11 Oct 2009, I head to the south coast of Masan for a beautiful, quiet sunset.

For the first time since I was 18, following the great purge of my possessions known as emigrating, I found myself without a suit to my name. So rather than just buy some casual trousers for our friend's upcoming wedding, slumming it a bit on the day and looking like I don't fit it - again - I instead decided to go hunting for more formal attire.

My search took me to the Migliore shopping mall in Busan's commercial centre, Seomyeon, which for a Saturday afternoon was distinctly lacking in customers. The first store selling suits I entered was run by a tailor. It has its usual representation of somewhat outlandish designs which must pass for fashionable in Korea in some vaguely 1970s American-Midwest-Retro-Chic sort of way, but I opted to try on something more conservative which doesn't make me look like a used-car dealer.

I was immediately awarded a 40% discount from the 480,000 won (£250/$416) starting price. Apparently this included an additional 10% 'foreigner' discount, which as the name suggests is the notional extra discount one sometimes gets at various stores for not being Korean. By this time we'd already established that I was British, not American, though it's impossible to say which one earns the lower discount. It is of course, hardly likely that foreigners get any additional discount, but if they did, it might at least balance out the the groups distributing flyers around Seoul and posting on Naver accusing foreign teachers of 'purposely spreading AIDS, molesting children, raping Korean women and consuming large quantities of narcotics'. You have to love Korea sometimes.

The price is now 290,000 (£150/$251), but Korean Mother - who's come with us - gets it down to 240,000 (£125/$208), with one free shirt and two strange Korean ties which are like clip-ons except with a hoop on some kind of zip. I've never seen anything like it, though it works rather well.



As the owner took my measurements for alterations, he told us that business is down because of Swine Flu. Between the H1N1 virus and the allegedly depressed economic environment there's certainly no hiding the fact that a good number of the concessions within the shopping mall were empty, even if other store owners gratefully use up all the space available to them in front of apparently hastily vacated areas. I felt a bit bad about Korean Mother's haggling. The measurements were done and we were told we could pick up the suit a little later the same day, which is a rather mind-blowing concept if you're from the UK.

My wife found a suit at another store, and Korean Mother once again set to work on owner, a rather round and jolly woman who promised to give as good as she got and never lost the twinkle from her eye as she deflected every attack. Sure enough, from the noises emanating from Korean Mother's throat it was apparent that she was most displeased by the final deal - but we bought anyway. Finally a store owner chalked up a victory to the scourge of Busan's shopping districts.

We ate before returning to collect the suit. I naively had the notion that it would be unceremoniously delivered to me in a plastic store bag in the style of most British high street shops and every other suit I ever recall buying. Instead it was given to me in a proper and rather nice suit holder which easily prevented the clothes getting crumpled as I fought my way back home through the subway, which Swine 'Flu or not, appeared as busy as ever.

The suit of course, fit perfectly. You have to love Korea sometimes.

A reader we'll call 'I' writes in:

I have questions to ask you. I just completed a Celta and an internship in South Africa. I am tempted to get on a flight to Seoul and start looking for a job when I get there. I have a degree and all my stuff in order. the only issue I have is my Background check is 7 month old and that is causing issues with recruiter. Will I be able to get a gig pretty fast when I get there? Is this this too much of a risk? Thanks for your help.

A few questions to look at individually.

I just completed a Celta and an internship in South Africa. I am tempted to get on a flight to Seoul and start looking for a job when I get there. I have a degree and all my stuff in order.

Congrats on earning the CELTA - in many cases it will definitely be a factor in your favor. Thanks to the current economic conditions, however, even experienced teachers in Korea with all their paperwork in order are having difficulty finding the sort of jobs they're qualified for. Although fewer schools are paying for your flight over to Korea, most are still reimbursing the plane ticket as part of your contractual agreement with them. Since some schools only do that if you fly in specifically to work for them, ask about getting your plane ticket reimbursed before signing a contract.

Bear in mind that if you come to Korea without a job / visa in your passport, your status as 'tourist' means you can't legally start working until the working visa is taken care of. That means a visa run to Japan - fly to Fukuoka, Japan, visit the Korean embassy there, pick up your visa, and fly back to Korea with the new shiny addendum to your passport. One point I feel obligated to make: If the school or recruiter insists you can work on a tourist visa, walk away. It's illegal and can cause far more problems than you want.

the only issue I have is my Background check is 7 month old and that is causing issues with recruiter.

At some point earlier this year, Immigration began getting a lot pickier with documents submitted as part of your visa application. The anecdotal evidence, backed up by a couple recruiters, is that your background check and transcript need to be less than 90 days old. That means you'll either to get new ones when you change jobs unless you're able to transfer from job 1 to job 2 (allowed if there are less than 3 months left on your contract with job 1 - it's a lot simpler that way). So much for the advice of 'get more than one'. Get a new background check before you leave your home country - and learn the process for procuring one while out-of-country. You shouldn't need a background check if you haven't left Korea - but Immigration can be weird sometimes.

Will I be able to get a gig pretty fast when I get there? Is this this too much of a risk?

Between the growing fear of swine flu, schools closing temporarily for health reasons, and the economy, Korea can no longer easily be called the great destination it once was. With that said, virtually every country is facing the same challenges as Korea. Your reason for coming to Korea definitely shouldn't be 'because it's safer / less risky than staying in my home country'. Finding a gig is a bit easier since you can combine in-face interviews with the online environment you'd also have elsewhere in the world.

You'll need a place to stay, though - hotels can get expensive, and apartments aren't usually available for short-term use. If I were in your shoes I'd hit up the local craigslist and see if another teacher has an extra room you can use for a week or three.

On a philosophical level, living in a foreign country is a risk - but thankfully it can managed for the most part. If you're the kind that tends to cross the street only at the crosswalk when the green man is out, you may want to ask yourself how much uncertainty you can handle.


© Chris Backe - 2009