So many people said I should bring a big towel with me to Korea as the only towels I'll be able to find would be small towels. I ended up bringing a small microfiber towel (good for travelling) but on my first day here I was able to buy a big fluffy towel in Homeplus.  Don’t waste the space and just bring a small compact towel instead for your first few days. ​

I saw some articles advising to bring bed sheets. This is a bit of a silly one to bring in my opinion as 1. You have no idea what bed you will get when you arrive to your apartment and 2. they take up a lot of space.

On my first day I didn’t have anything to cover my mattress, just a pillow and comforter. However, for the first week I lay a beach towel on the bed and within a few weeks had bought a comfortable bottom mattress cover. Don’t bring duvet sheets either as you don’t know what size bed you will get and although in Korea they tend to favour the more American style sheets or comforter, you can easily find and purchase them. ​

Korean people are blessed in that they don’t sweat like we do and don’t smell! Most Koreans therefore don't have a need for deodorant. However, that doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist! Nivea is an easy brand to find in any Olive Young (both spray and dry kinds).  If you have a preference to a particular brand, bring it along but if you’re not fussed it is easy to get here. 

​It is true that Korean toothpaste can be a little different to ours. However, walk into any large Olive Young with an international section and you’ll find Colgate or other international brands easily. Of course, it’s imported and a little more expensive but it’s super easy to get.  Only bother to bring one large or two small ones with you to cover you for the first few months.  If you don't live near an Olive Young, you'll be able to find it on Coupang to buy in bulk. 

I have larger feet for a woman. I'm a UK size 6-7. It can be hard to find traditional feminine  shoes in my size (it usually doesn’t go higher that my size) but as a lover of trainers and street fashion I have no problem buying shoes.

If you have larger feet and like wearing high heels, I do recommend you bring these from home. Remember that when you are at school, you'll be wearing slippers, not outside shoes, so don't bring anything fancy for work! ​

This was a bit of a joke in my friend group when we first moved here. We all brought our favourite herbs and spices from the UK but found that Homeplus and Emart have an impressive range of herbs and spices. Of course, if you have a favorite you can’t live without - bring it along - but if you want your standard herbs and spices, all can be found here. ​

Body suncream is rarer but can be found on coupang. Face suncream is everywhere and it is probably better than the one you use at home! So take advantage of Koreas amazing skincare and buy some here! ​

 Good luck with the final stages of your move to Korea! 

I have lived in Daegu for 18 months now and love it here. I write travel tips for adventures around the country as well as advice for those moving or thinking of living in Daegu. 

ACC Design Hotel - this modern and locally owned hotel is right in the centre of the main town. A short walk away from the shopping, museums and restaurants, this hotel also has an outdoor pool and bar to unwind after your day sightseeing. The property also offers a free breakfast with western and korean options. ​

Hotel B - this chain hotel is well located within the city - close to the 5.18 Memorial Park and a popular dining district. It is on the subway line and offers well-priced comfortable rooms with breakfast included. ​

Panda Guesthouse - this guest house is situated a 5 minute walk from the main shopping area. The guesthouse offers various bunk rooms and family rooms as well as a communal living and kitchen area. When we stayed here we were the only visitors (due to COVID-19) but I think without this it would have been a lively atmosphere. The guest house offered a good breakfast of toast, eggs and cereal and also had a rooftop to relax on at the end of the day. Each room has its own private bathroom and we really enjoyed our stay here. The host was also lovely and friendly. ​

This exhibition is located downtown and is free to enter. It has three floors of displays depicting the history of the 5.18 Uprising and various memoirs and artefacts from the event. It was very moving, particularly the first floor and we were able to understand the event and its importance in shaping the city to modern day Gwangju. The museum takes around 1 hour 30 minutes to comfortably walk through and has information in both Korean and English throughout. ​

Take the subway to the cultural complex and this large square is hard to miss. The center of the Uprising movement, see here the clock tower which is mentioned heavily in the 5.28 uprising history and also the pagoda which when I went was being renovated. The square is also home to government buildings and a cultural facility where a variety of art is on display. It makes for a spacious and vibrant city hub. ​

An easy day trip from Gwangju, we chose to take the local bus to Damyang for a day.  There are also more comfortable and quicker inter-city buses that may make your journey between the two destinations smoother. We had to change buses a few times and found they weren’t always the most punctual. 

