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Back in the day, every website had links everywhere. Now that websites are mostly trying to sell you something, or at least get you to look at their ads, they don't want you leaving. Not many include even link pages any more. Heck, who even makes websites about stuff like this these days? ESL teachers blog at Blogger or Wordpress, or write about their lives in Korea at Facebook or Twitter. That stuff you can find yourself. You don't need us to show you where they are.
But just for old times' sake, I've left our old links page up. These were fairly useful resources
in 2003, which was this page's last major update, and most of them still are today. Bon voyage! May you always know what's new and what's cool.
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| Teaching in Wonju | Christine DeMerchant is a Canadian who taught for a year (1998-99) at a hagwon in Wonju. Christine had the same three advantages that Margaret had: she's older than many folks who do Korean ESL gigs, her boss had lived in the US, and Wonju is a small town. Her website has good info on Korean food, and on what to pack. |
| Jay's Korea Story | You should know a couple of secrets about Korean life for foreigners. First, it's much less stressful in the smaller towns. Second, hagwon jobs are almost always a better fit for older, calmer folks (at least in their 30s). If Margaret's journal isn't proof enough, read Christine DeMerchant's experience above. Still not convinced? Check out Jay Conley's story here. He didn't write much, but he sure took lots of Cute Korean Kid® pictures. |
| Doug's Ugly Fish | Douglas Thompson spent 2 years teaching in Daegu (1997-1999). This site, though now rather long in the tooth, has fairly useful background on living in Korea and how to get a good teaching job. |
| Gangwon Notes | Brian taught at Kwandong University in Kangnung (Gangneung) for about 5 years, from 2004. Why should you care? With luck and a reasonable amount of dedication, a year or two of hagwon teaching might buy you an offer from a university. The hours and benefits are usually better than hagwon hours and benefits. 'Nuff said. |
| The Daily Kmichi | This Canadian couple taught in Seoul in 2006 and 2007. Lots of good, useful info here. |
| Morning Calm | Rob Price taught at a public high school in Seoul from 1996 to 1998, under the auspices of KORETTA (Korean English Teacher Training Assistant), now the EPIK program. |
| Adventures | Here's a bit of history for you: one of the first Korea ESL websites. This is the one that clinched the sale for Margaret. When Yahoo took Geocities out and shot it, I grabbed this guy out of the line of fire. So here it is in a local mirror, gloriously anonymous (the author asked me not to use her name). Yes, it's seriously dated, and the design is, uh, distinctive, but it's a fascinating glimpse at what things were like in '97. Enjoy. |
| John's Essays | John Howard worked at Seoul hagwons in 1995 and 1996. He wrote these pieces for a public radio station. |
| The Korean Blog List | This is a motherlode of what-it's-like reading, over 600 blogs that the site's author says are well-established and regularly updated. Six hundred! Don't miss your plane. |
| Dealing With Your Boss | Some thoughts on why Korean bosses act the way they do, and how to make that an advantage instead of a problem. This is a local copy of an article originally published in The Exit, forerunner of Pusanweb, June 1997 issue. Contact the original source for more information. |
| University Teaching | How to get a job, and what it's like. Note that this page is fairly old (1999). This is a local copy of an article originally published in The Exit, March 1999 issue. |
| Public Schools | Teaching in a Korean girls' middle school, under the auspices of EPIK (also see Rob Price's pages). Again, this is a local copy of a piece originally published in The Exit, June 1999 issue. |
| Pusanweb | This was one of the first web guides for English speakers in Korea. It sort of grew beyond its original author's time and patience, and it's now been mostly absorbed into Koreabridge (see below). Before they pull the plug on the old server, be sure to check out the Writings section (careful, don't fall off the ends of the broken links). Also see their archive going back to 1998. |
| Koreabridge | At one time the Pusanweb idea was extended to sites supporting ESL teachers in Ulsan, Daegu, and Daejon. These sites, like Pusanweb, seem to have been snarfed up by Koreabridge. Koreabridge also claims to provide support for English speakers in Pusan (Busan), Kwangju (Gwangju), Incheon, Chegu (Jeju), and Seoul. Tall order. |
| Daegu Guide | This wiki seems to have taken over for the late, lamented Daegu Guide (thedaeguguide.com). If you're looking for an alternative to Koreabridge's Sam's Club approach, check these guys out. |
| Dave's ESL Cafe | One of the venerables. Well worth your time. You'll find lots of useful advice, but also discussion forums with, shall we say, a darker, more cynical view than ours? Read between the lines. If you see yourself reflected in the words of the troubled teachers here, Korea might not be the place for you. |
