End of year bonus

What does a years worth of coins look like in Korea and how much are they worth? From talking to a few co-workers I think I accumulate more coins than most people. This comes from a decision here to only use notes when paying for something which means I get a lot of change as the weeks go by. The theory is that by using only notes, the coins add up slowly and when it comes round to cashing in the coins I have money that I haven't been accounting for and feels like a nice bonus.

Korean coins come in denominations of 500, 100, 50 and 10 won. The 500 won coin is not actually worth much, about £0.25. It would be nice to have the equivalent of the British £1 or £2 coins. I don't think the picture below shows clear enough but the four jars and bottles were heavy. The larger bottle is actually a two litre water bottle filled almost to the top with 100 won coins. This time last year I had about the same amount, before someone climbed into my apartment from the window and stole them from my home, so I am thankful not to have a repeat this year. For the record I saved 336,190 won which works out at about £182.

Slide away

We could be set for another North Korean missile launch some time this week here in Asia. Apart from concerns over the stability of the peninsula and the region, something else has started to come into my thinking. What will happen to the Korean Won (₩)? Whatever happens, the currency of South Korea is unlikely to benefit. The currency has fluctuated over the past year or so and has not been so favourable with the British £ so I am anxious about where the possible Korean uncertainty may affect things. What will happen to my money?! I keep an eye on things quite regularly but if the rate starts to slide at a more dramatic rate maybe it will be time to take all my money out. I may be in a job where I don't have to work as hard as some people but no-one wants to see their money slide away.