Finalizing the Visa

Finalizing a Visa. This would seem like a daunting task, but it would also seem like a task for which modern technology could be utilized. The Korean consulate began requiring an interview for new teachers as of December 15th, 2007. This means that we fall under the umbrella for requiring an interview to complete our process. The closest Korean consulate is in Chicago, a good 7 hr round trip from the Twin Cities. The interview process only occurs on Wednesday and Fridays. Going there in person would be quite an endeavor for one with limited time and money. Luckily, the Korean consulate has come up with a way of accommodating those who are not near Chicagoland by granting web cam interviews... but wait, that is only if you live as far away as the Dakotas! A 14+ hour round trip is deemed perfectly acceptable, and does not qualify as over doing it. Absolutely ridiculous. The Korean consulate needs to adjust this policy to accomodate special circumstances for those in the Twin Cities, and I would say anywhere beyond a three hour drive. As of right now, we am driving to Chicago and back on July 19th.

The kicker for today is, after doing some research for my flight, which will also be out of Chicago (I will return a mere two days after the "visa run") to pick up our final visa documents before our trip. We are flying Northwest Airlines, which of course has a regional hub in the Twin Cities. Could anyone guess where our first plane transfer will be? Seattle, LAX, San Fran you might ask? Nope, none other then good old MSP. That will make flying out of Chicago seem really efficent, eh? The nice thing here is, once we transfer in Tokyo, we will be going to Busan, a southern costal city, instead of the usual Seoul, and being picked up by our kind boss, JS Park, and brought back to Yeosu. Very kind accommodations for foreigners arriving in a slightly intimidating country to travel.