So it looks like due to a slow Visa process, my overseas adventures are going to get a bit delayed. After I got my contract, I sent all of my paperwork to South Korea to be processed over there. From there I should be getting my Visa Issuance number any day now. BUT along with getting approved in South Korea, for some reason I have to get approved in America. Why they can't just do it in one country, I don't know. I think the Koreans are purposefully making this as difficult as possible to get over there. First, it cost me almost $30 just to send my documents over there. And now I have to make my way to the Korean Consulate... in Seattle. Heaven forbid there be one in Oregon!! Which, side note, last time I checked, the Portland/Beaverton area had a TON of Koreans here, you would think there would be a consulate here as well. But I guess not.

Anyway, I called the Korean Consulate to see what kind of documents I need to bring. First, it's going to cost me another $45 to get my paperwork processed here. And I found out that they only interview for Visas twice a week (makes a lot of sense, huh?), that you have to do the interview in person (because spending the money for them to see my shinning face makes all the difference), and that all interviews for the month of August are booked, and the September ones are going fast. This is good, seeing as how I'm supposed to start teaching on August 25th. AND I still have to wait while the Korean Consulate in Seattle processes my Visa, which could take 1-3 weeks. SWELL! So I guess it's all touch and go right now. No clue when I'm actually leaving. But my faith in governmental agencies in America that handle my paperwork leads me to think that it's going to be a while. Maybe Mary/Grace/Ginger were all right and it's a sign.

Backup plan: move back to Pittsburgh and live with Grace until I can put in for the public schools in March!

It is official, I have a job in South Korea!

I had an interview last week with a school just south of Seoul and they have chosen to hire me. I didn't want to say anything early and jinx myself because I hadn't received the contract yet. But now my contract is signed and all my paperwork is on its way to South Korea so I can get my Visa.

I will be teaching at a Hagwon (private school) named EG Language Institute in a city called Yongin. Most likely I will be teaching kindergarten classes, with the possibility of helping with TOEFL preparation. TOEFL stands for Test Of English as a Foreign Langauge. Basically if you're a student in South Korea and you want to get into any sort of university, you have to pass this test. I'm also pretty sure that most Americans couldn't pass this test, it's that intense. My housing and airfare are going to be paid for, and a get a bonus at the end of my one-year contract. The hours are going to suck at first, Monday - Friday, 2pm - 10pm. The level at which these kids value education would put most other countries to shame!

Here is the general breakdown of how the country is organized and where I'm going to be located. The Republic of Korea is broken up mostly into provinces and metropolitan cities (8 and 6, respectively), which are on par with each other and are based on population. There is also one "special" province and one "special" city. What's so special about them, I don't know. For example, Busan is a "metropolitan" city, Seoul is a "special" city, and Gyeonggi is a province. Provinces are further divided into cities, counties, districts and neighbourhoods. Again, the division into certain sections is based off of population.

When you're reading a Korean address, you can tell which is the city, province, neighborhood etc. by the suffix that follows each. A province is called a "do", a city is a "si", county is "gun", district is "gu", a town is a "eup" while a township is a "myeon", and finally there is a neighborhood which is a "dong". But note, not all of these have to be present for every location, some areas are not part of a "gun" or even a "eup" it all depends on the location.

I will be located in Gyeonggi-do (province), Yongin-si (city), Giheung-gu (district), Jung-dong (neighborhood). You can check it out here on GoogleMaps. From what I can tell, you're supposed to reverse the order when reading it, so you start with the smallest entity, dong, and work your way up to the largest one (like an American address). When it comes to autonomy, I'm not positive how it all works, but from what I've read, a dong is the smallest governmental entity with any sort of power and autonomy.

The city that I will be in, Yongin (sometimes written as Yong-in), is located about 25 miles south of Seoul and has a population of just under 800,000. I think the Jung-Dong's population isn't too bad, so it would be like I'm stuck in a sardine can. The city is also on the Subway line to Seoul, so it would only be about a half hour trip to get into the city which is nice. Yongin-si is also the home of South Korea's largest amusement park, a place called Everland.

My official start date is the 25th of August, which means I'll be arriving right in the middle of monsoon season, that should be swell. That is my start date, as of now I have no clue as to when I will actually be leaving, and I'm assuming its dependent on how fast I get my Visa and my plane ticket. But I'll let you know when I know!

