Lace, Lanterns & Ligers

Demilitarized Zone

noreply@blogger.com (Lace, Lanterns and Ligers) — Mon, 24 Dec 2012 07:30:00 +0000

Over the weekend we headed up to Seoul with the slow train, we left Ulsan on the last train on friday night and went to Daegu where we caught the first train on Saturday morning and 00:38.. We sang kareoke most of the way to Seoul while we watched the snowy fields pass by.. We went to a Jimjilbang when we arriver to shower and then we had a chance to visit the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). This is a strip of land that separates North and South Korea. The DMZ was formed in 1953 when the ceasefire was signed ending active hostilities in the Korean War. The war never officially ended so each side is heavily guarded and the DMZ is the only Cold War border still in existence. The DMZ is a joint security area and from the border it stretches 2km into North Korea and 2km into South Korea.

When we arrived we watched a short film about the DMZ and its history and then we headed off to the third infiltration tunnel, a tunnel dug buy North Korea. The tunnel was discovered in October 1978 and part of it is now a tourist attraction at the DMZ.

It was a ridiculously long walk down and then up an 11% gradient to look through a very small window and see very little on the other side... but I got my exercise in for the day.

[Photos were not allowed to be taken inside the tunnel, I happened to find these with a google search]

We got some icecreams to eat in the snow and then took pictures of the sights.

North and South Korea trying to push the world back together

Back on the bus we went to see a lookout point where you can see the 'Peace villages' of both North and South Korea that are situated within the DMZ. The South Korean town of Daeseong-Dong is dubbed the freedom village and there are 218 people living there. They have to live in the town for more than 240 days per year to maintain their residence. They also have to be inside the village by night fall and inside their homes by 12pm every evening. There are armed guards that watch over the villagers while they work in the fields by day and that watch over the village at night.

The North Korean town of Kijong-Dong - dubbed propaganda village - doesn't actually have any people living there. The buildings are all shells. They used to play propaganda over the loud speakers at all hours of the day but that has stopped.

In the 1980s, the South Korean government built a 98.4 m tall flagpolewith a 130 kilograms flag of South Korea in Daeseong-dong. The North Korean government responded by building a taller one, the Panmunjeom flagpole, at 160 m with a 270 kg flag of North Korea in Kijŏng-dong, the flag often tears under its own weight, the flagpole is the third tallest in the world.

Third tallest flagpole in the world at 160m high with a 270kg flag

We went to have a look at Dorasan train station 'not the last station from the South, but the first to the North'. We played around on the tracks and in the snow and took some cute photos..

After this we went for lunch, traditional korean food. Choice of Bulgogi or Bibimbap

After lunch we had one more thing to see.. The Conference row. We arrived and we told to walk it two and not leave the line, also there would be armed North Korean soldiers watching our every move. We were not allowed to point, laugh at or make fun of the North Korean guards at all. We walked into a large building and the first thing we saw was a North Korean guard, we couldn't help a nervous giggle. We quickly put on our straight faces. I will admit I was quite scared. Constantly aware of what was happening around me. Very alert. Anyway we went into a blue building which is on the border line, it is a South Korean building but half of it is in South Korea and half of it is in North Korea. We were allowed to take photos with the North Korean guards but to always be more than a foot away from them. Also no making fun of the guards..

We drove back to the base and we given a short tour. Below is the bridge of no return, at the end of the war the prisoners of war and other Koreans were told they could choose a country North or South and cross the bridge to their chosen home, and they may never return.

And we concluded the tour with the bus ride back to Seoul. Where we went to Lotte world and learned to ice skate and went on a few rides.

After a lovely mexican lunch for breakfast on Sunday we opted for the KTX back to Ulsan.

magical but freezing

noreply@blogger.com (Lace, Lanterns and Ligers) — Mon, 10 Dec 2012 03:13:00 +0000

Snow is magical...

