Hostel

Hm......I have no place to really stay in Korea, haha. Short term accommodation considerations were hotels, love motels, 찜질방 (jjimjilbang), 여관 (yeogwans), and hostels. Hotels, love motels, and 여관 are expensive even for short term stay. I wouldn't have minded staying at a 찜질방, but I can't leave my luggage there. My last option would be a hostel, which I stayed in before in Canada. I used hostelworld which was the same website I used to get a hostel in Canada . I didn't choose my hostel by rating at all. I based everything on price, location, and reviews. I needed a hostel that was near Line 2 aka the Green Line subway stations, so I could get to Sogang and search for housing around the area for a few days. As pictured below, I needed to get from the blue (Line 2) to the red (Sogang):

The top 3 hostels I had to choose from was Mr.Kim's Friends Guesthouse, Hong Guesthouse, and Seoul I Guesthouse. Unfortunately none of the hostels are in Sinchon =/, but in Hongdae. When I think about....I don't know if there are any hostels in Sinchon. Hongdae is very close anyway, so I shouldn't have an issue. All the hostels that I rounded up were all close to Line 2 which I provided with pictures. Listed below are the prices per day and the types of rooms each hostel had that I considered to get:

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Mr.Kim's Friends Guesthouse

Prices
Basic 1 Bed Tent Shared Bathroom - US$11.24 (weekday) + US$13.11 (Fri+Sat) x2 days = US$37.46
Basic 4 Bed Mixed Dorm - US$14.05 (standard) x3 days = US$42.14
Basic 10 Bed Mixed Dorm - US$11.24 (standard) x3days = US$33.71

Hong Guesthouse

Prices
4 Bed Mixed Dorm - US$14.05 (standard) x3 days = US$42.14
Standard 6 Bed Mixed Dorm - US$12.17 (standard) x3 days = US$36.52

Seoul I Guesthouse

Prices
Basic 10 Bed Mixed Dorm - US$12.46 (weekday) x2 days + US$15.45 (Fri+Sat) = US$43.36
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Mr.Kim's Friends Guesthouse reviews were very shady. Getting that feeling means I definitely don't want to stay there. On top of that, I don't want to sleep in a tent, haha. It is by far the cheapest though. The 4 bed mixed dorm was the same price as the other hostels. The 10 bed mixed dorm seemed ok, but when I think about it.....just too many people and too much noise.

Hong Guesthouse reviews were pretty good. The 4 bed mixed dorm was the same price as the other hostels. I was going to get the 6 bed mixed dorm cause it was cheaper, but backed out cause I thought it was too many people. Albeit I'm sure it probably wouldn't be full, I just don't want to deal with drama.

Seoul I Guesthouse reviews were really good. I didn't choose this cause it was more expensive than the other hostels.
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I ended up booking with Hong Guesthouse cause of how everyone said the owner was helpful. I'll be needing all the help I could get, haha. Bothering the owner all day =P. The pricing wasn't too bad either. I booked the hostel from February 25th - February 27th for 3 nights. I just put in the days that I wanted and chose 1 person. After that you need to pay a 10% deposit and a $2 booking fee. I paid $4.21 deposit + $2 booking fee = $6.21. After you booked everything you should be directed to a confirmation page and sent an email:

Confirmation Page

Email Confirmation

After a few days later I found out they dropped the prices >__<, but it was only a few cents though. I also checked my bank statement and was charged $0.16 for INTERNATIONAL POS FEE VIS 1227 IE. I think that's just silly, haha. Well if you're around the area, I guess I'll see ya around =D.

Happy Holidays

Happy Holidays everyone. Hopefully you guys got your jolly mittens and boots on. It's gonna be a white Christmas this year. I'm gonna go down Chinatown to get some good ol' dim sum in my tummy ^_^. Then visit my little brother. This will be the last time I see him before I head off to Korea T__T. Stay safe and warm everybody .

Interveiw

I got an email from Sogang on December 10th to do an interview for the placement test by phone:

I emailed Sogang back saying I can't speak Korean. They replied back, but for some reason I just cracked up from what they said. I guess I'm really a TOTAL newb, haha.

Dear XXXXXXXXXX

In that case, you don't need to take the placement test.
I will place you at the absolutely beginners class.

Sincerely
Kim Hyung-il

I couldn't do the interview anyway cause I work the night shift. Interrupting my sleep in the afternoon would make me say all kinds of incoherent things, haha.

Plane ticket

I just bought my one-way plane ticket to Seoul, South Korea. It cost me $603.90. Coming from Pennsylvania to Seoul Incheon International Airport (ICN).

