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As I wound my way around the final flight of steps, I pushed open a humble door that granted me access to the top of the roof. Â I panted frantically as I was exhausted from hauling my two suitcases chock full of all the belongings I packed from home that I deemed necessary just 24 hours ago prior to departing from Canada.
I looked at the structure my Korean director was eagerly waving me towards and immediately thought internally, “No way. Â This can’t be it.”
What was directly in front of my eyes was nothing more than a makeshift shack, a temporary housing structure situated on top of this residential roof. Â Its crumbling white siding led way to a sliding door that was caked with dirt.
As I dropped my suitcases off and finally caught my breath the reality of the situation was finally starting to sink in.
I will be living in this place for an entire year while teaching English in Korea.
What on earth have I gotten myself into?
My most recent apartment in Korea (Not the shack on top of the roof)
Aaaaah, it sure can be fun to look back in hindsight to laugh at yourself. Â What I described above was my Korean apartment (er…Shack on top of the roof) that I lived in during my first ESL teaching stint way back in 2005-06. Â On days when my morale was high and I was in a peppy positive mood I would consider it to be my crumbling artists loft; however, on days that weren’t quite as rosy and stellar the reality was that I was living in a shit tin can on top of a roof. Â Korea, with its brutal winters and impossibly hot and humid summers, nearly did me in that year as I often resorted to extreme measures (electric blankets & heat fans in the winter; 3-4 cold showers & wearing nothing but my undies in the summer) to cope with the predicament I was in.
I’ve learned a lot since that time.  First and foremost, I’ve requested; NO, I’ve demanded  since that initial teaching contract to actually ‘see a photo’ of the place I’m signing my life away before putting my signature on paper. The truth is that I’ve loved all of my apartments in Korea since that initial debacle of a place has long since been in the rear-view mirror. Having my own free apartment and sense of autonomy and space has been one of the main reasons I’ve loved living in South Korea over the years.
With all of the jobs I’ve had in Korea over the years my apartment has always been provided for me as part of my contract. Â I’ve lived on top of a roof, on the 17th floor of a high rise apartment & in an officetel. Â Each experience has been radically different aside from one unifying factor: Â they’ve always been tiny places compared to apartments back home.
My Korean apartment on top of a roof – circa 2005-2006
More views from the humble shack on top of the roof 🙂
In this video I’m giving your a tour of my most recent Korean apartment.  From views of the rice fields from the entrace of my front door to an up close and intimate encounter with my bathroom, nothing is spared 😛  You’ll notice my bedroom that is surprisingly bare.  I take you into my kitchen where I’m running low on condiments, bread and orange juice.  Not exactly the bounty of Korean food you likely expected from a high rolling ESL teacher eh? Normally I head out to grab a bite at a local Korean kimbap places or occasionally a Korean fast food joint.  Finally you’ll get to see what a typical ‘wet’ Korean bathroom looks like; however, not without first putting on flip flops. Come check out Audrey’s apartment in Korea for a completely different tour of an officetel.
Some of my friends and family have been truly shocked by my the size of my apartment. Â What do you think? Â Could you live in a place like this? Â It’s where I’ve called ‘my home’ for the last 10 and a half months. Â It’s humble and certainly nothing special but in some ways I’ll be sad to leave when I pack up my bags six weeks later and head home to Canada for the holidays.
Oh well, I can still live in that apartment even how brutal it is, its exciting and unique. Hope to discover more valuable things in Korea.
Korea seems to be the hotspot for people looking to teach English these days.
Definitely lots of jobs to be had. More demand these days though than when I was teaching there.
Your apartment in Korea is small, but seems to have created worth reminiscing memories. I had a small one like that when I was in Korea last year.
Certainly brings me back!! Are those containers of kimchi I see sitting on the balcony? I think the coolest thing about living in korea is that densified living is the norm because most people live in apartments, even in the country. Not much urban sprawl outside of the big cities.
Wow! Your apartment is beautiful.
In 2010 I had traveled to New Mumbai city(adjacent to Greater Mumbai) in India, the scenery was much resembling to those of Korea.. i.e. The Urbanization as well as the agriculture in symbiosis.
Your refridgerator reminds me of college. Oh, the days of having some condiments and water. I’d love to hear an update of how everything is going thus far.
Sure it’s small, but I imagine you spend more time out and about than cooped up inside anyway (especially if you’re mostly eating out). We’re definitely fortunate/spoiled in North America and forget that most of the world lives in little shoe box apartments!
That’s definitely true Reena. One of the main advantages of having a smaller place is that it encourages you to go out more and it is also easier to clean 😛
Try teaching in Abu Dhabi. The accommodations and pay are probably among the best in the world, not to mention the incredible sights that the UAE offers. But I like this place you got here and “the humble shack” looks pretty awesome as well.
Jimmy, I think you’re absolutely correct about teaching jobs in the UAE. I’d be interested in potentially pursuing that in the future 🙂
You guys are adorable. Well, believe it or not, both apartments look a great deal bigger than the place I lived in in Costa Rica! A couch? What luxury!! Although, at least I got to open my front door and be outside… Even if I had to shower out there, too, since there was no room inside!
Thanks Abby,
The couch is certainly a luxurious addition that I wasn’t expecting to have 🙂
That’s definitely the best attitude to have Paul!
What a surprise! Sometimes they are good and sometimes not so much. Too bad you can’t really do much about it. I guess you make the best of it!
So you’ve lived in Korea, i’ve lived in Korea. Strange things happen there.
Check out my blog on life in Japan. Let me know what you think about its infant stages 🙂
http://www.travellingtalesofciara.com
Cool, I’ve always thought of teaching and travelling more in Japan.
