Seoulscapade

The view above is what we now enjoy from our balcony at our new residence. And if you want to see a bit of what it’s like at night, there’s a picture below. It’s great having such a view, almost like living in a low flying aircraft. All the pictures below are of around the complex.

We moved here at the beginning of November ‘06. We’re on a top floor apartment at a complex called Daewoo Prugio, further away from the university but nonetheless conveniently located. It’s much, much better than our previous living situation. Things were becoming intolerable there, at the so-called BK House.

BK was built to house some of the university’s foreign students and staff. BK stands for “Brain Korea,” and I used to make jokes that it referred to only one brain being there, among all the foreigners, though no one knew which one, or that all the foreigners together made up one brain. There was more to this joking than flippancy, as I’ll relate shortly.

A winter shot of Prugio.

BK was becoming intolerable because for one thing, we’d reached the end of our stay limit, which was 3 years. Officially, it’s two years, but I managed to get a one year extension. Then I applied for a further extension, beyond the three years, with the backing of the institute where I work. I was a trail blazer, as this have never been done before.

For no apparent reason, the process took months before we got a decision. Other foreigners were keen to learn the outcome. Our life was put on hold while we waited—we couldn’t go on vacation, we couldn’t plan anything, we were in limbo. It was beginning to get a little annoying. Eventually, the OK was given.

Now to the main issue, which had also been put on hold. We had major problems with both the Neanderthal upstairs and some kind of family with young kids downstairs. After speaking with the BK manager, we were informed that we might be able to move to another apartment, once it was established that we were allowed to stay for another year. OK, so we waited, and after being told we could stay, we asked about moving apartments.

Another Prugio winter shot.

This time the upper management suggested that if we didn’t like our living situation at BK, then we should get the hell out (not their words, but the gist of them). That was enough for me. We got the hell out. They’d just given the first 4th year extension that had ever been allowed, and I told them to stick it. I wasn’t putting up with the noise any longer, and I wasn’t going to go through an annual begging process to stay there any more.

The guy upstairs was a problem from the first day he moved in. It was not unusual to be woken up at three in the morning to his stomping around the bedroom upstairs. In fact, he stomped around most everywhere. It sound like there was an ape up there, and pretty soon, that’s exactly what my wife and I would refer to him as. We asked him several times to show consideration, but it didn’t work. Some nights his noise was so bad that I’d go to bed angry, and then I’d get up angry, and then I’d go to work angry. It’s no way to live.

The family downstairs was just a typical family. They had a baby that would cry, naturally enough, but it was so loud that it sounded like the kid was in our apartment, not downstairs. You couldn’t escape it. They also had a little kid that would run up and down noisily and slam doors—you know, the usual stuff for brats. To my way of thinking, we had to put up with kids, without them being our kids. That didn’t strike me as fair. To give them credit, however, they were quiet after around 10pm.

Prugio in spring!

There we were, sandwiched, feeling trapped. It was a nightmare some nights, when I was just trying relax and read. I couldn’t get beyond two sentences without some loud bang or thump or clatter. Sometimes you couldn’t tell where it was coming from; it was just all around. Nor am I joking when I say that this would go on for hours. Presumably, it would compare well with living in a ghetto, save for the absence of gunshots. Actually, I’d probably prefer gunshots to an ape nearby or a crying baby, but that’s just me.

We started apartment hunting soon after the BK decisions. It wasn’t going to be easy because of the rental system here, where it’s not uncommon to need a deposit of around, say, $130, 000. I didn’t have that kind of ready cash. Fortunately, my wife had a friend in real-estate, who just happen to know of a couple of apartments available near his office.

He was informed of my sensitivities, heightened after having lived under the stress of BK, and we got to see the apartment we are now in, and sign up for it, that same day. We met the current residents, allegedly brother and sister, but I suspect there was more to it than that. I think that was the cover for a couple living together out of wedlock.

It just so happened that this apartment was rented differently, by way of monthly rent and a deposit, the exact amount of which, coincidentally, I had in the bank at that time. And it was cheaper than normal because the owner refused to allow children and insisted that the apartment be taken care of. Thus, you couldn’t get more compatible tenants and landlord.

For us, a top floor apartment meant no Neanderthals above, and we only had a neighbor below and to the left. Plus, of course, they were not foreigners because it is just regular, off-campus, Korean style accommodation. With Koreans, you’re more likely to get manners and consideration, in my experience. In addition, there is an community announcement every week over the PA system reminding people to limit noise from pianos, kids and pets.

As time went on, we found that there was another brat downstairs (they are everywhere, like an infestation). However, he is only an intermittent stomper, like his father. And the thickness of the floors insulate the effect better than the poor construction values of BK house. We do have very thin walls with one side neighbor. You can hear them in the bathroom and whenever they hang their clothes up in the bedroom closet. But all this is nothing compared to what we went through previously.

The nights are truly blissful. I could, if I wished, relax with a book requiring utmost concentration and not be interrupted for chapters on end. So call me elated. It’s an excellent place, all things considered—such a lucky find. It’s amazing what a difference your living situation can make on your life in general. In conclusion, good riddance to BK; I’m loving it here at Prugio!