highest satisfaction index of 90%.

Let me explain why.

1. It’s in wartime?

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The Korean War has not officially ended, but it is nowhere close to a state of hostilities. There have been very few cases of engagements on the Military Demarcation Line, but you will never face anything about it in any part of civil residences.

2. Kidnapping by North Korea?

Some South Koreans still think Kim Jong-un’s North Korea kidnaps civilians, like his grandpa did long ago, but it’s a complete mistake. Recently, the North usually sends the people back through the Panmunjeom truce village with prior notifications, even if they willingly sneaked into the border. ("N. Korea sends two S. Koreans back home via Panmunjom" - Arirang news)

3. Terrorism?

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Terrified of possible terrorism by North Korean secret agents? That kind of things never happened ever since 80s. Don’t forget the northern part of the peninsula can hardly afford spies these days. Moreover, South Korea is completely free from internal ethnic or religious conflicts, and also it is very difficult for terrorists to access this little insular country isolated by the sea and the communist regime.

4. 24-hours awake

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Koreans absolutely love to drink, sing and dance all-night-long. Inevitably, therefore, whole lots of pubs, restaurants and stores are open 24 hours and people are everywhere even in the very middle of the night.

5. Dense population

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The population of South Korea is very high compared with its rather small land size, so you can hardly find any unfrequented places except in very remote rural areas.

6.  Fingerprint database

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It might be a controversial issue, but all the South Koreans have to provide their fingerprint samples linked to the resident registration numbers to the government upon issuing resident cards at the age of 17. This database of fingerprints of the whole national citizens actually plays a major role in the high arrest rate of violent crimes in S.K.

Written by Karly

She graduated in a university in Korea double majoring in social studies and political science. After graduation, she worked for a while at the Nation of Assembly of Republic of Korea, but now she is working as a reporter. Having a life goal of being a Asia-specialized travel reporter, she travels around the world in her spare time.

A COMPLETE GUIDE FOR THE FAMOUS KOREAN DRY SAUNA (JJIMJILBANG)

Don’t be afraid and let’s get naked. Here are 12 steps for your exploration to exotic Jjimjilbang. The moment you step inside, you will surely get a bit embarrassed with naked Koreans running around. But don’t be a chicken! This is Korea. Let’s get started by going naked first. 

Step 1. Admission

Jjimjilbang has bath, enormous sauna and other facilities like PC cafes and cinemas that have nothing to do with sauna. If you are up for all these facilities, all you gotta do is to pay 2,000 won on the top of the bath fee. This price includes sauna wear rental.

Step 2. Take off your shoes

Make sure you go into the bath for your gender. First thing you see is shoe rack. Put your shoes in the rack, lock it with the key placed on the rack and bring the key to the locker.

Step 3. Find your locker

Some places use same key for the locker and shoe rack, but at some places, you might have to replace your shoe rack key with a locker key. If there is no one stopping you from going into the locker room, this place must be of the former. 

Step 4. Go naked

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Go stark naked and put everything in the locker. Then go into the bath. Don’t think anything too sexy that might bring changes to the status of your body. Korean people keen on staring at foreigner’s body. 

Step 5. Have a shower

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Soap is ready. So please take a shower before you dip yourself into a tub. If you do not, Koreans would not be very pleased to see your stuffs floating on the water. 

Step 6. Have a bath

Usually there are bath tubs with various hotness - extremely hot, just hot and cold. You should just start with the hot tub. Not hot enough? Then try the extremely hot one then the cold one in turn. This is Korean way to have a bath.

Step 7. Wear sauna wear

If you've had enough bath, dry yourself in the locker room and put on the sauna wear you rented. Women are not advised to wear a bra. It will be soaked in sweat anyway. Don’t forget to bring a towel.

Step 8. Try different sauna rooms

There are loads of sauna rooms. All you have to check is the thermometer placed on the door of each sauna room. Don’t be too surprised to see a room with 80 degree Celsius, it won't burn your body too bad.

Step 9. Have a bit of snack

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Now you are all of a sweat. You will want to quench your thirst at a cafeteria. You can have whatever you want, but you must follow Koreans’ Jjimjilbang tradition of having boiled egg and Sikhye. Some Koreans go to the Jjimjilbang just to enjoy the combination of the two. Frozen Sikhye right after hot sauna feels fantastic.

Step 10. Get some sleep

If you want to spend a night, Jjimjilbang could be the cheapest option. You could see dungeon style small rooms. Since pillows and mats are readily placed, you could just go in at your preference or you could just lie down on the lobby. I am sure there will be plenty of bodies lying around sleeping here and there. Some places offer sleeping rooms for each gender.

Step 11. Get yourself sorted & dry your hair

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If you're done with sauna, come back to the locker room and have a bath or shower. Hair dryer is 100~200 Won for 3 minutes. If you do not have coins, you could just use fans.

Step 12. Wrap up

Put your sweaty sauna wear in the basket placed in the locker room, put on your clothes and shoes. Don’t forget to return the key or you will have to pay fee for that. It’s all done now. Where do you want to go next?