It falls so slowly, from my office window I could watch a single snowflake sail down four stories until it hit the ground. It is beautiful! It looks like I'm in a fairytale<3

Although the snow is enthralling and oh so magical it leaves behind an unbelievable cold. I have never been so cold in all my life. My feet never seem to warm up even thought I'm wearing two pairs of socks, a pair of leg warmers and slippers. I feel like I have just had a surf in the pacific without booties. It's frizzleing... Today is -2, with a high of 4 and a low of -7. Everyday I think to myself 'today is the coldest day of my life' and then the next day proves I was sorely mistaken and it is even colder than the day before. And to make matters worse I am told by my co-teachers that this weather is nothing compared to January and February. The seem to feel the need everytime they see me wrapped up in my winter woolies. I wear so many layers of clothing to school I'd be boiling in South African winter.

First snow of the year

noreply@blogger.com (Lace, Lanterns and Ligers) — Thu, 06 Dec 2012 06:34:00 +0000

It snowed last night... I kept seeing peoples comments facebook that it was snowing in Ulsan and I kept looking out the window and seeing nothing. M got home late last night with a handful of snow. I ran out in my pjs to see the snow. It was beautiful but freezing cold. I snapped a few photos and quickly ran back inside! This morning the snow was still there, there wasn't much of it but it was there.

Here are a few photos.

You can see the snow on the roof of the truck

Snow falling in the light of the lamp post

Car with snow on it

The snow was still there in the morning

The temperature today, after the snowfall, with the wind chill it was -7

So that was my first experience of snow, it wasn't spectacular but there was snow, and it was so cold! The coldest I have ever been in my life up till now, and I'm told this is nothing in comparison to January and February...

The cold month of December

noreply@blogger.com (Lace, Lanterns and Ligers) — Wed, 05 Dec 2012 02:20:00 +0000

I have been super busy this past month but now it is December and I have hardly any classes at school. As I type this post there are student sitting in my classroom studying for their final exams next week. I will have next week off from class but still at school, the joys of desk warming.

This December I am hoping to finish my crochet blanket I started last month, with all my free time this should be possible... In the past two days at school I have done another 6 rows. Its now starting to look too big to be a scarf.

We are planning a trip to the Demilitarised Zone (DMZ). This is a strip of land that separates North and South Korea. The DMZ was formed in 1953 when the ceasefire was signed ending active hostilities in the Korean War. The war never officially ended so each side is heavily guarded and the DMZ is the only Cold War border still in existence. More about the DMZ when we visit it in a few weeks.

I also hope to see snow for the first time in my life ***

We are planning a skiing or snowboarding trip soon so I have no doubt I will see snow. I'm a little nervous I cant snowboard, but I have heard its similar to skateboarding. Anyway whether I get it right or fall on my face I think it will be a blast.

Maybe I can tick this off my bucket list...

I will be experiencing my first Christmas away from home, Christmas is always a big family day for us. All the family gather and try to put all of their many differences aside and have a wonderful day! Also Christmas is Summer in South Africa so a white Christmas might make up for the lack of family this year.

I will have to skype to be part of the action! :)

Miss my little famdamily!

December has just begun, this is my first December where I'm not on the beach but in the office, Not in summer but freezing my ass off in Winter, which apparently has not yet properly arrived. But anyway, hopefully every other December from here on is in the sun and on the beach!

November Photo A Day Challenge

noreply@blogger.com (Lace, Lanterns and Ligers) — Fri, 02 Nov 2012 07:09:00 +0000

I have decided to take part in the photo a day challenge for November, it will force me to take more photos. I like the list of photo challenges from fatmumslim. I will post all my photos on here, be it daily or weekly, probably weekly.
Here is the November challenge:

Day 1 - Something beginning with a 'C

Day 2 - Colour

... the last remnants of colour before the cold winter ...

Day 3 - Breakfast

Day 4 - TV

Day 5 - 5 o'clock

Day 6 - a favorite thing

Gran do you remember these biscuits? They are my favorite!

Day 7 - Reflection

Reflection... South Africa will always be home! All those years of wanting to leave, all I want to do now is go home.

