A Few Goodbyes

Well, last night I had some final goodbyes with a couple of really good friends in Asheville, NC. They took me out for a "guy's night out" which was a lot of fun. We had some great Thai food at a little place in downtown. (At least my massamon curry was great-- they both ordered mango chicken and thought it was too sweet.)

We stopped by the drum circle, which happens every Friday night in downtown Asheville. I only caught a few seconds of it on video, but you can get a feel for it here:



We then went up to the Sky Lounge, which is a neat little bar that is actually on three landings of the fire escape of one of the historic buildings in downtown Asheville. From there you can watch the sun set over the city.

All in all, we had a really great (albeit a bit bittersweet evening). I think my friend Michael pretty much summed it up:

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Got my visa-- Whoo Hooo!

Well, I ran back down to Atlanta today to pick up my passport with the newly attached E-2 visa.

And E-2 is a work visa specifically for those who are going to Korea to teach English. They are issued for one year at time. As an American, they are automatically issued as a multi-entry visa, allowing me to come and go to Korea as many times as I want for a year. Each country's agreement with Korea is a little different, so for those from many countries it is issued as a single-entry visa unless the person specifically requests/pays additionally for a multi-entry visa. This is an important thing to keep in mind, especially if you plan to do some travelling to surrounding nations while working South Korea.

And now... back to TN for another whirlwind tour before leaving the country.

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Interview at the Consulate

Well, this morning was my interview at the Korean Consulate.

All Americans who are going to Korea on an E-2 (teacher work visa) are required to have a face to face interview at the consulate the first time they go. Visas can be renewed later withot this interview.

For me, this meant going down to Atlanta, GA, since that's the nearest consulate to me. I had to call a couple of weeks in advance and set up an appointment for my interview, which apparently are usually done in groups of about 6 people at a time once a day at 11 a.m. The Korean Consulate is located in downtown Atlanta on the fifth floor of the International Tower on Peachtree Street.

When I arrived at about 10:15, I was asked to sign in and was given a packet of materials that should be helpful when I get to Korea. It includes a travel guide, a guide to Korean culture, and a guide to Korea food in addition to some other materials. There were already couple of others in the small waiting area waiting for their interview as well. We sat and chatted until they took us back to a conference room at about 11.

In the conference room, another couple of individuals joined us and we all discussed what cities we would be in, what we'd learned so far about Korea, etc. After a few minutes the Consul joined us and was getting ready to start when another couple (boyfriend/girlfriend) joined us as well bringing the total up to 9 of us. Apparently, they had just arrived back in the US over the weekend and were scheduled to fly out to Korea on Wednesday so they had not had time to schedule an appointment in advance.

The Consul was obviously not pleased with that and gave everyone a lecture on the fact that work visas are not guaranteed to be awarded and that it was very difficult for someone from Korea to get a work visa for the United States. Throughout the group interview, he repeated emphasized how people are going to work in Korea just to make money because the American economy is struggling. He went around the room asking each of us questions about our qualifications and reasons for wanting to go to Korea. He particularly grilled most of the younger teachers who had just finished college about why they wanted to go teach English instead of work in the fields in which they had gotten their degree. All in all, it seemed to be a lot of posturing... typical of a culture where "face" is very much an issue. The purpose of it seemed to be to emphasize the value of Korean culture-- particularly to those who may have "ugly American" syndrome.

Altogether, the group interview lasted about an hour so we wrapped up right about noon. We were then instructed to go back to the waiting area where one of the ladies sorted through our paperwork to determine who would be picking up their passport/visa tomorrow and who wanted them mailed. Those of us who will be picking up our passports tomorrow were advised we would be able to do so any time after 11am. (The Consul had made a passing comment about "24 hours" so apparently there is some kind of mandatory 24 hour waiting time).

The overall experience was fine. Nothing spectactular really one way or the other... although I don't think some of the younger teachers really under why the Consul was acting as he was.

Soooo... now I just have to pick up my passport tomorrow... get my ticket... and away I go...

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Issues, Issues, Issues...

Lawd, the last few days have been crazy!

First, I turned in my work laptop last Thursday so I've been without a computer for a few days. Those of you who know me know that I usually have a computer of some kind surgically attached, so I'm going completely bonkers without good net access.

I've ordered a new laptop which is supposed to be here sometime today. The research I've done says it's best to get your computer before heading to Korea so that the operating systems are all in English (duh, that does make sense doesn't it- lol). Anyway, in the meantime I've only had access via my blackberry-- which is actually how I'm making this post.

Soooo... With limited access to check on things, we start having issues with my travel scheduling.

When I first spoke with the Canadian representative for Gone2Korea, James, my understanding was that they (Gone2Korea) would pay for my airfare then be reimbursed by the school. In fact, this was one of my primary reasons for using them. (For those who don't know-- some schools in Korea pay for the ticket upfront and others have you buy your ticket and then they reimburse you.). So, I get an email from the Gone2Korea rep in Seoul, Sharon, telling me that due to the swine flu scares I'd need to arrive in Korea about 5 days earlier than I was expecting because I'd have to be quarrantined for a few days and asking me to let her know once I'd arranged my flight.

As you can imagine, my initial reaction was, "what the ?!?!?"

I contact Sharon... And after a little back and forth, apparently there was miscommunication somewhere. My contract with the school does state that I would be reimbursed by the school for my ticket. From my conversation with James in Canada, I took that to mean that Gone2Korea would pay and be the one reimbursed. Since I never discussed the specifics of that part of the contract with Sharon, she thought I would be paying and be the one reimbursed. Arrrggghhhh!!!

I go into all the detail on that to point out how important it is to be CERTAIN all the details are clearly spelled out. I really don't think anyone intentionally misled me... I truly believe it was simply miscommunication between the 4 parties (James, Sharon, CDI, and myself). When you factor in language and culture differences, it's easy to make communication errors.

To jump to the end of the story... Sharon has been working overtime trying to find a way to have my ticket paid in advance, but if that's not possible then she's already cleared it witrh the school for me to wait until I get my severance from the college on the 31st, then buy my ticket... So I would actually be arriving about a week later than originally planned instead of early.

A VERY important lesson I learned a long time ago with any kind of international travel--- you GOTTA be a bit flexible!!

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Last day at work

Wow! Two weeks can be forever... or no time at all.

It's been two weeks since I've posted here. In that time, I've finished up all my paperwork getting ready to go to Daejeon. What kind of paperwork? Glad you asked! I had to have "true and exact" copies of my diplomas. This meant taking copies of my diplomas to the local bank to have them stamped and notarized. I also had to have a notarized copy of a criminial background check. The fact that all these documents are notarized isn't sufficient however. Each document then had to be taken to the Clerk of the Court in the county in which they were notarized so that the County Clerk can verify that the notary is indeed and authorized to notarized them.

BUT... that's not sufficient either, so I then had to drive all the paperwork to Nashville so that the Secretary of State's office could issue an apostille-- which is a document verifying that the Clerk of the Court is indeed authorized to verify that the notary is authorized to notarize the documents. Exhausted yet?

Well, all that was done and sent off to Korea. Immigration in Korea then issued me a visa number... but don't confuse that with actually having a visa. That won't be issued until I go to the Korean Consulate in Atlanta for a face to face interview (which is set up for a week from now). Once I do that, then I'm good to go...

In the meantime, today's my last day working at the college. I'm getting all my stuff gathered up, pictures taken down off the wall in my office,etc. It's kind of a weird day. On the one hand, I'm excited. On the other hand, any time a phase of one's life comes to closure there's always a certain amount of sadness that goes with that.

And so... another phase begins....

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