Once at Damyang, we straight away headed to the Juknokwon Bamboo Garden (죽녹원). The entrance fee was 3,000\ and allows you entrance to a huge park filled with beautiful bamboo trailed walkways, stunning lakes and galleries. 
​
If you’re ARMY this is the location where j-hope posted a series of instagram posts during winter 2022. As I was walking beside the picturesque lake to the north of the park, I realised I recognised the scenery. Pulling up his posts on my phone, I quickly discovered that this was the bamboo forest j-hope visited! Shortly after discovering this, we stumbled across the coffee shop he also took photos at. Of course, we had to grab a coffee here and try to recreate the photos. From here, it seemed we almost followed his footsteps as we came across a number of other photo spots from when he posted. Me and my friend were in ARMY heaven. Our other two pals were less impressed!

After getting over our shock, we grabbed some convenience store lunch and had a make-shift picnic alongside the river.  The town is small but also has some tea fields which are perfect to visit in the spring or summer. It was a perfect day trip from Gwangju.

Eins Hotel is a three star property on the main strip of Seogwipo. The room was comfortable but the main attraction of the stay was the stunning view from the breakfast room. The view looked over Seogwipo Harbour and the ocean and was the perfect place to watch the sun slowly rise.  The breakfast was the same each day but had enough selection to keep us happy. Overall, it was a good budget hotel stay and the breakfast view was worth it. ​

Gudeok Guesthouse is great for a hostel budget stay. The owners were friendly as was their adorable dog! The rooms were simple but comfortable and the highlight here was the rooftop area for socialising.  We met some great people on the rooftop in the evenings and it was fantastic to have this space to hang out in after the 9pm curfew. The hotel and hostel were very similar in price for a double room in both but of course the guesthouse was more suited for a social atmosphere. ​

The tour took the whole two hours that were designated and we then headed straight back to Itaewon to drop our bags and relax. We went to Gry’s NY Pizza for dinner that night and enjoyed a terrace view out over the city. That evening we tried out a few cocktail spots and bars along the upper Itaewon streets and found that the area has so much to offer when it comes to cute dining and drinking places. ​

Less than a month after arriving in Daegu, we were spoilt with the Chuseok Harvest festival quickly approaching.

Chuseok is a festival held on the full moon of the 8th month of the lunar calendar.  Korean families traditionally come together for this holiday, more so than Christmas and prepare food together, play games and enjoy each others company.  You can think of it as a close comparison to an American Thanksgiving.  This year since Chuseok was on a Tuesday, there was a five-day holiday for which we wanted to make the most of.
​
After some thought and deciding not to travel far due to the pandemic, me and three other friends chose to travel to Gyeongju.  This is a small town about an hour away from Daegu and is famous for its historical significance, old architecture and pretty scenery. 

The KTX (Fast train) does go past Gyeongju but the station is a ways away from the town meaning the slow train (Mungwha) at only an hours ride which was much more cost and time efficient. We arrived into Gyegonju station at 10am and headed straight to the main tourist area. 

Gyeonju is a city of two halves. Whilst the train station and our air bnb were nestled in the modern downtown of the city, the tourist attractions are all a short walk away in the old town.  On the way to the old town you won’t get lost with huge burial mounds surrounding you as you walk. These are dotted all over the city and are tombs of old kings and queens of the Silla dynasty.  They are well preserved and are fascinating to learn about.  Before the introduction of strict Buddhism into the Silla kingdom, once a King died, their servants were also buried with them in the tombs so they would continue to serve them in the next life!

As soon as we got to the old town we stopped for a coffee and bite to each. Gyeongju is famous for it’s red bean bread (빵) and the café we stumbled across catered to just this.  We gave it our first try and found it to be really nice but very heavy on the red bean!

The old town is all low rise with traditional buildings and rooftops as far as the eye can see.  The main street is full of cafes, street food stores, gift and clothes stores and photo booths. We enjoyed wondering along the street and trying various different foods.  My favorite of that row was the Japchae Hotteok. 
​
Around the old town is a huge green area full of many attractions.  These include Cheomseongdae, an ancient astrological observatory, flowers fields, Gyeongju History Museum and Ananpji Pond.  We explored more of this the next day but did visit Cheomseongdae for some photos and wondered around the flower fields where the Muhly was starting to come out for Autumn.
​

We chose to stay at Gyeongju Kitchen which is located a short walk away from the old town in the downtown area of Gyeongju. Our host greeted us and let us settle into our room before we started our Korean cooking class. The house was split between a kitchen, dining room downstairs and a bedroom upstairs.  It was more than enough space for the four of us for two nights. 

I am so glad we did the cooking class as it was a lovely experience to do over Chuseok.  Our host taught us many simple and veggie friendly dishes including various types of Jeon, royal tteokbeoki and gaerang mari.  My personal favorite was making the Jeon as it is traditionally made for Chuseok and was declicious!  
​
Our host was so welcoming and insightful – we learnt a lot from her and are so glad we chose to stay where we did.  

On our full day in Gyeongju we decided to hire bikes to cover more of the city. These were only 5,000won for three hours and we used the time to cycle to the National History Museum and visit.  The museum covered the Silla dynasty in the area and it was fascinating to see how ancient and established this civilization was. The Silla dynasty started around the time of Christ and stayed until 935AD when the Three Kingdom period came to the region. The dynasty had well established villages with temples, palaces and a civilized way of life.

The traditional dress from the time, Hanbok, changes throughout time but is still a well-loved traditional item from Korean history. When visiting areas of cultural signification in Korea it is popular for both Koreans and foreigners to wear Hanbok when they visit. We decided after seeing a few people dressed up so prettily that we wanted to join in the fun and booked Hanbok to wear for two hours. 

Hanbok rental stores were dotted around the high street and have so many colours and options to choose from.  I went for a lighter colour style whilst my friends went for more royal reds, blues and blacks.  When wearing Hanbok you start with a hoop skirt (so much fun) and then the main skirt.  This goes up to your chest and wraps around.  The final piece if the top portion which covers the arms and your midriff.  The store also had various accessories to choose from and hair styling equipment as well.
​
Walking around felt like being a princess for a few hours and we loved getting compliments from older Korean ladies! We walked around the main tourist complex and took photos in the flower fields, Woljeonggyo bridge and at the Joseon Dynasty cultural village.  This was a fun aspect to our trip and allowed us to connect further with the culture. 

That evening we weren’t too hungry thanks to a coffee shop stop that included a huge cake each. We instead went to a bar we’d spotted during the day in the old town which was oddly Cuban beach themed. We sat outside on a beach bench style surrounded by surfboards and Cuban tourist images and videos playing on a large screen.  It was an odd theme for sure but we enjoyed our Cuba Libre’s in the warm autumnal weather.
​
On our final day which happened to also be Chuseok we woke up to rain.  Rather than heading out of town to the famous Bulguksa temple we instead decided to just go to a coffee shop and explore some of the shopping on the main old town street.  We found an adorable cloud themed coffee shop with great views out over the town.  After the rain cleared a little, we did some shopping around the town and grabbed some lunch as well as presents to bring back to our schools from our little holiday. 

Three days was the perfect amount of time to explore Gyeongju but I wouldn’t hesitate to go back to check out more of the city as well as Bulguksa temple which we missed out on due to the weather. The city is small but is easy to navigate and has so much history to explore.  Autumn was a great season as the flower fields were full of seasonal flowers and plants, but I’ve heard spring with the cherry blossoms is equally beautiful, I’ll have to go back then!
​
We returned to Daegu well rested and ready for a day of rest at home before we headed back to work. Gyeongju was a great city to explore for a short break and is a must to add to your South Korean itinerary.