Day 8 - Something I do everyday

Drink tea to keep warm and because its delicious, mostly because its delicious and I'm addicted.

Day 9 - small

Day 10 - Can't live without

Day 11 - Night

Day 12 - Drink

Day 13 - Where I slept

Day 14 - man-made (I changed this one to homemade)

Day 15 - In my bag

Day 16 - the view from my window

Day 17 - the last thing I bought

Day 18 - happened this weekend

Surprise party for a friend.

Day 19 - Something awesome

An American made a milk tart and it was delicious...

Day 20 - work/play

Play at work

Day 21 - What I wore

Day 22 - grateful

Day 23 - black

Day 24 - a sound you heard

Day 25 - sky

1000s of swallows in the sky about to leave for the winter

Day 26 - in the cupboard

Day 27 - tree

Tree in a restaurant

Day 28 - vehicle

Day 29 - big

Day 30 - on the wall

Birthday presents from home

noreply@blogger.com (Lace, Lanterns and Ligers) — Wed, 31 Oct 2012 00:03:00 +0000

Lately I have been super lazy at school! Earlier this week I figured out how to watch series in the office, all the websites that you can stream any series off of are blocked at school, but now I know how to over ride that. Worst mistake ever, I now get no work done at school.

Every week drags while I await the weekend, but then before I know it, its Friday and the week wasn't as bad or as long as I thought it would be. Around lunch on Friday is the time that I notice that I have been procrastinating and haven't got a lesson for the following week. This happened to me last week and I'm sure it will happen again this week. So I quickly slap a few ideas together into a powerpoint, throw the information onto a worksheet and that will be my lesson for next week. Super lazy teacher I am.

On a more exciting note - My package from mom for my birthday arrived on Friday and I was so excited to open it, but it was covered in tape and I couldn't figure out which side was the top and which was the bottom. I did find the card which was taped to one of the sides/top/bottom. It was beautifully had sewn by my mom! And just seeing her handwriting made me miss her even more!

Tape covered box of presents I was so excited to open!

Beautiful hand sewn card made by mom.

What the box looked like when I was done with it.

Wonderful presents!

Beautiful ring for my birthday

I was so spoiled by my family! Got the jerseys and chocolate from Case, the monopoly from my gran, 30 seconds from Josh and Tess and the bohemian bag, African kitchen goodies and the ring from my mom and dad! All the other little spoils are amazing too! Especially the JOKO tea! will not be leaving SA without it ever again! Nothing compares to it!

Birthday celebrations

noreply@blogger.com (Lace, Lanterns and Ligers) — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 07:30:00 +0000

I celebrated my birthday on Sunday and had an amazing day! The weather was great, I got so many messages and the most amazing presents from my wonderful boyfriend. We had a picnic in the park with such delicious snacks and an ice cream cake!

Singing happy birthday

Blowing out my candles

ice cream cake deliciousness

Beautiful polaroid camera and case from my lovely boyfriend <3

stunning bangle imported from Singapore by M just for my birthday!

Jinhae Cherry Blossom Festival

noreply@blogger.com (Lace, Lanterns and Ligers) — Tue, 16 Oct 2012 03:37:00 +0000

For only a few short weeks of the year the cherry trees bloom with pale pink blossoms. They are magnificent and something I have wanted to see for as long as I can remember. From the end of March to early April, Korea's largest cherry blossom festival takes place in Jinhae. Tourists from all over roam the streets and enjoy the beauty of the blossoms.

This year Korea had an especially cold winter, thank goodness we weren't here, and the trees were only 30% in bloom during the festival, I cant imagine what 100% would look like.

The weather on the Sunday we went was amazing, it was the first time since arriving in the Land of Lace, Lanterns and Ligers that we were able to remove all the layers and scarves and wear only a T-shirt. It was amazing to feel the sun on our skin for the first time since leaving summer in South Africa.

There were local people selling their crafts, many food stalls and carnival type games kiosks.

When we arrived we met with our large group of people we had come with but some how with in the first 30 minutes of being there we had lost them all. We strolled through the stalls and M played a few games, he won a goldern pig money bank, and we got young coconuts from a local man who was selling them near one of the entrances. I think we must have walked from one side of the city to the other and back via a different route. Taking in all the beautiful cherry blossoms on the way.

We stopped and had some Korean BBQ for lunch, which had recently become our new favorite Korean food.

I wanted to go up the cable car to the top of the mountain to see the view of the city in a sea of cherry blossoms. The line for the cable car was ridiculously long so we walked up the 1000 stairs to the top. Luckily we came down on the cable car.

Now that we had done everything there was to do we decided it was about time to head home. So we waited at the bus stop for the bus which never came, tried to catch a taxi to Changwon to collect our bags but the driver was having none of that. Eventually some sweet Korean girl said she was going to Changwon and we should just go on the same bus as her. There were no seats available on the bus and the driver took the long way around. We were standing for at least an hour and half in a very crowded bus. M was not a happy chappy. Quickly collected our bags at the hotel and went to catch the next bus home to Ulsan. The stations was close to the hotel but it wasn't the main bus terminal, it was the last stop out of Changwon. By the time the bus arrived it was already full but they allowed all the people in the queue to stand in the bus, much to M's dismay. Eventually M sat down in a small ball on the floor of the bus and went to sleep. A kind ajjuma allowed me to sit on her arm rest for the trip and I fell asleep sitting there. When we arrived in Ulsan we couldn't get off the bus fast enough.

We got some fast food, put on a movie and vegged the rest of the evening.

Leaving the Rainbow nation

noreply@blogger.com (Lace, Lanterns and Ligers) — Thu, 11 Oct 2012 00:20:00 +0000

February 25, 2012 we left Port Elizabeth after much stressful packing and shoving extra clothing in the small gaps in backpacks and large rolly suitcases. Packing for a trip is never a very pleasant experience in my house, the packing is always left for the last minute and there is snot and tranne(tears) because everything I want to take with me cannot fit in my bag, no matter how many times I pack and unpack and refold and roll each of the items.

We arrived at the airport early because M insisted we could not take any chances at the airport. Better to be safe than sorry. We checked in and everything went smoothly. - We were only going to Johannesburg to sort out the documentation mentioned in the earlier post Organisational skills need some work..
We were saying goodbye to my family - more snot and tranne - and waiting to go through to the gate when M realized he had lost his plane ticket. Now we are all worried that if we don't find it, M won't be able to get on the plane, or he will have to buy another ticket, provided the plane isn't full. Eventually after much stressful searching some kind old lady told us her son/cousin/nephew had found a ticket and had taken it to the check-in desk. We rushed over and sadly they didn't have it, but eventually they issued a new one. Problem averted.

We said farewell to the family hoping all our documentation would be sorted out, our visas approved and we won't be seeing them again for another year or two. Not that we wont miss them terribly. We board the plane and off we go to Johannesburg. We stayed with M's aunt and uncle during the week that we were organizing final documentation.

Then it came time to leave the rainbow nation on 2 March 2012. More stressful packing the night before because we were leaving bright and early in the morning. M's uncle would drop us at the airport on his way to work. Due to him having to be at work we would arrive at the airport about 4 hours early for the flight.

Up early, breakfast eaten, on the highway to the airport - it is about an hours drive from where they live. Even although I know we are going to be early and probably bored stiff in the airport my stomach starts getting tiny little butterflies. I'm getting more and more nervous, afraid that by some stroke of bad luck we wouldn't make it in time. I mentally, and physically checked that I had my passport and money and other essentials about a thousand times. Reassured that I had everything and we wouldn't be late, I'm getting more and more excited as we pass each of the high-way off ramps.

We passed the half way mark and now I'm nervous but certain its for no reason. When suddenly M starts swearing really loudly. By some stroke of bad luck he had left his passport in the bed side table - he had specifically put it there because he thought he wouldn't forget it.
We do a U-turn and race back to the house at lightening speed. As we are driving I notice that the rush hour morning traffic on the other side of the road has become much more congested. We would have to wade through that on the way back to the airport.

We get home and M rushes inside to get his passport and then we are back on the road, this time in the traffic. We weave through the cars and now I have knots in my stomach and my palms are sweating because now we are really cutting it fine.

We get to the airport with barely 5 minutes to spare before the check-in closes. Quickly we rush to the front of the queue apologizing profusely to everyone in the line. We check-in and now I can breathe. We quickly grab something to eat and board the plane. We take off at around 9 am and wave goodbye to the rainbow nation.

Thank goodness we were initially so early for the flight...

In between the Pacific and Indian Oceans

noreply@blogger.com (Lace, Lanterns and Ligers) — Wed, 10 Oct 2012 06:38:00 +0000

One of the main reasons for us coming to work in the Land of Lace, Lanterns and Ligers is our desire to travel. I want to see as much of the world as possible and hope that our travelling will not stop once we head home.

I have a long list of the places I want so see in my life, but seeing as we are in Asia, I think we will start by ticking off the ones close by first and then moving onto those across the Pacific or a hop, skip and a jump over the Indian Ocean.

While in Asia my travel bucket list includes:

visit cambodia

visit Laos

Four seasons

noreply@blogger.com (Lace, Lanterns and Ligers) — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 07:14:00 +0000

When we arrived the weather was freezing, colder than anything I've ever felt, it is only like 5-7 degrees Celsius though, so not as bad as I was expecting. Everywhere inside is heated so that is fine. Our apartment has underfloor heating so it wasn't too cold. There were three quilts/duvets on the bed when we arrived and we needed all of them to be warm.

Then in April it started to warm up, I will never forget when we were at the Cherry Blossom Festival in Jinhae, it was the first weekend we wore T-shirts. It was amazing not to have to wear a jersey or a jacket and to have sun on our bare skin.

From then on it got consistently warmer and by the time of the Ulsan Whale festival at the end of April we were in shorts and dresses. At the festival there was a foreigner Dragon Boat Race. This was so much fun, foreigners from all over Korea came to race the Dragon Boats. Our team came third.

Then ended the spring and the humidity got out of control, everyone was using fans and the air-con was blasting in the classroom, at home, in the store. The humidty was unbearable. I can do hot, I just can do humid. The Koreans cherish their pale complexion and would hate to get a tan. They wear long clothing and always use an umbrella to protect themselves from the sun. I don't know how they do it in the heat. I have heard of a girl putting sunblock on in class so she wouldn't get burnt from the classroom lights, i mean have you ever...

The fan is something they love and wave around all day

Beach is covered with umbrellas, you wouldn't want to get caught out in the sunlight.

Umbrellas block out the sun on a summers day.

Ajummas love the visor. It can protect their whole face form the sun.

Now we have moved into the fall/autumn and the humidity just disappeared one day and now there is a definite chill in the air. Jerseys and coats are coming out. The students no longer carry around their fans, they now have small lap blankets with them where ever they go.

Wow I am dreading winter. I think I'm going to freeze. -20 degrees Celsius...

Days at school

noreply@blogger.com (Lace, Lanterns and Ligers) — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 07:14:00 +0000

So I am teaching English at a co-ed high school in Ulsan. High school kids are definitely not my favorite. I love little ones and studied to be a primary/elementary school teacher. These teenagers are definitely not my forte. I feel like we are too similar in age. But I have decided to make the most of it.

I teach 22 classes a week, 19 of which are normal classes. Some are all girls classes and others are all boys classes, only one class is co-ed.

