fellow saffas..especially long-term saffas..ever felt like going back...

[0mnslnd]

..going back... maybe not permanently, just a relatively long time like 6 months or a year, or so. 

Like I said...those of you who've been here for a long time... longer than a year at least.

I'll keep this one short and sweet.
The SA section on waygook is kind of quiet, so I don't expect a lot of replies, although it would be nice to hear from you 'okes'.

I am not angry at Korea and Koreans  (maybe frustrated sometimes :)) but verlang

[JABU NXAU]

some friends of  mine went back to do practicals and they cany wait to be back in the good ole' roK

[0mnslnd]

some friends of  mine went back to do practicals and they cany wait to be back in the good ole' roK

interesting. I also need to go back for the practicals.
Could you please tell me why they can't wait to come back?

[POH7100]

I've been here for fourteen months and I'll be ready to go back when my contract ends next year. I don't think I could live in this country long term. Love SA too much!

[Hongsam]

Same as you Omnsland..

Verlang...

My better half is from these parts, so we split our time. Most of it's here though. Luckily she thinks SA is kiff!

[Mark van]

Omnsland, my girlfriend and I are in our 3rd contract and we'll be going home at the end of it.

First things in Korea were slowly starting to get under our skin, the gawking, the language barrier, the things we missed from back home (our family, our cars.. cheap biltong/food). Then we thought that maybe we just need to go live in another Asian country for a while and let the new culture distract us. But since the pay and lifestyle is so good in Korea we found it difficult to settle for less. So we decided to go back home and study so that we have more choices available to us.

Since we made that decision we've been so excited to go back home! We thought we'd be in Korea for a much longer time but once we explored all our options and decided to go home for at least 2 years things have been really great. In fact school life is feeling like drag now and we're looking forward to starting a new chapter in our lives.

[vanilla fields]

Hi i have being living for 13 years, and every year my family and i renew our visas

[0mnslnd]

Hi i have being living for 13 years, and every year my family and i renew our visas

sure you have your reasons. Care to share? At the time when I wrote the post I had no ill will against Koreans or Korean culture.But all the bad encounters Ive had in my 4 years here, Im really fed up..gatvol and Im ready to resign (not re-sign) anytime I feel like it!

[Morticae]

Hi i have being living for 13 years, and every year my family and i renew our visas

Unbelievable. No, really, I don't believe you. 

[Manyisa_1]

Ja nee no fine i feel you OP.After 3 years i also decided to book out.That one month is no where near enough to traverse the country if you have dispersed family.Took a 6 month breather and it helped a lot .
Sometimes home is all you need.On the other hand though,i think i will give it two more years and see how things are back home...you know what i mean

[Oakley]

I've been here for more than 4 years now and still loving it!
Got engaged to a Korean girl and getting married soon. She wants to study abroad for a year, so we are going to SA at the end of this year to study. Both of us will be doing a PGCE, which is only a year course. After that we will be coming back for sure!
I will miss the cheap super fast internet and the ease of getting around using the public transportation.
Think the one year will be good, and it will give her a chance to experience my country and culture too...and the SA student life.

[Tkay]

i know our countryis still developing and on some of the stuff we way behind but still love SA.....can't stay here forever.

[CT]

I'm 4 years in and I still love living here! I have no plans to go back home. Even if I leave Korea, it would be for another country. After living here and travelling abroad for many years, I can't imagine having to live back home with all the crime and drama. I miss my family and I miss the obvious South African things, but I find my living standard here is just  too good!

I'll probably be a lifer! 

[johnny russian]

i've only been in korea a month so can't comment on wanting to go back home at the moment personally.

but there are many friends of mine who have been back to SA for a year or 2, and then came back to korea.

when i asked them why they came home it was for most of the reasons cited here. language barrier, missing friends and family, the good weather, etc.

when i asked them why they came back it was for a variety of reasons. some were completely unable to get a job back home due to being white males, what with affirmative action, despite the fact that some have Master's degrees and work experience in their field.

some came back because they got sick and tired of constantly being pick-pocketed, having cellphones stolen, having their cars and apartments broken into.

some came back because they felt that they would never be able to feel safe in SA again after living in Korea and experiencing for the 1st time what it's like to not constantly live in fear of getting robbed, attacked, or even raped.

some came back because of the awesome infrastructure in korea like the subway, super-fast internet etc. so varying different reasons.

