Seoul, Day 35.
Sooo. Today is September 24th. I was supposed to get paid on September 10th. I was not.
Has Layne been paid yet?
Nooooo.
As it turned out, I needed my ID card to get a bank account. And then the paperwork took a few more days after that.
So today I got my passbook, tomorrow or Friday I will get an ATM card.
But. There's no money in my account.
Turns out, since they couldn't put money into any account on September 10th, they were just going to put that money, and my plane ticket reimbursement, into my account on OCTOBER TENTH.
I discovered this yesterday, and I was like...whoa, what? I was very honest and told them I had no money and maybe two days worth of food left. I ate the rest of my protein today. I now have:
Three servings of rice. Maybe four.
Three onions.
Cooking oil.
Spices.
Two servings of noodles.
One glass of orange juice.
Tea.
Two glasses of water.
One Hershey's bar.
Some breath mints.
Most of those terrifying fishes.
I also have 700 won (70 cents) with which I can buy a triangle of rice wrapped in seaweed. One of the secretaries told me I should stop eating those, today, because they have tons of preservatives (well, she said bahngbujae, and we had to translate it). But you can't buy anything more filling for 700 won.
Yup. So. I won't start starving to death until at least Saturday. But if there's no money in my account on Friday, there's no money till Monday.
Fortunately I also have an Outback Steakhouse gift certificate, which I got for Chuseok, so I will try to use that for lunch tomorrow. I think/hope lunch is cheaper than dinner.
But, assuming I actually get paid this week, my problems aren't half as bad as the Canadians' problems. On September 1, the Korean government changed the law for Canadian visas, and now, in addition to getting a criminal check, they have to get something called a vulnerable sector check, which is basically a check for sexual offenses, and is only required for people who work with children. Americans don't have to get this, because it's already included in the CORI check.
However, the Canadian government WILL NOT do vulnerable sector checks for anyone who is not in Canada. And the Korean government WILL NOT give visas to Canadians who do not have vulnerable sector checks. This means either one of the governments has to change their mind in the next month (Canadian visas have been extended for one month), OR all the Canadian teachers would have to go back to Canada. There are thousands of Canadians in Seoul and elsewhere in Korea, teaching at public and private schools. If they all had to leave, it would be devastating not only to them but also to their schools and the students and their parents. There will be a LOT OF ANGRY PEOPLE. One of them is Chris, who happens to work at the desk next to me, who spent $150 getting all his documents together only to have his visa application rejected for reasons out of his control.
Apparently it used to be much much easier to get an E-2 visa, and despite unrelenting and even increasing demand, it is getting closer and closer to impossible.
And yo, if I don't get paid soon, I'm coming home.
Has Layne been paid yet?
Nooooo.
As it turned out, I needed my ID card to get a bank account. And then the paperwork took a few more days after that.
So today I got my passbook, tomorrow or Friday I will get an ATM card.
But. There's no money in my account.
Turns out, since they couldn't put money into any account on September 10th, they were just going to put that money, and my plane ticket reimbursement, into my account on OCTOBER TENTH.
I discovered this yesterday, and I was like...whoa, what? I was very honest and told them I had no money and maybe two days worth of food left. I ate the rest of my protein today. I now have:
Three servings of rice. Maybe four.
Three onions.
Cooking oil.
Spices.
Two servings of noodles.
One glass of orange juice.
Tea.
Two glasses of water.
One Hershey's bar.
Some breath mints.
Most of those terrifying fishes.
I also have 700 won (70 cents) with which I can buy a triangle of rice wrapped in seaweed. One of the secretaries told me I should stop eating those, today, because they have tons of preservatives (well, she said bahngbujae, and we had to translate it). But you can't buy anything more filling for 700 won.
Yup. So. I won't start starving to death until at least Saturday. But if there's no money in my account on Friday, there's no money till Monday.
Fortunately I also have an Outback Steakhouse gift certificate, which I got for Chuseok, so I will try to use that for lunch tomorrow. I think/hope lunch is cheaper than dinner.
But, assuming I actually get paid this week, my problems aren't half as bad as the Canadians' problems. On September 1, the Korean government changed the law for Canadian visas, and now, in addition to getting a criminal check, they have to get something called a vulnerable sector check, which is basically a check for sexual offenses, and is only required for people who work with children. Americans don't have to get this, because it's already included in the CORI check.
However, the Canadian government WILL NOT do vulnerable sector checks for anyone who is not in Canada. And the Korean government WILL NOT give visas to Canadians who do not have vulnerable sector checks. This means either one of the governments has to change their mind in the next month (Canadian visas have been extended for one month), OR all the Canadian teachers would have to go back to Canada. There are thousands of Canadians in Seoul and elsewhere in Korea, teaching at public and private schools. If they all had to leave, it would be devastating not only to them but also to their schools and the students and their parents. There will be a LOT OF ANGRY PEOPLE. One of them is Chris, who happens to work at the desk next to me, who spent $150 getting all his documents together only to have his visa application rejected for reasons out of his control.
Apparently it used to be much much easier to get an E-2 visa, and despite unrelenting and even increasing demand, it is getting closer and closer to impossible.
And yo, if I don't get paid soon, I'm coming home.