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My South Korean Riches

ChrisC

Critical Thinker
ChrisC
Joined
Dec 27, 2005
Messages
466
Just a quick question for anyone familiar with the S. Korean economy:

I've come into the possession of... wait for it... over 1000 won! :D
I know, I know... I should wait it out due to these troubled times we live in, but it's burning a hole in my pocket. So what does 1000 won buy if I decide to go shopping in South Korea today?
 
ChrisC said:
Just a quick question for anyone familiar with the S. Korean economy:

I've come into the possession of... wait for it... over 1000 won! :D
I know, I know... I should wait it out due to these troubled times we live in, but it's burning a hole in my pocket. So what does 1000 won buy if I decide to go shopping in South Korea today?
Click to expand...
I'd suggest investing it in Vietnamese stocks, where the simply act of investment -- without doing anything else -- would increase its value from 1000 won to over 14,000 Dong.

And if you get a chance to invest in Zimbabwe, you'll be a billionaire (but understandably, such opportunities are hard to come by).
 
I looked at the Dong. That's the kind of currency I can really get on board with.

BTW, this was really supposed to be in Community. Maybe Economics. I guess I could make an argument for the Politics section. :D If a mod wants to move this, please feel free.
 
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I suggest investing it all in some seundae.

It's tasty and for most westerners seems to have a quick return of investment.
 
foxholeatheist said:
I suggest investing it all in some seundae.

It's tasty and for most westerners seems to have a quick return of investment.
Click to expand...

Is it the same as http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sundae_(Korean_food) ? If so, I'm intrigued. How much can one purchase for about 1000 won? The next time someone suggests we get a sundae, I'll suggest the Korean version.

Despite the goofy OP and the excellent responses generated, I'm honestly curious about it's buying power in S. Korea.
 
It's a little less than a buck. I guess you got bus fare. Or an hour at one of Korean millions of internet cafes.

For 1000 won you can get a decent plate full of it. Actually I am not a big fan of the stuff and neither is my wife (who is full Korean, I am merely half) but all my Aussie and Limey friends love it. In my mother's hometown they would take rice and pig blood and cook it and mix that with liver and kidney and stuff it in the intestines. You get about 7-9 inches of the crap for 1000won or thereabouts. It's usually served with a bit of salt to dip it in.

Oh yeah, the smell is horrible too.

It's pronounced a little different than "sundae"... more like "soon-dae".
 
ChrisC said:
Is it the same as http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sundae_(Korean_food) ? If so, I'm intrigued. How much can one purchase for about 1000 won? The next time someone suggests we get a sundae, I'll suggest the Korean version.

Despite the goofy OP and the excellent responses generated, I'm honestly curious about it's buying power in S. Korea.
Click to expand...

Like fha said, it's a little less or more than a dollar, depending on the exchange rate. The annoying thing in Korea is that their largest bill right now is 10,000 won, or a little less than 10 dollars (I believe they are about to release a new 50,000 won bill later this year, thankfully, though a 20,000 won bill would have been more useful).

I used to have to pay my first and last month's rent in Korea in cash, which was about 4,000 bucks total (4,000,000 won). I had to carry the money in a bag because there were so many bills. You can't actually carry much more than a couple hundred dollars worth of won in your wallet, lest your wallet explode.
 
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They have 100,000 won "checks" but I don't like dealing with them.

That's true though. I read of a plan to knock off a few zeros which would really help. Inflation has hit Korea hardcore in the past decade. When I was a kid a hamburger was 600won or so.

Yo chicken, you worked hakwons or something?
 
Thanks for the interesting facts (and laughs). It's buying power in Korea is somewhat better than I expected.

Things I could buy in Canada if my 1000+ won was converted to cdn currency at full value right now:
A cookie
400 grams of bulk cornmeal
A Presidents Choice carbonated beverage from a vending machine
Small bag of resistors or capacitors
4 or 5 Long & McQuade guitar picks
Something weird from Princess Auto
3 payphone calls

Individually, of course.

Looks like I'm down about 1 cent overnight. If these trends continue, it could spell disaster for my cornbread...
 
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foxholeatheist said:
They have 100,000 won "checks" but I don't like dealing with them.

That's true though. I read of a plan to knock off a few zeros which would really help. Inflation has hit Korea hardcore in the past decade. When I was a kid a hamburger was 600won or so.

Yo chicken, you worked hakwons or something?
Click to expand...

Haha, no. I was in the Army. I left in 2007. I did a little English teaching now and again, but not for any of those places ;)
 
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