[mr]

I've been here for just over 4 years, and I will never return to SA permanently.
Last year I went to SA for 2 months between contracts, and after 2 weeks I was ready to come back to Korea.
I found that my family and friends turned into angry and unhappy people. Angry at crime, politics, cost of living, petrol prices etc. They also seem quite unhappy but have to keep up pretences to impress neighbors, friends etc. I got the idea that Saffas are living a LIFESTYLE, and not a LIFE.

Another thing that got to me was the neglect of cities. Open spaces and parks are disgusting, streets are dirty. And it seems like most people just don't care. Saffas don't want to take responsibilty for their own actions- my friends still think it's ok to go out drinking and then drive home. Customer service in many cases are non existant.

Having lived here for 4 years and in UK and Canada for 4 years, I know that Saffas don't really know the meaning of freedom (and safety). I refuse to live in fear behind burglar bars.
I also refuse to pay tax to a corrupt government. I will not fund the president's palace while so many people have nothing.
I'm very happy and grateful in Korea

[sinsin]

I went home for 10 months, and although SA remains beautiful in so many ways, I found it hard to interact with people - expats tend to be friendlier and more open; I couldn't get a decent paying job and my rent covered a third of what salary I was earning; I thus couldn't afford a car and really missed Koreas public transport; a lot of my friends had changed and 'moved on' so to speak - we were still mates, but it had changed. And I couldn't shake the feeling that someone was going to abduct, rob, mug, stab me. Seriously. After being able to walk around at night, get on the subway at 11pm and even take a walk in the mountains where I live here at 5pm has sold me on Korea. There is no price on freedom and the ability to do what you need to do.

Just my two cents worth.

[EvilToast]

I'm a surfer, and it's extremely difficult getting my fix in Korea; I'm a 6hr bus ride from Busan and the waves are usually pretty crap. Coming from CT I've been totally spoilt regarding waves. I've re-signed my contract and I think, come next year May, I'll be back in my beloved SlaapStad.

I'm going to do my PGCE and CELTA. After that, I might come back to Korea or try another place. I'll be a married man so we'll need a couples position.

If it wasn't for the lack of surfing and my GF being in SA, I could linger on for a for more years. I'll definitely miss the great public transport, safety, fast internet and high pay.

[serasito]

I have been living in Korea for more than five years now.  Korea has helped met out in many regards, for one I met my Cornish lady here and two I kicked some study debt arse  (Wat befok lekker is).  In that time I have been home twice, 2009 and Feb 2013.   After the first trip I was still motivated to work hard and try new things in Korea (Still had debt to motivate me).   After visiting Cape Town and Snorcity in 2013 I realised how much I have lost. 

By this time I can speak Korean quite well and I know how to get all of the things I enjoy in life over here in Korea.  In the past there was a joy in hunting down ingredients.  But now the joy is gone, it has become a chore.   One day flows into another.  But, there is an end in sight.   After the last trip my lady and I decided that we enjoyed life in SA too much and life in Korea too little.   This will be our final year.

One major reason for moving back is family.  My parents aren't getting younger.   I have come to realize that it was selfish of me moving so far away from them in first place.   These days I want to make them proud closer to them.   I have a brother and sisters too, and they give a lot of meaning to my life.   Even more once I live in South Africa.

My friends in South Africa moved on in life, and at times I feel like I didn't.  My friends moved on financially and made major jumps in their careers.   I  might have been able to make my bank manager very happy but I didn't improve on my skills.   Once in SA I will take up courses to improve my prospects in the sports world (which I can't do here).   And then  my other goals.  I want to enroll into college to learn a trade.   Graduates are only one economical crunch away from unemployment, so get yourself a trade.   Korea taught me how much I like working with my hands.

And then there is sport.  I can't surf as often here as I would have liked and there are little powerlifting, crossfit and specialty sports clubs.   I want to play rugby with a team that takes it seriously (not get drunk before and after matches).  I want to go to the damn stadium and see my Bull darlings play.