| Fulbright ETA Program | If you're interested in public high school teaching, rather than hagwon instruction, you may want to check out this program. It's a bit restrictive - only for graduating college seniors and recent graduates, unmarried, without dependents, and under age 30 - but that profile fits most folks interested in Korean ESL anyway. |
| EPIK | Here's another program which places westerners in Korean public schools. As with any such organization, be sure to investigate thoroughly before signing up. (Rob Price got his job through EPIK's predecessor, KORETTA, and his page is worth a look.) |
| TaLK | Teach and Learn Korea is a Korean government program which places English speakers in rural Korean elementary public schools. I know only that it exists, so don't email me asking for more information! |
| Lonely Planet | A traveler's introduction to Korea. |
| One Stop Korea | Scott Fisher is an American who's been living in Korea for over a decade. He has some great stories to tell and plenty of tips. Better allow lots of time for reading this site. |
| Korea Factbook | A blizzard of statistics from none other than the CIA. |
| The Hermit Kingdom | Kevin Davis's photo album is more than snapshots; he has a true photographer's eye for scenes that tell a story or convey a mood. |
| Axel's Korea | Nicely composed photos from a German student's 3-month visit in 2000. Includes a fair selection from different regions, including Seoul, Pusan, Cheju, and Kangwon Do, each with a bit of descriptive text. |
| Flavours of Korea | Marc & Kim Millon explore the world of Korea's specialties, with some side trips into the country's culture. They provide a few recipes for you to try. Be sure to read Halmoni, My Grandmother. |
| Korean Cuisine | Diner's Digest provides a short background piece on the Korean diet's origins and on the nation's dining customs. |
| Korean Recipes | Prepare yourself for what you'll find in Korea, with these suggestions from AsianRecipe.com. |
| The Korea Herald | An English language newspaper, published in Seoul. Some people say this paper is a "mouthpiece" for the current administration, but it seems to be the one that's most popular with foreigners. I haven't been able to get the search function to work. Can you? |
| The Korea Times | This English language newspaper is said to be more impartial than the Herald, but I haven't seen all that much difference. Their website is slow, but so is the Herald's. The archive is open, but the search engine doesn't seem to go very far back. |
| Joong Ang Daily | Another English Language Daily. The site is a bit less glitzy than the others', and also significantly faster and easier to use. Their open archive seems to go back about a year. The search engine is flexible and fast. |
| Dong-a Ilbo | Yet another newspaper with English webpages. The archive seems to have at least some entries all the way back to 2000, but there's no real search function, so it's not of much help. |
| Brother Anthony | He's a professor in the Department of English Lit at Sogang University. As of 2008 he supposedly retired, but according to his website, "most activities continue as before." Born in the UK, he became a Korean citizen in 1994 after living in Korea for 12 years. He has some keen observations on Korean culture (though I wish he hadn't embedded so much Hangul in the page). He's also translated a fair amount of Korean literature in a very accessible style. You can read several pieces at that link. Cool guy. |
| Korean Language | A brief description of the Korean language's origin and that of its script, Hangul. Also has a section on how to form Hangul characters, and another with some basic Korean vocabulary and phrases. |
| Introduction to Korean | An excellent tutorial on basic phrases, with clear, fast-loading sound clips to help. It even has beginning Korean grammar, for the stout of heart. |
| Learn Hangul | This site helps you learn to read and pronounce Hangul (Korean writing), using Romanization (English respelling) and sound files. Some lessons require a browser with a Hangul font. |
| Korean Language | Want to see how some Hangul is pronounced, without poring over the charts? This page will Romanize a line of Hangul pasted in, as long as your browser will display it. Alas, it speaks only the (IMO) more confusing MCT Romanization which Korea adopted in 2000. |
| Babelfish | Attempts to translate Korean webpages into English and vice versa. The results, if not always useful, are at least entertaining. BTW, it's pronounced BAY-bull-fish (thanks and a tip o' the hat to Douglas Adams). |
| Google Translation | Google's effort at machine translation from Korean to English. Much as I hate to admit it, like most things Google, it works better than the competition's - though with Korean, that just means it's less entertaining. |
| NJStar Communicator | Old browsers have fits when they try to render Korean web pages. If you're having trouble, download this program (shareware version available) or try this font. No luck? Search for GulimChe font. |
| Kangnung Weather | From the Weather Underground. Or see what it's like right now in Seoul, Ulsan, Cheju, or Kwangju. |