More Korea

9 WAYS TO STAY CONNECTED TO INTERNET INKOREA / BY MARCUS

7 USEFUL TIPS AT KOREAN RESTAURANTS / BY KARLY

5 BEAUTIFUL ROYAL PALACES IN KOREA / BY JOONMO

6 TOURIST SPOTS IN JEJU ISLAND THAT WOULDHEAL WEARY SOULS / BY KARLY

12 MUST EAT FOOD YOU SHOULD NEVER LEAVE KOREA WITHOUT HAVING THEM / KARLY

TOP 7 PLACES LOCAL KOREANS ACTUALLY GO SHOPPING / JOONMO

TOP 10 BOX-OFFICE HIT KOREAN MOVIES IN KOREA / KARLY

LET’S DIG INTO THE GEOGRAPHY OF SOUTH KOREA / MARCUS

5 KOREAN ALCOHOLIC DRINKS KOREANS CAN'T IMAGINE LIVING WITHOUT / GIBBON

TOP 7 MUSEUM IN KOREA YOU HAVE TO SPARE SOME TIME FOR / KARLY 

Written by Karly


She graduated in a university in Korea double majoring in social studies and political science. After graduation, she worked for a while at the Nation of Assembly of Republic of Korea, but now she is working as a reporter. Having a life goal of being a Asia-specialized travel reporter, she travels around the world in her spare time.

12 MUST EAT FOOD YOU SHOULD NEVER LEAVE KOREA WITHOUT HAVING THEM

Korea is the land of culinary pleasure, and you will be sorry if you don't enjoy them as much as you can while in Korea. Of thousands of yummy dishes, below 12 cuisines are selected based on three simple criteria - locality, accessibility and affordability. So enjoy as much as you can before you pack your luggage.

1. Bulgogi (Korean-Style Barbecued Beef)

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Bulgogi is so famous it does not need an explanation. If you do not taste this while in Korea, it’s hardly an exaggeration to say your whole trip was in vain. This drop dead delicious sweat soy sauce based beef is unbelievably tasty.

2. Galbi (Roasted Ribs)

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Galbi is roasted ribs seasoned with soy sauce based spices. Koreans use both pork and beef, but since beef is super expensive in Korea, pork rib is lot more popular. I personally prefer pork rib because it’s a lot cheaper and they taste almost same when it is seasoned.

3. Samgyeopsal (Pork Belly)

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Samgyeopsal is the top menu for Korean people’s gatherings. This grilled pork belly is somehow similar to bacon but it is lot thicker. It is really difficult to find Korean having Samgyeopsal without Soju(링크). In most cases, Korean people actually eat it to drink. 

4. Doenjang-jjigae (Bean Paste Stew)

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This is the most frequently served dish in Korean households, made with fermented soy bean. Since most Korean restaurants have this menu, do not forget to try it at least once. Doenjang stew is similar to Japanese ‘Miso soup’ but with stronger taste and smell.  

5. Kimchi-jjigae (Kimchi Stew)

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I suppose you might have had Kimchi, or, at least, have heard of it. Korean people usually put pork or tuna chunks in this Kimchi based stew. This is the most common home dish along with Doenjang stew.

6. Bibimbap (Mixed Rice and Vegetables)

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This symbolic Korean cuisine is actually very easy to cook. It is just a bowl of rice mixed with all sorts of hot vegetables and red pepper paste. At home, Koreans simply put leftover food and rice in a big bowl and mix them.     

7. Tteok-bokki (Stir-fried Rice Cake Bar)

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Tteok-bokki is number one street food made simply by stir-frying rice cake with red pepper paste. This also is one of the most popular foods among foreign residents in Korea.

8. Jjajangmyeon (Black Noodle)

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The black bean sauce noodle (Jjajangmyeon) is a Koreanized Chinese dish. It is also the most popular and affordable delivery food. It is customary in Korea to have the black noodle when people graduate or move their houses.

9. Korean Fried Chicken 

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If you haven't tried Korean chicken yet, I guess your life was a waste. It is so yummy, even KFC is pushed to the brink of extinction. Just one bite will be enough to make you feel like wanting to settle down in Korea.

10. Pajeon (Green Onion Pancake)

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This Korean style pancake has many variations. Most Korean restaurants that open till late offer Seafood Pajeon, more famous variation cooked with loads of sea foods. In Korea, Pajeon has to be accompanied with Makgeolli. It is a Korean ritual to eat Pajeon with Makgeolli on rainy days.   

11. Gamjatang (Pork Back-bone Stew)

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This spicy stew is perfect food for drinking occasions, but alcohol loving Koreans also enjoy this yummy dish for their hangover. Although most countries do not eat this part of pork, it is surprisingly tasty.

12. Samgyetang  (Ginseng Chicken Soup)

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Koreans love chicken. Although Korean fried chicken is getting really popular, ginseng chicken soup has been the king of chicken dish for hundreds of years. In Korea, there is a designated day in summer when entire nation eats this healthy soup. Unlike other chicken dishes, Koreans stick up ginseng, dates and sticky rice in chickens’ stomach and boil them.

