Here is a quick list of the things I've noticed in South Korea so far.....
- Blu Tack - I've yet to find it in South Korea! I had some lying around so threw it into my case without really thinking. Showed it to my co-teacher and she'd never seen anything like it before....
- Tea - They weigh next to nothing but I figured being Asia, I would be able to find all sorts of lovely teas here so I didn't bother to bring any. Been told you can find Rooibos but I've yet to see it. Most of the supermarkets sell quite a wide selection of flavoured teas, e.g. lemon, mint, various fruit flavours. However, when it comes to their green teas, all I can say is: bleurgh (they add 'brown rice' to it)! Participated in a traditional tea ceremony and was told that there's a big difference between teas in Korea and China. Chinese tea tends to a lot stronger and fuller flavoured, whereas Korean tea is weaker with a gentler flavour. Well I grew up drinking strong Chinese teas (they all taste good) and miss it dearly! Of course there is the quentissential English cuppa but I knew I wouldn't be able to get it here anyway. So bring some of your favourite teas - stuff your shoes to save space!
- Coffee is another sore point. You will be able to find decent coffee here don't worry and there are lots of cute cafes. However, I'm not sure if it's just me but honestly, I don't think the cafeine content is as high as Western countries. Firstly, what you'll notice (but get used to quickly) is that the Koreans drink their coffee (or 'Coppee') in small cups half filled (equivalent to 2 shots). Baffled me at first but I can sort of understand why - East Asians drink tea in little cups so why should it be any different with coffee? What you'll find available everywhere (I mean EVERYWHERE - restaurants, stores, buildings) is either a automatic coffee dispenser (vending or free) or these small instant coffee sachets next to a hot (and cold) water machine. Extremely sweet and creamy with a hint of coffee is what you'll get. As we don't tend to get fresh milk in our office at school I've taken to drinking 2 of these coffee sachets along with 2 teaspoons of their bog standard instant coffee (from a jar) in my 'normal' sized mug. I usually end up drinking 2 cups of this stuff a day at school; result = still dozing off at my desk!
- The top loading washing machines destroy your clothes! You have to put pretty everything in those laundry bags. Obviously they've realised this as laundry bags are abundant, cheap and come in various shapes and sizes. Ruined a few things before I realised this so don't make the same mistake!
