Korea Joongang Daily articles
"Taxi companies profit, drivers left out in the cold"
"[First in a two-part series] Law denoting cabs as public transport could add to woes"
1400대 '택시재벌', 개인에게 택시 빌려준 뒤…Jan 12,2013
http://koreajoongangdaily.joinsmsn.com/news/article/article.aspx?aid=2965386&cloc=joongangdaily|home|top
Businesses will do whatever they can to make money. They will skirt the law, they will use accounting tricks, and they may even endanger public safety. Case in point is some cab companies in Seoul that hire drivers as subcontractors to avoid paying them health benefits and wages befitting regular drivers. Subcontracted drivers also do not have to pass background checks like regular drivers do.
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"Korea’s first all-organic farmer dies at age 100"
‘My father ate organic meals for 40 years and always loved others.’ - Won Hye-young
'흙의 힘' 얘기하던 유기농 아버지, 흙으로 돌아가다Jan 12,2013
http://koreajoongangdaily.joinsmsn.com/news/article/Article.aspx?aid=2965360
Won Kyung-sun's an inspiring figure. He worked tirelessly as an organic farmer and teacher. I found his life interesting because I'd never heard of him before and liked his ideas about feeding the hungry. His group donated part of their profits to charities to alleviate world hunger.
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"Park insists on cut in military duty"
"As transition team is briefed, Defense Ministry disagrees with her pledge"
朴, '군복무 18개월 힘들다' 국방부 의견 듣고는…Jan 12,2013
http://koreajoongangdaily.joinsmsn.com/news/article/article.aspx?aid=2965387&cloc=rss%7Cnews%7Cjoongangdaily
Park Geun-hye made this vow at the 11th hour during her campaign. Did she do it to mirror contender Moon Jae-in's similar proposal? Perhaps. Park's idea centers on shortening the country's mandatory military service and hiring more officers to make up for the shortage of enlisted men. Such an idea demands time and money that may not be feasible now. What do you think?
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"Proposal doesn’t reflect reality"
"It is wrong and unreasonable to bundle the entire senior group as dependents." Jan 12,2013
http://koreajoongangdaily.joinsmsn.com/news/article/Article.aspx?aid=2965350
This article focuses on how best to care with Korea's aging population. Currently, there are debates about raising the retirement age and how best to expand government services to older people.
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"Won’s rise over 1,060 is concern to small firms"
달러화에 엔화까지… 日아베, 한국경제를 공포로 떨게 만들다Jan 12,2013
http://koreajoongangdaily.joinsmsn.com/news/article/article.aspx?aid=2965381&cloc=rss%7Cnews%7Cjoongangdaily
A numbers-heavy article about the exchange rates and how it'll affect Korea's economy. The won has grown in strength against the dollar in recent times. I'm including it because changes in the exchange rate affect how much money expats have when they send money overseas. For example, I sent money home last year at 1126won per dollar and this year the rate stood at 1070won per dollar. The change in the rate meant a few more dollars going to the US account.
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Expect a future post about sending money home, for it's an integral part of expat life.
Showing posts with label taxis. Show all posts
Showing posts with label taxis. Show all posts
Monday, January 14, 2013
Sunday, November 25, 2012
Black Saturday purchase: my new motorcycle jacket / Advice on travel scams
It can take a while to find the clothes your want over here. Persistence pays off. Keep an eye out for a good deal.
I've been wearing leather motorcycle jackets for years now and have wondered about picking one up while in Korea. The two I had back home do not fit too well anymore and they aren't here anyway.
That changed today. Rochelle and I came across this leather motorcycle jacket while strolling through Itaewon. It looked good, felt heavy (always a good sign), and had the classic styling. I tried it on and dang did it fit well--not too loose, not too tight, and not too long.
The price? A cool 50,000won.
I'll probably need to get some oil for it loosen it up, for it's a bit stiff yet, but that's all right.
Normally I don't like self-indulgent "look what I got" posts, but I can't help feeling excited about this, for it's another delayed "American Splendor" ^ purchase to cross off the list.
Buying this jacket brought to mind an article I'd read here.(http://www.rooshv.com/10-common-travel-scams) Roosh, the writer, has traveled extensively in Europe and South America and speaks from experience.
"10. The switcharoo. A guy on the street is hawking cheap cameras that seem legit. Vendor is long gone by the time you realize you bought a box of rocks. Sometimes even stores will give you a box that is already opened.
Defense: Examine the goods."
Yes. Ask to see it/look it over/try it on/hear about its features/open the abox. If an item of clothing had zippers or buttons, play with them. Moreover, look at the packaging. I've noticed a number of suspect "off brands" in markets over here that look like a name brand but aren't.