We have made our mind up and we are leaving to the green shores of South Africa February 2014.  We live in the lovely countryside of Korea.  We have nature, our cats, a kick ass gym and surf every blue moon.  But besides that there isn't much to excite me anymore.   If it wasn't for the gym and books I would have gone crazy from the boredom.   

And was Cape Town a revelation.   I haven't been to the Cape before and I was immensely impressed by the mother city.   The beaches are amazing and the surf is out of this world.  I really like the idea of hopping to different beaches to hit some surf.  Some Kommetjie here, Scarborough there. 

List of Reasons

1)  I want to see my family more often.   I want to live a normal life and listen to my dad playing guitar more often.   My dad is a guitar maestro so I would be great to have lessons again.
2)  I want to move forward in life with my friends.
3)  I want to surf barrels and big monster waves.   
4)  I want to have a house with big garden to grow veggies and herbs.   I want to have a mean garage where I can shape surf boards and do crazy art.
5)  I want to play rugby with a bunch of guys who motivate me to work harder in and off the rugby field.
6)  Oppikoppie, Woodstock, KKNK and Aardklop.
7)  Afrikaans.   I want to read more Afrikaans and see more inspired music from the likes of Gert Vlok Nel and Koos Kombuis.
  So I am white, and in South Africa I am a minority, but that is still better than being the lone whitey on an Asian island.   
9)  It took me five years to state with confidence that I don't want to be a teacher. 
10)  I am not motivated anymore.  That one is really bad.    I used to be very motivated and interested about life in Korea, but not anymore.  Only realized in South Africa how unhappy I have become.   I want to go back home, have fun with my friend and family.   And that excites me a lot.  I am motivated to make the move work.  I am excited about teaching my Pretoria buddies how to surf.

Ranting here now, but I bet you would get the idea.   Somedays I am ecstatically happy to be leaving, and some days I wonder if I will survive the year's boredom.

 

[serasito]

Another thing that got to me was the neglect of cities. Open spaces and parks are disgusting, streets are dirty. And it seems like most people just don't care. Saffas don't want to take responsibilty for their own actions- my friends still think it's ok to go out drinking and then drive home. Customer service in many cases are non existant.

I agree with you about the neglect of cities.  I had to drive through Pretoria and was incredibly depressed.  How little respect the people and the government have shown some cities of historical significance was horrifying.  But that was until I discovered Cape Town.

For once I could go eat out in the actual city during night.  No, not a suburb, in the actual city center.  Long street, what a great place.  In the city, culture, where shit happens.    Only other place where I would risk my life going into the city at night was Pretoria to visit Zeppelins.    Fortunately for my life and unfortunately  for my Metal brain Zeppelins sniffed his club through his nose.

The Democratic Alliance is doing a much better job of governing than anywhere else in SA.   Cape Town is prospering because of this.   May the ANC never win an election again.

I was so impressed with Cape Town's false bay that I will forsake my Pretoria home town for Cape Town next year.   Can't wait.

[Marais]

hmmm.... I've been back recently, (between contracts) December till March... and honestly it was good and fun to get back, hang with my mates, have a decent beer, braaing with my oupa and just chilling in the Cape...

But... closer to the end I was climbing the walls to get back here... I just feel safer, more secure and overall happier here... also SA has become ridiculously expensive since I left... granted I haven't been here as long as some of you fine folks... also my Girlfriend(American) is here... and i kinda missed her 

Yes there are a lot of things that are frustrating here... but I find I am more frustrated at home knowing trying to find a job is an uphill battle (yes, I'm a white male) and even if I do manage to get one the chance that I'll actually be able to advance beyond a certain level is slim at best... the lack of customer service, the corruption, no truly safe or fully reliable public transport... a currency that makes it now almost 10 times more expensive to go anywhere worthwhile in the world...

I do miss aspects of home though, boereworse being high on that list... but I don't think I'd ever go back to stay permanently... maybe just to recharge the batteries with a sense of the familiar every year or two...

My grandfather keeps telling me if I can stay here I must... There is no future for me there... I agree in part with this but then again... Afrika is nie vir sussies nie...

I guess I'd never not go back... It's beautiful especially the Cape... but I doubt it would be for more than a holiday or a few months at most...