More S.Korea

TOP 7 PLACES LOCAL KOREANS ACTUALLY GO SHOPPING / BY JOONMO

9 WAYS TO STAY CONNECTED TO INTERNET INKOREA / BY MARCUS

7 USEFUL TIPS AT KOREAN RESTAURANTS / BY KARLY

5 BEAUTIFUL ROYAL PALACES IN KOREA / BY JOONMO

6 TOURIST SPOTS IN JEJU ISLAND THAT WOULDHEAL WEARY SOULS / BY KARLY

Written by Karly

She graduated in a university in Korea double majoring in social studies and political science. After graduation, she worked for a while at the Nation of Assembly of Republic of Korea, but now she is working as a reporter. Having a life goal of being a Asia-specialized travel reporter, she travels around the world in her spare time.

9 WAYS TO STAY CONNECTED TO INTERNET(WiFi) IN KOREA

Have you heard Korea that gave birth to IT giant Samsung and LG have free wifi everywhere? If you visit Korea unprepared based on the rumor, you could not be more wrong. In order to prevent you from visiting coffee shops ten times a day just to get WiFi, I rounded up ways to get connected in Korea.

9th. Visiting Coffee shops every time you need WiFi

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Except for Coffee bean (coffee chain), pretty much all the coffee shops provide WiFi. Since you would not wanna drink coffee every time you need WiFi, don’t be too serious about the coffee shop thing.

8th. PocketWiFi Korea

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It’s a recently established pocket WiFi rental company in Korea. Pocket wifi is a small portable device that send WiFi signal and a few people can use it simultaneously. You will have to meet up a guy to pick up and return the device at Incheon airport. There always is a chance you might not be able to meet the guy and the customer service is rather poor.

7th. KoreaWiFi.net

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Though this small pocket WiFi rental company has been in the market for quite a while, there is no online reservation and payment system as yet. Reservation is done via email, daily rental fee is 5,000 won, and pick up and return point is either her office (far from city center) or your hotel (10,000~15,000won service charge). The website can be found here.

6th. Olleh One day WiFi-Pass

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Convenience stores sell a WiFi-Pass at 3,000 won. You could have access WiFi using ID and password stated on the pass. Since Olleh hotspot zone is very limited, if you want to get constant signal, let’s scroll down and skip this part.

5th. EG Sim Card (3G)

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Evergreen mobile is selling prepaid Sim just for foreigners. You could buy it at designated stores or online and pick up at the airport. Price varies depending on data capacity, but 30,000 won Sim is the most popular. Being Sim, it is quite easy to use, but it’s extremely complicated to register and it is super expensive and slow (nobody uses 3G in Korea anymore).

4th. Smartphone rental and tethering

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You could rent a smartphone from SK roaming counter at every airport. The daily rate is 9,000 won with 1Gb data provided. You will have to pay for the bill as much as you make phone calls. 9,000 won per day for 1Gb of 3G network is rather expensive. If you have never used a smartphone and want to use it, it is definitely recommendable.

3rd. Olleh Egg

Olleh Official Blog

The famous Olleh Egg is actually the name of the Olleh WiFi router. It’s so famous most foreigners still call any kinds of WiFi router ‘Egg’. Since Olleh Egg is based on Wibro network, its speed and coverage are far worse than LTE (4g) network. Its battery also does not last long, but, by and large, it is pretty awesome. Daily rental is 8,000 won and pick up and return are possible at the Incheon, Gimpo, and Gimhae international airport, but not at your accommodation.

1st. LG Uplus LTE router

Digital Times

Based on LTE network, you could enjoy fast connection anywhere in Korea. Daily rate is 8,000 won, and you could rent it at the above three airports. Since battery only lasts 4~5 hours, you should prepare an external battery (power bank). This is the one of the best option you could get in Korea. You can found the information here.

1st. WiFi-Korea ESP

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WiFi-Korea provides two models of pocket WiFi routers, UDP and ESP, at 3,000 and 4,000 won a day. Especially ESP, the most up-to-date router model, boasts super connection that covers the entire Korean territory. In terms of speed and battery life, other service providers are no match for ESP. You could pick up and return at Incheon airport, your accommodation (anywhere in S.Korea) and WiFi Korea office at the heart of Seoul. They also have exquisite customer service.

More Korea

1. MAKE SURE YOU CHECK KOREAN WEATHER! IT CAN BE A BIT NASTY! / BY JOONMO

2. 7 USEFUL TIPS AT KOREAN RESTAURANTS / BY KARLY 

3. 6 TOURIST SPOTS IN JEJU ISLAND THAT WOULD HEAL WEARY SOULS / BY KARLY

4. 5 BEAUTIFUL ROYAL PALACES IN KOREA / BY JOONMO 

Written by Marcus

He was born in Singapore and went to schools in China and Australia. Having Engineering background, he have worked in Japan and South Korea before finally settled in Seoul. When he is not working, he loves to go on a quick trip to anywhere he wants to go with his beautiful wife.