Again: if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Foreigners can be easy marks because they don't know the local customs as well as the natives. A case in point is Koreans and bargaining. It's nigh on expected over here to bargain over the price of something in a marketplace. I generally don't do that because I'm not used to it, but I should do it more often.
Another way: avoid the sidewalk markets or sellers and stick to the legitimate stores. Buying stuff there will likely cost more, but you'll have a better defense against getting scammed. For my part, I've had good luck with the markets: sellers have been friendly and they've often been generous with the "service," ie extra items. I've never had absurd prices quoted either. Still, two pairs of pants did eventually get holes in the pockets, but they can easily get fixed.
Also, the Korean big-box stores like E-Mart and Lotte Mart have generous return policies from what I've heard. Service and customer loyalty is important here. Stores want to protect their reputations. Paula once had to return a defective camera to Lotte Mart and the store took care of it right away. Once I bought a set of computer speakers and found that they were of poor quality, so I walked back to the seller and told him I'd bought them by mistake. I'd made a choice because the price sounded good. He immediately refunded the money on my debit card.
* Roosh's site also has some quality articles about meeting and hooking up with women. If you read more of his stuff, you'll likely see that he's sexist and misogynistic at times. Keep in mind that what he writes is his opinion. I'll stop here because although I'm not running a dating blog.
** I've yet to personally hear about anyone getting robbed or scammed over here beyond a taxi driver cadging an extra couple thousand won by taking a longer route than necessary. (Hell, that's common in the States too. It may be that the taxi meters are set differently in different taxis)
^ A friend coined the term "American Splendor purchase" a few years ago when I put off buying the American Splendor omnibus book for a long time because I never wanted to part with the money. I should've bought it right away.
I've been wearing leather motorcycle jackets for years now and have wondered about picking one up while in Korea. The two I had back home do not fit too well anymore and they aren't here anyway.
That changed today. Rochelle and I came across this leather motorcycle jacket while strolling through Itaewon. It looked good, felt heavy (always a good sign), and had the classic styling. I tried it on and dang did it fit well--not too loose, not too tight, and not too long.
The price? A cool 50,000won.
I'll probably need to get some oil for it loosen it up, for it's a bit stiff yet, but that's all right.
Normally I don't like self-indulgent "look what I got" posts, but I can't help feeling excited about this, for it's another delayed "American Splendor" ^ purchase to cross off the list.
Buying this jacket brought to mind an article I'd read here.(http://www.rooshv.com/10-common-travel-scams) Roosh, the writer, has traveled extensively in Europe and South America and speaks from experience.
"10. The switcharoo. A guy on the street is hawking cheap cameras that seem legit. Vendor is long gone by the time you realize you bought a box of rocks. Sometimes even stores will give you a box that is already opened.
Defense: Examine the goods."
Yes. Ask to see it/look it over/try it on/hear about its features/open the abox. If an item of clothing had zippers or buttons, play with them. Moreover, look at the packaging. I've noticed a number of suspect "off brands" in markets over here that look like a name brand but aren't.
Again: if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Foreigners can be easy marks because they don't know the local customs as well as the natives. A case in point is Koreans and bargaining. It's nigh on expected over here to bargain over the price of something in a marketplace. I generally don't do that because I'm not used to it, but I should do it more often.
Another way: avoid the sidewalk markets or sellers and stick to the legitimate stores. Buying stuff there will likely cost more, but you'll have a better defense against getting scammed. For my part, I've had good luck with the markets: sellers have been friendly and they've often been generous with the "service," ie extra items. I've never had absurd prices quoted either. Still, two pairs of pants did eventually get holes in the pockets, but they can easily get fixed.
Also, the Korean big-box stores like E-Mart and Lotte Mart have generous return policies from what I've heard. Service and customer loyalty is important here. Stores want to protect their reputations. Paula once had to return a defective camera to Lotte Mart and the store took care of it right away. Once I bought a set of computer speakers and found that they were of poor quality, so I walked back to the seller and told him I'd bought them by mistake. I'd made a choice because the price sounded good. He immediately refunded the money on my debit card.
* Roosh's site also has some quality articles about meeting and hooking up with women. If you read more of his stuff, you'll likely see that he's sexist and misogynistic at times. Keep in mind that what he writes is his opinion. I'll stop here because although I'm not running a dating blog.
** I've yet to personally hear about anyone getting robbed or scammed over here beyond a taxi driver cadging an extra couple thousand won by taking a longer route than necessary. (Hell, that's common in the States too. It may be that the taxi meters are set differently in different taxis)
^ A friend coined the term "American Splendor purchase" a few years ago when I put off buying the American Splendor omnibus book for a long time because I never wanted to part with the money. I should've bought it right away.
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