Monday, August 25, 2008

Korean internet access when you get there

Some of you have expressed concern over getting on to the internet right away in Korea. While you are waiting to get your apartment's internet set up, never fear!! You will be able to email family right away and really easily!

PC bongs are everywhere! What, you ask, are they? Well, internet cafes, of course! PC, is of course referring to computers, and bong is the Korean word for room!! (For example: Noree bong is singing room, Korean karaoke).So, just look for a PC bong, and you'll be away to the internet/email/Facebook races!! These PC bongs are located everywhere -- literally on every corner, in every neighborhood, you'll find one. They have high speed internet and are cheap -- about $1 per hour usually! Around you, you'll find instant noodle eating Korean youth logged into gaming sites outnumbering foreigners logged into Facebook but Koreans are used to English teachers using them as internet cafes. These rooms have sprung up as a way to relieve the stresses of Korean youth, who when at home are encouraged to study not play. So, they escape to a PC bong for their pleasure. Most PC bongs are 24 hours as some youth game all through the night! You will also find an occasional cafe that has internet too, which will be more like a North American internet cafe -- where you can either use a computer there or log into a wifi network. So, no matter what, you'll definitely be covered until you get your own at home internet!!You should also have a computer room in your school which you will be able to use during breaks.

Hope this helps you!

PS -- if you are ever looking for something, like a PC bong, and can't find it, just say this to a Korean -- "PC bong, ody -- ee -- soy - yo?" What you have just said is, "Where is the PC room?" They should point you in the right direction! "Ody-ee-soy-yo?" is a very good phrase to know!! "Ody" is the main word in this phrase. It means "where." Sometimes Koreans shorten the phrase to just "Ody?"... If you hear it, they are not calling a dog! They are asking "where?"... Also, "Ody-ga?" is also a short form for asking, where are you going?

Hope you enjoyed this mini Korean lesson! Once you get into it, the language can be really fun to learn!!