So here is the gist of the interview processes that I am going through:

At first I wanted to get a job through the public school system in South Korea because they have better job security. However, thanks to the remarkably slow Pennsylvania State Employees working for the Police Bureau, I did not get my background check in time and subsequently missed the deadline.

So on to the next option: private schools. In South Korea these are called Hagwons. They are very different then private schools in America. In South Korea, students take their education very seriously. They usually attend public school during the day, then afterward they attend a hagwon, which specializes in certain activities like language, music, art e.g. They are strictly a "for-profit" business, so many have been know for cutting corners to save money, especially when it comes to foreign teachers. The best way around this is to go through a reputable recruiter (like I am) and make sure you research the school you plan on working in. There are many sites that list the not-so-swell schools, which is helpful.

After completing my certification online, I was set up with a recruiter, Joanne, who works for this company Four Distinct Seasons. Joanne then emails me information about a school that would like to interview me, with the basics of its name, location, if airfare and housing are included (which, by the way, most schools will cover completely), pay rate, hours, class level, etc. Then time is set up for a phone interview. Because of the time change, it usually winds up being at either 10pm or 8am, both excellent times. The interview usually only lasts about 5 minutes or so. The interviewer (usually the principal or head of the school) asks some basic questions about why you want to teach in South Korea, what age group you think you will be best with, if you've had experience with kids, and so on.

Then the interview talks with Joanne and they decide if they want to offer me a position or not. I was offered one already, but it fell through because the woman I was to be replacing decided to stay at the school. So as of now I am still interviewing. I had one this morning that was promising, hopefully I get it.

Now you know how it all works!

My time in Pittsburgh is coming to a close, and by the end of this week I will be back on the West Coast. As much as I have complained about Pittsburgh (and the East Coast in general) I have begun to realize just how much I'm going to miss it. I came to this school for the wrong reasons, but the best thing I did with my life was stay here.

I remember how much I hated freshman year, and how I rarely went out, never had fun, did poorly in classes, and had only a handful of friends. I'm glad I didn't transfer out though, because sophomore year completely changed my life. An unfortuate event in my life changed me into a completely new and better person. Spending basically every night on Semple Street, I met the most amazing friends I'll ever have, I learned to stop sweating the small stuff, and to just let go. I'm such a better person, especially thanks to Jenn and Joe, and jungle juice of course. Leaving them for an entire semester to go to Australia was difficult, but it was definately worth it. Six months in Oz, with the best roommates anyone could possibly imagine, with the best job anyone could possibly imagine, and the best Aussie friends anyone could possibly imagine. Living in a country like that really gives you time to take stock on your life, and to realize what matters the most to you.

Senior year basically took all my greatest experiences, bundled them up, and multiplied them by twenty. Although I was taking some of the hardest classes that Pitt offered, had some severe emotional breakdowns, and nearly lost one of the most important people in my life, the friends and the adventures I had made it all worth it. I had two great jobs with awesome co-workers, I learned the full force of Mad Mex margaritas, celebrated some great 21st birthdays (and 22nds!), was a founding member of Team Oakland, became best friends with Becky, and bester friends with Jenn, swapped gossip and fashion with Mary and Katie, learned how awesomely rediculous Grace Rogers is, regrettedly loved every Thursday night with Becky, tried new grocery stores with Darren, spent far too much time living and working with Joe, thankfully had Trevor to help me look cute, I did unacceptable things with bad people and my friends still loved me for it, I came to understand the word "slumlord", learned all about World Art and Constitutional Law, went to New York City for the first and second time ever, I have experienced all that Half Price has to offer, been screwed over by the 59U, fell in love with Stoked energy drinks, I made great friends and best friends.

And of course, everything seemed to be getting even better, right before I was set to leave. But I guess all good things must eventually end. I'm a better person for spending my last four years here, I've met some people that nearly ruined my life, but I met even more that helped me piece myself back together. Now it's time to move on to the next stage in life. I'm not sure if I'm quite ready for it, but I'm sure I'll survive.

I never thought I would hear myself say this, but I'll miss you Pittsburgh.