South Korean Apartment Tour

I've only been in it a little while but I am really starting to love my little apartment. In South Korea, most office buildings are officially termed Officetels. This means that some of the space, usually the bottom 2-3 floors, can be or is used for small businesses. The rest of the building is separated in a more traditional apartment style. In the bottom floors of my building are at least two restaurants, a convenience store, a laundromat, a senior center, and I think a dog grooming place.

As someone who prefers stairs to the elevator, I have noticed that either they were made quickly or the building is old and has settled oddly because the steps are all different heights which threw me off a little bit and first and still gives me a little jolt at the end of a particularly long day when I expect the next step to be a bit taller.

Another really cool thing about the staircase is that at every landing, the handrails have brail. I would assume saying the same thing as the sign on the wall stating which floor you've gotten to.

I have now learned to change my door code, which reminds me a lot of the ever changing door codes at my old bookstore job. As far as I'm aware it's a pretty standard feature of doors here to not require a physical key. Which is nice if you can remember keycodes, because you will never be locked out. I will admit that it takes getting used to being able to leave the apartment with nothing in hand or pocket if I want to. 

My apartment is a little odd because the bedroom isn't lofted but I don't really mind. I have plenty of space, definitely the biggest mattress that has ever been mine and mine alone, and finally a refrigerator and cupboards! As nice as the hotel was, it was very frustrating not being able to go to the cupboard and make something when I needed to eat. Of course, now comes the problem of stocking up the fridge and cupboards; that's happening slowly but surely. 

At first I was a little nervous, because I couldn't get my gas stove to work however, I have since learned the trick. Gas burners in Korea will have a small gas line close by to turn the gas on. Just turn the knob so that it's parallel to the gas line. 

If, like in my apartment, the gas still doesn't come on, check outside the door. There should be a (probably red) lever. If it is sideways, that means the gas is not on in your apartment and you need to turn it vertical. If there is a lock on it, it means your gas has been shut off because of unpaid bills. 

I love how bright my living area is with it's cheerfully colored wall paper and big huge windows, and I'm really liking having my bedroom tucked away and kind of dark because it gives it a cosy feeling.

I'm starting to get used to the constant noise of the city, although throughout the day there seems to be random trucks whose purpose is to drive around slowly while tons of speakers blare some sort of repetitive message. I think I remember hearing or reading somewhere that they are for elections, but I'm not sure. Those ones are annoying. I haven't noticed any at night yet thankfully. 

I am going to have to start looking into a way to shade the windows though because my apartment will bake this summer if I don't figure something out.