As I am typing this post I happily puffing away on my new Dubacco Fatboy with menthol juice.
Let me first preface this post by giving some background info. I started smoking when I was in middle school (yeah, I know, I'm bad). I switched to snus during university and when I came to Korea a few years ago I went back to regular cigs. Eventually I tried importing snus from Sweden but got taxed pretty heavily so I quit smoking and snusing altogether. That was about a year ago and I had been clean ever since.... that is, until I entered grad school here in SK. For the last few months I have been smoking a pack a day and trying desperately to find an alternative.
Fast forward to a few days ago.
So I originally heard about ecigs from a post on Daves. The thought took some time to settle in and eventually I realized that ecigs might just be what I need to get rid of the terrible odor and nasty phlegm throat that had been plaguing me since I started back on analogs but still give me the kick that I crave.
I talked to one of my coworkers (you can also study on an E2 visa with permission from your employer) about ecigs and he said that it's starting to become more popular here in Korea. In fact, he said he would even look into it for me and tell me where I could buy them. The only problem is, I'm not a very patient person when it comes to my crazy ideas.
So what did I do?
I scoured the interwebs until I happened upon this very (Korea) forum. I learned that Yongsan has ecigs and technomart does too but... I live in Incheon and even though I travel to Shinchon once a week for grad school I'd rather find a place more close by. I googled ecigs Incheon and got nothing, so I translated it into Korean and gave it another shot. Lo and behold, I found no less than 8 different locations within a single subway stop of where I live.
As today is a holiday (thank you Buddha) I decided to make a pilgrimage to a few of these shops. I tried the place in the Juan underground market but it is no longer there, so I made my way toward Ganseok (where most of the places are located for some reason). It took me awhile but in the end I found Jeonjadambae Dubacco (전자담배 듀바코) which is right on the main street (that travels E and W) on the south side of Ganseok station.
I walked in, and at first no one was there. Then a man appeared from the back and came out to greet me. The place itself is kind of small but looks pretty spiffy and they have really cool chairs, not that it's important or anything. Unfortunately the man doesn't speak English (or Chinese) but we were able to communicate more or less in Korean. I must have spent 45 minute trying out different flavors (of which there are many) and looking at different ecigs. He kindly explained everything in simple Korean to me and waited patiently as I looked up a few words on my cell phone. He answered all of my questions, even though I'm sure a few of them came out strange, and seemed like a very nice person. He constantly spoke jondaemal to me and was extremely polite.
In the end, I came out with a Dubacco Fatboy (127k) and two bottles of menthol juice (18k each???). As I am just beginning to vape I don't know if I can comment on the quality of either, but I am pretty satisfied so far. Also, this forum has a lot of information so I have been learning care, use, and everything else from here (the instruction manual is only in Korean btw, so your best option for info is here).
If you can read hanguel and speak a moderate amount of Korean (or have a friend who can translate) and you want to start vaping then I suggest googling (navering???) for stores near you. They are here in Korea and they are becoming more and more popular (or so I've heard). I'm just starting my journey but I hope more people will join in and opt out of analogs.
Let me first preface this post by giving some background info. I started smoking when I was in middle school (yeah, I know, I'm bad). I switched to snus during university and when I came to Korea a few years ago I went back to regular cigs. Eventually I tried importing snus from Sweden but got taxed pretty heavily so I quit smoking and snusing altogether. That was about a year ago and I had been clean ever since.... that is, until I entered grad school here in SK. For the last few months I have been smoking a pack a day and trying desperately to find an alternative.
Fast forward to a few days ago.
So I originally heard about ecigs from a post on Daves. The thought took some time to settle in and eventually I realized that ecigs might just be what I need to get rid of the terrible odor and nasty phlegm throat that had been plaguing me since I started back on analogs but still give me the kick that I crave.
I talked to one of my coworkers (you can also study on an E2 visa with permission from your employer) about ecigs and he said that it's starting to become more popular here in Korea. In fact, he said he would even look into it for me and tell me where I could buy them. The only problem is, I'm not a very patient person when it comes to my crazy ideas.
So what did I do?
I scoured the interwebs until I happened upon this very (Korea) forum. I learned that Yongsan has ecigs and technomart does too but... I live in Incheon and even though I travel to Shinchon once a week for grad school I'd rather find a place more close by. I googled ecigs Incheon and got nothing, so I translated it into Korean and gave it another shot. Lo and behold, I found no less than 8 different locations within a single subway stop of where I live.
As today is a holiday (thank you Buddha) I decided to make a pilgrimage to a few of these shops. I tried the place in the Juan underground market but it is no longer there, so I made my way toward Ganseok (where most of the places are located for some reason). It took me awhile but in the end I found Jeonjadambae Dubacco (전자담배 듀바코) which is right on the main street (that travels E and W) on the south side of Ganseok station.
I walked in, and at first no one was there. Then a man appeared from the back and came out to greet me. The place itself is kind of small but looks pretty spiffy and they have really cool chairs, not that it's important or anything. Unfortunately the man doesn't speak English (or Chinese) but we were able to communicate more or less in Korean. I must have spent 45 minute trying out different flavors (of which there are many) and looking at different ecigs. He kindly explained everything in simple Korean to me and waited patiently as I looked up a few words on my cell phone. He answered all of my questions, even though I'm sure a few of them came out strange, and seemed like a very nice person. He constantly spoke jondaemal to me and was extremely polite.
In the end, I came out with a Dubacco Fatboy (127k) and two bottles of menthol juice (18k each???). As I am just beginning to vape I don't know if I can comment on the quality of either, but I am pretty satisfied so far. Also, this forum has a lot of information so I have been learning care, use, and everything else from here (the instruction manual is only in Korean btw, so your best option for info is here).
If you can read hanguel and speak a moderate amount of Korean (or have a friend who can translate) and you want to start vaping then I suggest googling (navering???) for stores near you. They are here in Korea and they are becoming more and more popular (or so I've heard). I'm just starting my journey but I hope more people will join in and opt out of analogs.
Last edited:
