Korean Apartment Tour: Sometimes you get lucky!

When I arrived in South Korea, ready to be shown my new location, school, and apartment, I had no idea what I would be getting. Every single person’s situation will be different. Just in my city of Changwon, I know someone with a two bedroom apartment, and another with a shoebox. Mine lands squarely in the middle and, honestly, I love it. So let’s go on a Korean Apartment Tour!

The Entrance

My entrance is fairly typical. I’ve added a table that doesn’t really work. But I needed a place to set down my things when I got home, spare change, my mask, etc. On the right is a storage closet. It’s pretty messy with things I need but I don’t know what to do with them – wires, an iron, plastic bags, repair supplies, and more.

entryway of a korean apartment tour. A brown door with an electronic lock, a brown mat and two pairs of shoes. To the right are some command hooks holding a red coat — It gets better from here 😛

The Kitchen

A white colored kitchen with a double burner (a wooden cutting board is to the side) on the left of the steel sink is a plastic drying rack. To the left is a medium sized refridgerator with a seperate freezer component. Korean apartment tour. — My small but useful kitchen!

To the right of the entrance. My kitchen is fairly standard in terms of appliances. I always get confused when expats say they can’t cook because their kitchen is too small. Like…how many people are you cooking for? My friend’s kitchen even lacks the tiny bit of counter space I have and she still manages just fine!

My kitchen is fairly big for Korea if you include the table. Because I love to bake and regularly have a supply of cookies and bread rolling out, I had to invest in an oven. Best decision! It’s stuffed under the dining table which is quite nice in the winter as a foot warmer. It was a lifesaver during quarantine, I’m still eating bread I made in April and froze. I did wind up stuffing my microwave in my laundry room as I hardly use it and it’s really big.

A wooden table with two matching chairs with pink blankets on them. The table is backed against a bookshelf with many food and alcohol related items. On the wall to the right is a line of astronomy related drawings and above is an old fashioned looking map of Korean apartment tour — My kitchen table area! A little busy but I do cook a lot so….many ingredients!

I wish I had a dishwasher, my favorite appliance, but I get by 😛

My shelves are pretty stocked as you can see. But I cook a great deal, as I don’t pay for my school lunch meals. I think my kitchen is one of the best layouts that I’ve seen compared to any other Korean apartment tour.

The Desk

A dark desk with a blue electric teapot and various tea related things scattered across. It is lit by a single lamp. There are strings of postcards on the wall. — My favorite area of my house!

This is to the left of the entrance. Even if I don’t use this area that much, it’s my favorite. It’s dedicated to my hobbies. My short-lived attempt at guitar isn’t pictured, but it’s just to the left of the desk. Tea is a surprisingly major part of my life so the desk is almost entirely dedicated to it unless I need to type something.

My postcards are some of my most prized possessions, documenting my travels for the past few years. I try to buy a postcard for every city I visit, or at least find something to write on. So far only Gimhae, Korea, and San Marino have eluded me. You can read more about why postcards are the best souvenirs here.

The Bedroom

A queen sized bed covered in pink, white, and grey pillows. To the left of the bed is a three cubby bookcase with a lamp on top. There are four botanical pints alongside a brown curtained window above the bed. Korean apartment tour — Yes, I have a lot of pillows. No, I am not ashamed.

I have the largest bed I’ve ever seen in a Korean apartment. And honestly, it kinda ruined some of my plans. I was hoping they wouldn’t have a bed at all and I could then buy a traditional futon-thing. I’d be able to roll it up when I like to dance around my room like a maniac. Luckily, my room still has just enough space that I rarely injure myself in said dancing.

I recently added the bookshelf and it’s great. Finally I have a better spot for my books and a glass of water at night.

A slightly open window with three plants above a low table set up as an altar, a table with a tv and a lamp and a hanging tapestry of la belle dame sans merci. — I wish it could be more organized but I’ve learned to live with it.

I‘ve had that pig balloon in the purple laundry basket since my first month. Still haven’t managed to take a cute pic with it. Yes, I did indeed bring an entire tapestry with me to Korea.

Three hats in a row down a wall next to a door. On the left side of the door is a closet unit partially covered with botanical print curtains. — This is my work in progress section…

I‘m not terribly happy with my closet section, the curtain is to make it less insane in terms of all the colors and pieces flying around in there. Hopefully I can figure something out. On the right is my most recent change. There used to be a hat rack there but it wasn’t well built and was just an excuse for me to drop everything on it. It has now found a home in my Laundry/Storage room.

The Laundry and Bathroom

I won’t be taking photos of my bathroom because, well, it’s my least favorite room and it tends to be a bit messy. It’s a standard wet bath, with just a little more space so my toilet paper isn’t always getting wet. Sorry it’s not a full Korean apartment tour but, well, just a few things have to remain private, right? 😛

A messy room covered in laundry. A closed, frosted window runs the length of the small room. A microwave is balanced on top of metal shelves and a random hat stand is in the center. — Yep. I gave up on this room (also I was in the middle of laundry when this photo was taken. Sorry)

The laundry is also messy but as I’ve given up on it entirely, it is what it is. My storage room. The hat stand has been relocated here, as has the microwave. I store my backpack on top of the ceiling clothes rack. Sorry for the mid-laundry pic!

And that’s my Korean apartment tour! I hope it’s helped you get an idea of what you can expect for your free housing as a public school English teacher 🙂