When I started teaching many of the students were very amused by me being a foreigner and they were enthusiastic about classes and learning English. Many of my co-teachers say that the students who shine in my classes are the ones who are problems in their classes, I guess that just goes to show that not all students fit into the perfect mold they are trying so hard to shove them all into. All teachers have the exact same teaching methodology and expect all students to learn in the same way. Even in art classes, if the students are asked to draw a picture of a tiger, and they are creative and draw ones that are slightly different from the norm they are told that their picture is wrong, that isn't what a tiger looks like.

I'm getting carried away, off topic. So right from the beginning I had my favorite classes, and they were always the ones with the naughty students in. Normally the boys classes. I loved that they were making fun of each other(no one gets offended, its only a joke) in ridiculously bad English. I honestly don't care if you are talking during group work in my classes as long as it is in English.

I have had a second grade boy student tell me a story about his friends dad being a multi-millionaire Arab man who married a Korean woman, and they had a son, who came to live in Korea with his mom when his father was working on the oil ships. The story got unbelievable at one point and I knew he was lying and making fun of his friend for having a suntan. But both boys thought it was funny and it got them both speaking English. I loved it.

I have a girl in one of my first grade classes that tries to teach me a new Korean word every class. She is always so impressed when I remember her word and even more impressed when I remember her name. She is so enthusiastic. Her English isn't wonderful but she is always willing to try, always volunteering to go first or do something in the classroom. She is definitely one of my students who is improving the most.

As well as my 19 normal classes a week, I also have one teachers class every Monday morning, 5 or 6 teachers come to my classroom and sometimes I will have prepared a specific lesson and other times we will just chat. At the moment, we are swapping recipes and they are teaching me a Korean card game. Initially I hated having to teach them but since I have relaxed and let the class go more into conversations between equals than having a teacher-student relationship with them it has become really enjoyable for me as well as for them.

Other then that I take an essay club class once a week for two periods. I enjoy these students and I can really see the improvement in the English abilities in them. Their writing has improved tremendously since we started in March. Normally it takes them two weeks to write an essay, they take the steps in the essay writing process very seriously and obviously they enjoy having a chat with their friends every now and then. The essay topics are normally things they are interested in.

The weeks move past with much of the sameness, but occasionally there will be a class that I thoroughly enjoy or a student who just makes my day.

Arrival in the land of lace lanterns and ligers

noreply@blogger.com (Lace, Lanterns and Ligers) — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 07:08:00 +0000

My boyfriend, M, and I moved to Korea (the land of Lace and Ligers) in March 2012, we have now been here for just over 7 months. Our decision to come to Korea was based on the word of a friend who was all horns and whistles about the Land of Lace, Lanterns and Ligers. So we decided to give it a shot, initially planning on staying for 2 years.

Every day is still a new experience. We are way out of our comfort zone, with very little to remind us of home. We arrived on March 3 2012 and at the airport we were met by our co-teachers for the year. M's co- teacher is young and mine is slightly older, married with two kids. They both were very nice. They took us to drop our bags off at the place we would be staying at for the night because neither of our apartments were ready yet. The place was cute and better than I expected. But it would not be home. Once we had offloaded all of our belongings, we went to an E-mart, a large store like a hypermarket back home, to get some breakfast things and then we went out for dinner.

We were about to experience Korean food for the first time, and we were both a little nervous. First we had some green chili peppers, and Kimchi.

This is cabbage which is fermented in a red chili pepper sauce, the longer it is fermented the better it tastes. I couldn't stand it for the first couple of months, but now I love it. It really grows on you.

Kimchi

Then we had some Mandu (dumplings), which is pork and green onions and some other stuff in a kind of pasta pastry. These were delicious. My absolute favorite from that first night.

Mandu

We had some fish and noodle soup, it had some clams and muscles and then fish pieces in it.

Seafood noodle soup

Lastly we had pajeon, which is like a Korean pancake/pizza but the concept is like an omelette. This was so good, from the beginning it has been one of M's favorites and has become one of mine. You dip the pieces into that sauce, wow, so good.

Pajeon

All of this came with what Koreans call 'service' which just means complimentary sides.

