Adventures and E-2 Visas

I didn't realize how nervous I was about the consul interview until the night before - I couldn't figure out what I wanted to wear (ladies, you understand this one ;)), and I couldn't sleep. Like many, I'm not a huge fan of walking into a situation without knowing what would happen. There are all kinds of topics on this forum about waiting for visa codes, packing lists, information about various schools and areas of South Korea - but I was hard pressed to find anything about the actual interview required to attain an E-2 visa.

Be sure the contact your local consulate in advance. The emails from Aclipse tell you what to bring, but - at least in my experience in Atlanta - the consul may require more documents than Aclipse states, and s/he (or the assistant) will want them at least a business day before your appointment. He or she will also send you a *ton* of information - as I get lost very easily, I was especially glad to receive very detailed directions on how to get to the consulate office.

Everything else here will be pretty much Atlanta-specific. I'm not sure how much networking the various Korean consuls in the states do with each other, so I don't know what of my experience is similar with other areas. Just a disclaimer :)

I'll be honest - I dreaded the trip. Atlanta is far away (6 1/2 hour drive x.x), and I'm not a fan of big cities. I live in a town with one stoplight and about a thousand people. To keep me sane, I brought my mom and my best friend from high school (I say "brought" - they were more excited than I was), and made plans for things to do other than just go to the consulate so I'd have things to look forward to.

However, I had absolutely no reason to dread or worry about anything.

We found a hotel really close to the downtown area that wasn't insanely expensive. The Atlanta consul's assistant will suggest that you stay in a nearby Merriot/Hilton/whatever that's hundreds of dollars per night. Ignore that advice! There's a Country Inn and Suites and a Comfort Inn down the road from Turner Field. We stayed at the former for $79 a night. Definitely wasn't luxury accommodations or anything, but the rooms were clean, the place was safe, and, most importantly, the water pressure was *fantastic*.

We had an interesting time finding places to eat. Downtown Atlanta is full of restaurants, but the parking fees are insane! Our first night there was a Sunday night as my interview was Monday morning, and many places were closed. We ended up eating at this bbq place called the Bullpen across from Turner Field. The parking lot was completely barren - only one car, which was just someone who was visiting one of the two employees on duty. Going inside, it's easy to see that during baseball season, this is a happening place. As we were car-tired, the lack of crowd was nice. I had one of the best hamburgers I've had in ages. If you go there, look for a tall African American woman who smiles and laughs a lot - she should be tending bar or at the cash register - ask her to make you a Somebody Else's Husband. Tell her that girl who was going to Korea sent you ;)

My interview with the consul was the next morning at 11:00 am. Way overestimating downtown traffic, I was about an hour early! Fortunately, the International Tower is in the same building as the Peachtree Mall, so there was a coffee shop and a few places to browse as I killed time. There is free wifi, but it is quite misleading: that place is a black hole for electronic devices! I couldn't get cell phone signal, and my iPod had a hard time connecting to the internet. When you finally make it up to the fifth floor, the Korean area is pretty easily marked. Don't be fooled by those imposing double doors! You can just walk through. There's a small reception desk - just walk past that to the waiting area. The window for visas should have a sign, but if it doesn't, it's the far right one. All of the receptionists are insanely nice.

Again, this may be just an Atlanta thing, but the consul sees five people a day in one group interview. The assistant will tell you to be there at 10:30 to fill out paperwork. Well, I didn't have any paperwork, but I do encourage you to be there at 10:30 so you'll have an opportunity to visit with the other teachers. I didn't meet anyone who was with Aclipse or CDL, but it was nice to hear everyone's experiences. Two of the other four had gone through Adventure Teach, who sound like they're a pretty good recruiting agency (not as good as Aclipse, of course ;)); the other two found their teaching positions without use of a recruiter. After hearing their stories, I was so glad that I didn't go that route! One girl had no clue she had to send in her documents ahead of time - had there not been an opening in our group, she probably wouldn't have been seen. Plus, she paid like $4000 for her ticket (made me thank Raquel profusely again!). The other woman was better prepared, but she didn't know anyone else going over. I think we were the first ESL teachers she met. I pointed her in the direction of this site, saying that I'm sure they'd welcome non-Aclipse teachers.

The interview itself was fantastic! The consul explained his role, that he was kind of a representative of Korea to determine whether he thought we would be a good fit for the country. He said that many people are confused about his job, and he also thought it was funny that he had such an important task, but only an hour to make a full judgement! He also said that the face-to-face interviews were now required because there had been so many problems with foreign teachers in Korea - apparently, we Americans are greatly prone to drinking, doing drugs, and participating in sexual deviancy. Sadly, I could definitely see how that would happen. We spent most of our interview talking about current events and Korea's role in the global market before he addressed us individually to ask a few questions (this is where I misinterpreted what I'd read about the structure: although we were asked individually, he didn't see us individually). He asked most of us about our college and teaching experiences. Ironically, he didn't ask me about the latter. However, I was one of the last to receive the questions, and the others had all majored in something other than English, education, or foreign relations - when I told him my two majors (secondary education and English), he laughed and said I was perfect for teaching in Korea, and asked why I didn't go for Japan instead.

I do recommend knowing a bit about the Korean culture, as he did ask us what we knew. Also, be sure you are 100% positive of the pronunciation of your province/city! I pronounced "Yongin" incorrectly and he had no clue where I was talking about! (Or, well, in my nerves, I probably said something completely different from "Yongin"..).

One part I liked was that I could pick up my passport the next day. I was wary of having it mailed to me - I have a had time putting faith in the postal service (especially since they seem to have lost a pair of shoes I've ordered for Korea x.x). You can pick it up at 11 - so if you're planning on flying back that day, be sure to schedule a flight that leaves sometime after that :)

If you're a Floridian like me, Atlanta is also a fantastic place to buy a coat suitable for the Korean winters. Our hotel clerk provided us with a list of very detailed driving directions to a few of the shopping locations. He recommended the Lenox Mall (?), which ended up being awesome as I found a coat at Macy's that was on this insanely awesome sale. Also, if you end up there, totally check out the Lenox Grill! One of their specialities is their macaroni dishes - I had a foodgasm :D

I took a few pics at the Georgia Aquarium to test drive my digital camera. Quite impressed with the thing - especially since all of those pictures were taken without a flash. If you end up there after your interview, be sure to be near the giant shark tank for their feeding, 2:45-ish. Sadly, didn't get shots of those as my camera battery died (killed it with those jellyfish shots - but, as you can see, so worth it!) http://gallery.me.com/aeagle