Uncommand Sponsored in Korea

THINKING OF DOING AN UNCOMMAND SPONSORED TOUR TO KOREA?

My husband is a Sergeant in the U.S. Army and recently returned from Camp Casey, South Korea. I have just returned from Korea after doing an "Uncommand Sponsored Tour" with him. The following is a few web pages that may help some of you who are also considering doing an "Uncommand Sponsored Tour" in Korea with your spouse. I hope these pages will help you. I have also included some great links to things Korean.

My time in Korea with my husband was a great experience. Korea is a beautiful and exciting country. The people are friendly and outgoing and always willing to help someone who appears lost, especially on their massive transportation systems. Don't listen to all the "horror" stories everyone tells you about Korea. It can be a fun and exciting time, as long as you are adventurous and willing to get out, travel and see the countryside. I would encourage anyone to GO FOR IT! Your spouse's commanders will all tell you that you can't come, but its a free country and you can come and go as you please. But keep in mind, your husband may not be authorized to live off post. Each post is different on their living off post policies. But seeing your husband daily for a few hours might still be better than not seeing him for a whole year. Just remember, its what YOU make of the situation.

Welcome to Army Life 101 - A great web page on doing an "Uncommand Sponsored Tour" in Korea. She also has some great links and some great pictures of her travels in Korea.

Facts On Korea - A few facts on Korea from an Army wife who has "been there."

Things Korean - This is a great web page giving you an introduction of Korea. It also has some great info on learning how to ride the subway system. A must for living in Korea! What makes living in Korea so much fun is getting out and visiting the countryside. Don't be afraid to learn.

Korea Times HomePage - A great way to keep up with whats going on in Korea.

City of Seoul's Official Homepage Good web page with lots of information about Korea's capitol.

Looking for something to do while in Korea? Want to learn a few Korean phrases? Check out Life in Korea.

LONELY PLANET KOREA

Also, an ABSOLUTE MUST have before making your trip to Korea is Lonely Planet's book on Korea. This book not only teaches you how to ride the trains and subway systems, but gives you great places to visit and how to get there, the cost, etc. This book was our Bible while living in Korea. The pages are worn, torn and ragged after my exciting year in Korea. You can find the book at your local bookstore or at

This is a direct link to the book.

You can find almost ANY book below:

Dragon Hill Lodge

A great place to stay in Korea is Dragon Hill Lodge. Its located in Seoul, Korea. Its a USAFRC hotel just like the Hale Koa in Hawaii. One thing to keep in mind if you would like to stay at the Dragon is their reservations fill up very QUICKLY!

If you would like to spend the night at the Dragon say on your way in from the States, you must call months in advance. If you can't get a reservation, ask for them to refer you out and they will find you another hotel (a Korean one) at a comparable price. On my first night in Korea my plane came in so late that we had to spend the night in Seoul. We stayed at the Rainbow which wasn't nearly as nice as the Dragon, but it was a decent place to stay.

I sometimes think that they aren't fair with their room reservations. I had been calling for months trying to get a reservation, telling them my husband was an E5. I called one day and they said they had no rooms. I hung up and called right back and said my husband was an O5 and was told "Sure we have a room." Needless to say I was extremely upset.

But anyway, it is a great place to stay. They have several American restaurants located in the hotel. So even if you don't stay overnight, its nice to even go visit and eat at their restaurants. Not to mention its on Yongson post, so if your riding the buses from Casey to Yongson to go to Seoul, why not stop in.

Want to check out the current Won Rate? Click here for today's rate.

Check out more Army links for info on Korea below

2d ID's site for more information on Camp Casey and other surrounding posts in the 2d ID area.

Looking for something exciting to do while in Korea? Check out MWR in Korea. Don't forget MWR's hotel in Chejudo!

UNITED STATES FORCES KOREA HOMEPAGE

ABSOLUTE MUST KNOWS!

KOREAN CALLING CARDS

Whatever you do, do NOT use the American phone companies to call your husband in Korea. Instead have him purchase the Korean calling cards. Using AT&T, MCI or any of the other American phone companies is expensive and unnecessary. We had a very bad experience with MCI and were never able to straighten it out. As soon as I got to Korea, I found the calling cards and our phone bill went from $500 a month to about $80 a month. Once your husband arrives in Korea, have him purchase one of the Korean calling cards such as Onetel or ICN. ICN is doubly great because you can also call him using a toll free number. If he uses the calling cards himself, he must go to a Korean pay phone. If he purchases the ICN card he can call you and give you the toll free number and the pin number on the card. Then you can call him at your leisure at a much cheaper rate of $.15 per minute! Using a pre-paid phone card is great because there is no bill at the end of the month. These cards are great! The cards can be purchased only off post and can be found almost anywhere "down range." Just have them look for the advertisements on the shop's doors.