Service - except for the soup, rice and fish

That was our first experience of Korean food and to be honest neither of us really enjoyed anything. Some of the food we forced down, but it really does grow on you. I now actually really enjoy many Korean dishes and sides.

Living arrangements:
My co-teacher hadn't actually found me an apartment yet so we were both to stay at M's place until her and I found one for me. The commute to school each morning was awful because the bus stop is so far from M's apartment, therefore a long walk and it was freezing (at least for me) March temperatures are anything from 2-10 degrees Celsius.

After about a week we found an apartment, which is amazing, it is about a block and a half from my school. We were planning on trying to find something in the middle of our schools (1 hour apart by bus) so that we would both have to commute 30 minutes each morning. But this apartment was a must have. The ceilings are high, the floors are wood. The bedroom is large and separated from the kitchen, unlike M's apartment which is only one room and much smaller. There was nothing in the apartment, so the school had to provide a bed, washing machine, fridge, table, chairs etc. My school had some extra money in the budget so they bought some cutlery and crockery. I also got a big screen TV which was a huge bonus. M's apartment was fully furnished so all of his budget went into cutlery, crockery, bedding and appliances. Which we have moved to my place and now we are sorted.

M and I planned to do one week at mine and one week at his to make the commuting fair, but my place was so much better we just ended up staying at mine full time.
There are a few other foreigners in my building which is really nice. We often have braais or do things together.

Photos of the apartment coming soon...

Organisational skills need some work...

noreply@blogger.com (Lace, Lanterns and Ligers) — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 00:06:00 +0000

Prior to coming to the land of Lace Lanterns and Ligers we had such huge missions when trying to organize our documents.
My biggest mission was trying to get my degree from the dreaded university. I technically graduated in December 2011 but the graduation ceremony would not take place until the following April so they refused to give me my certificate of qualification. I got letters from faculty officers and head of the examination board but that just wasn't good enough for the Korean government, they needed the actual degree. After much begging and negotiation, as well as knowing people in the right places, I got a letter, which was close to looking like a degree, with the correct wording, and I was in. Finally I had everything I needed to ship off to Korea, until we realized we had to have everything appostilled. The only place in the whole country that can appostille these documents is in Pretoria. So we sent off everything by courier. I needed my degree/letter to be certified by the Education Department and then sent to the International Relations and Immegration Department to be appostilled. This was too much for the courier to fathom and I ended up having to pay more money for them to collect the documents from the Education department the following day and take it to the International department. When all they had to do was wait 5 minutes and it would have been ready to go. The frustration was unbearable. I just wanted to break down in tears.

Once the couriers failed to succeed in this task, we opted for asking some friends to attempt it. Shame, it was such a mission for them but eventually we had success.
Much to our dismay, we needed the same process done on additional documents a few days later so we decided to just go there and do it ourselves. We packed all of our bags, not knowing if we were leaving South Africa or just having a stressful trip to Johannesburg. We went to stay with M's aunt and uncle. We saw a few friends and attempted to sort out our documents. Which turned out being a mission to even find the right buildings but once we had, it was pretty easy and we should have just done it ourselves in the first place.

So documents all stamped and embellished with official seals and ribbons, we were ready to have our visas processed. We went into the Korean Embassy with all our documents, which they didn't ask to see. We applied for the visa in record time, and were told we could collect them within the next two days. Thank goodness.
With our bags packed and now proof of approval for our visas, we booked our flights for 2 March 2012.

From waiting to hear for months and months, and stressing about whether we had all the right documents and the process of organizing them being brutal everything happened so quickly and we were going to Korea. Leaving in two days. All the stress and worry was worth it.

Somewhere to start from

noreply@blogger.com (Lace, Lanterns and Ligers) — Mon, 08 Oct 2012 06:52:00 +0000

M and I have been in South Korea for just over 7 months and I regret not starting a blog when we left South Africa. We have been outside of our comfort zone for so long now, that things have become normal. I have luckily saved all my email correspondence from home and will be using that to update my blog. I can't wait to be up to date and writing in real time.