I stayed in Seoul, Korea in October 2016, and I started learning a bit more about what it would be like to live the “local” life. Though it was a bit difficult to get around because there weren’t many English speakers, I received insight from asking my music friend many questions about life in Korea and was silently observing people as I walked around. (You can check out the music video we filmed in Korea here). This friend is from Greece and has stayed in Korea for about 9 years now. He told me he’s seen the good AND the bad and felt a bit jaded living there. Since I was only there for a month, it was hard for me to judge what Korea is like, but here were some of my thoughts and my first impressions of Seoul, Korea.

My First Impressions of Seoul, Korea

People Love to Follow Trends

I noticed while walking around, people LOVED to follow the latest trends. Girls would put on the same white-colored foundation and red lipstick, and boys sported the same bowl cut hairstyle. Of course these trends change constantly (well, maybe not the pale skin hype), but people like to make sure they look their best when they leave the door!

Not Many Speak English

If I didn’t have friends in Seoul, I would have been completely lost. I was surprised to find that not many people spoke English in Korea. Young females were more likely to speak English (this was confirmed by my friend as apparently, young females are more interested in leaving Korea to explore the world) but for the most part, I could barely communicate with anyone. This made it especially hard to order food and get around.

Google Maps Doesn’t Work Well

Maybe it’s improved in two years time, but back in 2016 I essentially couldn’t navigate on Google Maps cause Maps didn’t seem to work well in Korea. But regardless, I was able to blow up my Maps screen and see where my blue dot was going to sort of get around.

Food Can Be Extremely Affordable

I learned from my friend that in Korea, there are restaurants made specifically for 1 person. At those restaurants, I was able to eat meals for an average of $3-8. It was pretty affordable! Street food was around $1-3.

Ordering Food for 1 Person is Difficult

So even though there are restaurants made for 1 person, my friend told me that a lot of restaurants require at least 2 or more people as they will only offer sets for specific party sizes. So it was a bit harder as a solo traveler to order food, and many times I ended up ordering food at the same places over and over again.

Hilarious sign I saw in Korea

Conclusion

As I had only traveled around Seoul, Korea for about a month and most of the time was used to film my music video, I am unsure if all my opinions and ideas are correct. These are just some first impressions I had while I was there back in October of 2016. If you have any feedback or comments let us know!