Korea Life Blog - Don't be Stupid


I may head to the clubs in Hongdae this weekend as we have Friday off for Korean Constitution Day. Hmm, let me review the rules. I've seen people wasted beyond belief almost everywhere in Korea on any given night, so I'm not too sure about that rule. But actually the laws are really serious about drugs here, as anywhere in Asia. If you take extacy or smoke pot or hash, it's not a petty crime like back home. Here you can get arrested and thrown in jail even if you don't actually have drugs on you. All it takes is for one person to get caught and give away names of other users, or even just the names on his/her cell phone will do. If they even suspect you, if they get your name, they'll show up where you work, test you, and haul you away if you test positive, throw you in a dirty Korean jail where you share a cell with hardcore Korean prisoners for a month or more and then deport you. That's right, even if you don't actually have the drugs on you, you will get in that much trouble. If drugs are in your system, you're guilty. I have gotten tested myself sometime ago when they did a major bust in Pusan and Ulsan. Suddenly two officers came to my school and made me pee in a cup. Someone supposedly reported seeing me in a bar where someone was smoking pot. That was it. It was nerve racking, but I had done nothing wrong. Feel free to get drunk out of your mind, but if you do drugs, leave them behind in your home country.