Packing for Korea - Personal Supplies

Personal Supplies:

Here is the best list I could put together of personal care products that you can and can’t get here in Korea. I’m sure that I’m forgetting something so please comment if you see something that should be on the list or have questions. 

Western beauty brands available in most big grocery stores here:

Hair Care:

Herbal Essence

Nieva

Aveeno 

Pantene

Face & Body:

Vaseline 

Neutrogena

Clean and Clear 

Ponds

WARNING: Some products here contain skin lightening elements. Watch out for terms like “brightening” or “fairness”. 

Other:

ReNu Contact Lens Solution

Kotex

Always 

Tampax 

Johnson & Johnson Baby Products

Halls

Ricola

Chapstick (Double the price)

LipSmackers
Listerine

Specialty Beauty Shops:

The Body Shop

Fruits & Passion

Lush (Seoul)

Personal Supplies To Bring:

A year’s supply of deodorant - The average Korean doesn’t wear deodorant, thus stores do not sell it here. You can get it some at the foreign import stores. I Love Cookie  in Jeongja,Bundang and the foreign foods import store in Itaewon, Seoul. Be prepared to spend about 7000-12000 won ($6-$11) per stick. 

Make up: If you don’t have light skin tones you will need to bring your own foundation, powder and such from home.

Visine

Advil Cold & Sinus

Any pain killer that you use regularly

Tums (you can find here but it is VERY expensive)

Pepto Bismol

Ginger Gravol

Imodium

Cold and flu cough syrup

Allergy Medicine

Any supplements or vitamins that you take

You will catch a cold here and its better to be prepared than have to navigate a Korean pharmacy. (See more about medicine under “Visiting a Doctor in Korea”)

Tip - If you are prone to UTI’s or whatever you may want to ask your Dr. to hook you up with a "just in case" prescription.

Things I’m happy I brought:

Body Lotion - The lotion here that I have found is very thin/watery. I like to slather it on so I brought my favorite brand from home. 

I have dark skin and brought a year’s supply of make up with me. I even brought mascara which I so happy about since it is much more expensive here. 

I also brought tons of medicine. I am so thankful since I have been sick a lot here. 

Please comment if you have something to add!

Good Luck,

B


p.s. I also brought toothpaste (the stuff here freaked me out a bit). There are options here but you may want to pack a couple of tubes. 

What to Pack for Korea - Clothing

The Basics: 

Clothing

As far as clothing is concerned Korea has 4 distinct seasons, winter and summer being the longest and most brutal. You will need a very warm winter coat. I have 4. You will be living in coats for at least 4 months. Layering is a way of life here and there are tons of street vendors selling, gloves, mittens, scarfs, hats and ear muffs. Winter is very cold. Prepare and you will be a much happier, warmer expat. 

I was happy that I brought tall socks and my UGG boots. Speaking of UGGS... 

WARNING: Designer brands here are nearly triple the price! If you love brands like Coach and UGG be prepared to spend a lot of money. I bought a pair of UGG boots at home for $119 and the same boots here were over $300.  Don’t worry though they have lots of generic brands that look the same for about $20. 

WARNING: Here in Korea they love fur and you will find bits of it on lots of accessories. If you are a vegan or animal rights activist, beware. More on being a vegetarian or vegan later. 

Summer is no joke. Prepare yourself for a hot muggy season full of stagnate air and yellow dust. Ladies embrace the frizz and just enjoy the dewey fresh face look.

Quick Tip - Lots of ebayers ship to Korea for pretty cheap. Its a great way to shop for the little things, including clothing, that you need but can’t find here. 

WARNING: Korea is a boobie free zone. In the summer months you will shorts and skirts so tiny that your Grandma back home will blush but boobies are never to be shown. If you have an ample bust be prepared for stares (and gropes if you work with young children). I have fond that a v neck top is like an open invitation for unwanted attention at school. 

WARNING: If you were blessed with more than a B cup make sure you bring enough bras with you from home. It is nearly impossible to find a C cup here let alone a D or above. Be prepared.

As a whole Korean people are but smaller than the average Westerner. You should know that if you are over a size 8 you may have trouble finding clothing to fit you here, especially pants. If you have some junk in your trunk it is even harder. Luckily oversized is in style so you can find larges at some store that will fit up to a size 14. You don’t see many overweight Koreans  so don’t be surprised if you are called fat even if you are just a size 6. I’m overweight and I get called fat about once a week at school. It's not considered rude here so do your best to deal with it.  

Packing Tips:

• Make sure to bring tights & leggings if you are tall or over a size 4. 
• If you have large feet (above a 9 for women, 9 for men) you may have a harder time finding shoes. Also shoes here are more narrow. Wide feet be warned. 
• Guys and gals please bring underwear with you. It’s tiny and very expensive here. I haven't seen a thong.
• Bring gym/yoga clothes with you unless you like to wear snug highwaters pants. 
• Bring a brand new pair of comfy work shoes with you. You need "indoor" shoes for working at a school.

I will be adding a amending this list as needed. If you have some advice to share please leave a comment!

Love,

B

Here We Go!

I would love to fill this blog with witty insightful quips about being an English teacher living and working in Korea. Unfortunately, that’s not going to happen. Instead I will try bring you a comprehensive how to move to, live in and not go crazy guide to Korea. After living here I realized that a lot of the information out there is outdated and caused a lot of unrealistic expectations, packing too much of the wrong things and just left me wanting to share what I have learned so far with anyone else making the leap and moving to South Korea. Hope this helps you to make the transition easier! 

Love, 

B