Wow, you weren’t kidding, that apartment is TINYYYYY! I bet compared to the shack on the roof it feels like a palace though, no?
It sure does feel like a palace in comparison! I suppose the best apartment I’ve ever had was back in University and at the time I thought it was small…lol
for this, I can trade my house and the view, this is just awesome. I am a short man so I can fit into this perfectly fine and find solace. Now, my question is how secure it is from fire and how do you get out of your shack from the 17th floor? That one had me thinking though I was imagining a good cable ride across the building will do just the trick but that one has to be considered too.
Its great you had this one featured. My sister and her Canadian hubby used to teach ESL in Korea too and its great their apartments are just fine and cozy, Korea i supposed prefers smaller spaces 🙂
Hahaha, I wish I had a cable car escape route. In my current apartment they have several staircases I could go down and a three elevators but I’ve always felt a bit nervous being high above ground level.
That’s one of the most pimp apartments I’ve seen in Korea! You’ve got great space. I think you should have Twister parties in your spare roomm. Most of my friends in Korea had apartment resembling your first rooftop spot, complete with mold. Mine had a bedroom exactly the size of our bed. I miss the heated floors though!!
LOL, it is quite big for a place in Korea. Ahhhh, the mold. Oh dear, sometimes ‘free’ isn’t always a good thing 😛
I’ve moved into a not-so-great place now at home. In a way its good cuz It allows me to focus on things like reading and being out and about. The only real downside is its hard to invite friends over.
I agree with what you’re saying. I think ‘small apartment’ sizes in Korea encourage people to go out more to socialize and since I’ve been here it’s been rare to be invited into a home.
I’ve lived in some European apartments which were smaller. In fact, I liked the appartment 🙂
That’s great! I prefer small places because they are easier to clean 🙂
Aren’t learning experiences great? LOL! Hopefully, plenty of future ESL teachers are reading this and taking notes. And, I could deal with a smaller place. I think the politically correct term is “cozy”. 🙂
LOL, definitely builds character 😛 Now that I’m far removed from that place I can think of it as being ‘cozy’ I suppose 🙂
It looks wonderful!! The video is great!!
Thanks Arti!
Ha! Great apartment Samuel you look like you love it there. How do you like teaching in Korea. I am getting my TESOL right now.
That’s great Stephen! I’ve enjoyed the experience, although after doing it for several years, I’m looking forward to a change soon.
Ah man that is brutal! My buddy is over there right now and he actually lucked out in accommodation despite him thinking it was terrible (he has ridiculous expectations sometimes haha). It’s good that you’ve learned from that experience though!
Thanks Margyle, I’ve met a few people who complained about their apartments as well even though the place was 99% better than what most ESL teachers receive.
I think it’s all about what you make of it. There’s always that “adjustment” phase but after it passes, the home slowly takes on your character and feels more personal
That’s a great point Marco. It does take some time but one can adjust.
That shack on the roof sure looks character building 😉 And your apartment seems about the same size as where I lived in London. Turns out we don’t really need that much space after all 😉
We certainly don’t. I like that – character building. On good days I used to consider it ‘my artists’ loft…lol
How come no food? Is it as cheap to eat out all the time…?
It is quite cheap to eat out Paul. I honestly can’t be bothered to cook my own meal when I can get one for $3-4 USD which includes a main, sides and a soup.
I suppose it’s hard to argue with that. You’d probably easily spend that (and potentially more?) in ingredients and electricity. Plus then you’d have more washing up, too… not good!
Great window views! How do you like teaching in Korea? I’ve read there’s some significant differences with their culture and western education, and that suicide (even in children) was a problem if they don’t do well in school?
Hi James,
It certainly can be challenging at times but I’ve found it rewarding. The Korean education system is far more strict and stringent than back home. The pressure is turned up at a young age to get into a good middle school which leads to a top high school which leads to a top university. Suicide rates are definitely high amongst students. I hope this aspect of their culture changes in the future but unfortunately things just to seem getting more competitive in recent years.
I could live in your current apartment for a while. I like the cozy kitchen. Enjoy your time there! Oh, enjoyed the dance party, too. 🙂
Thanks Cathy 🙂 I think it’s nice and cozy and perfect considering I don’t have a lot of things here with me now.
That place is great! I mean, what do you really need?
Those places feel more like your own then some Ikea furnished box….
Agree with you Shaun. It has everything I need and more.
I think it’s perfect! I remember finding space limited pretty much everywhere when I was in Korea… but we Canadians are spoiled! And anyway, you get used to a place, no matter its size. It’s all part of living abroad. 🙂
Also, you have fabulous hair.
I couldn’t agree with you more Colleen. I think if I moved back home I’d be ‘annoyed’ by having to clean a bigger place 😛 Thanks for the compliment regarding my hair. I think I ought to get a cut soon though as it’s getting Wolverine-esque awfully fast.
Laughter in the face of problems is good medicine. 🙂
(You might want to check ‘chock-full’ versus ‘chalked full’)
Thanks David, appreciate you finding the typo!
Nice apartment! We went through the same thing about 4 months ago looking for an apartment here in China. Saw some really dingy ones, a couple with mould and one where the roof was caving in a bit! Luckily we ended up with a nice one. We got to choose so we were lucky but even other teachers who chose just took the first one they saw and man…. did their places suck! Haha, have fun in Korea and thanks for the tour.
That’s interesting to hear about your experiences in China. It’s so hit or miss when it comes to teaching contracts, working conditions and living conditions with your typical ESL gig in Asia.
Nice… Thanks for the tour!
You’re most welcome 🙂
Funny stuff man. Nice apartment for sure. I’ll be heading down the tefl road myself in Thailand next March.
Thanks! Good luck with that. TEFL is a great stepping stone for ESL gigs across Asia.