Here's a list of websites to check on prices of flight tickets:

http://www.onetravel.com/
http://www.orbitz.com/
http://www.priceline.com/
http://www.sidestep.com/
http://www.cheaptickets.com/
http://www.cheapoair.com/
http://www.expedia.com/
http://www.kayak.com/
http://www.travelocity.com/
http://www.airfare.com/

These are the prices of my flight ticket to Seoul from each site:

Onetravel
$582 with fees included ($18) + $34 tax = $616.26

Orbitz
$619 + $149 of taxes and fees = $768 - It became unavailable even though it was still listed
It got changed to $933 + $37 of taxes and fees = $970.99

Priceline
$761 with fees included + $160 of taxes = $921

Airface/Sidestep/Kayak - With Sidestep and Kayak it lead me to Airfare.com. By far the cheapest flights around.
$475.59 + $128.31 of taxes and fees = $603.90

Cheaptickets
$619 + $147 of taxes and fees = $766.59

Cheapoair
$573 with included fees + $48.31 of taxes= $621.40

Expedia
$759.60 with taxes and fees included

Travelocity - when you selected the flight, you got different fees and taxes, but the total was the same.
$731 with fees of $30 = $761.10
$635.10 + $126 of taxes and fees = $761.10 - selected a flight

I bought my ticket from Airfare.com, obviously cause it was the cheapest. I could've gotten insurance for $36.84, but opted not to. Hm....I think I might regret it when the time comes, haha. Ah wells, I already went through with the purchase. Just fill out the forms online with YOUR information and you should be fine. After purchasing the ticket you will be at a page with your confirmation number and itinerary:

You will also receive 3 emails:

Plain text format of your itinerary

Issuance of your ticket:

Dear Traveler,

Your ticket with airfare.com has been issued

Your confirmation number is: XXXXXXXXXX

To view your itinerary online please click on the following . http://www.checkmytrip.com
(If your email does not support links, please copy and paste it into your browser.)

Please don’t forget to check the following before your departure date:
1- Call the airline to confirm your schedule and to assign your seat, meals or any extra services.
2- Check if you will need a visa and transit visa for the layover or for the final destination.
3- Make sure you've received the ticket if your ticket is a paper ticket.

Please note that our tickets are NON-REFUNDABLE.
To read our regulations and rules please click the following link.
http://www.airfare.com/airfare3/secure/regulations.aspx
(If your email does not support links, please copy and paste it into your browser.)

Thank you for booking with Airfare.com

Airfare.com team wishes you a safe flight,
Airfare.com customer service

What kind of ticket you have:

Dear Traveler,

Concerning your booking with Airfare.com (XXXXXXXXXX) ,
Please advise that your ticket is an electronic ticket now at no extra charge.

Thank you for booking with Airfare.com

Customer service,
Airfare.com

After just 1 day after purchasing my ticket, my itinerary changed, haha.

Dear Customer,

This is an automated notification to inform you that there were schedule changes in your flight made by the airline you are traveling with.
Please call the airline to confirm your itinerary.

You can check your updated itinerary from the following link: WWW.CHECKMYTRIP.COM/CMTSERVLET?R=XXXXXXXXXX&L=US&N=XXXXXXXXXX

Your confirmaion number is: XXXXXXXXXX

Thank You, Airfare.com

It was so quick. Instead of leaving at 10:30am, I will be leaving at 11:000am. My biggest problem is now that the ticket prices from Seoul to Pennsylvania is double the price. It's pretty crazy. A round trip ticket was only $850. I think I might have to buy my ticket from a Korean website instead of an American one so I can save some money coming back. The reason why I got a one way ticket was because I'm honestly not sure when I'll be back. On top of that I can't buy a return flight more than 6 months in advance. Anyways, here's what my itinerary looks like:

Visa Part 2

A few days later I was contacted by the Korean Embassy cause they didn't know what kind of visa I wanted. That's not surprising cause it never tells you what kind of visa you were applying for on the form. They also asked why I was going and the duration. Hm...didn't I put all of that in the application? I sometimes think they don't read the application, haha. I told them I wanted a C3 Visa and will be staying for 3 months, but they insisted that I didn't need one. The US and Korea has a Waiver agreement which says Americans can stay in Korea up to 90 days without a visa. Then I insisted I wanted one anyway. They kept saying since I was only going to Korea for 3 months that it wasn't necessary to get a C3 Visa cause it had the same duration as a regular tourist visa, but they would issue one to me if I still wanted it. WELL, since I had already paid a pretty penny to get all my materials over there, I think I still REALLY want that C3 visa, haha. Unfortunately they couldn't issue one to me without faxing over my admission letter. The confusing part was on the website, it states that there were no required documents. I didn't argue with them, I just went to work and faxed over copies of my certificate of admission, certificate of enrollment, and official receipt documents.

You might be wondering why I didn't just get a D4 visa from the beginning? Well, there's just too much work to get that visa and I'm just too lazy, haha. I didn't want them looking at my financial statements. You also might be wondering why I said 3 months instead of a year? I didn't want the Korean Embassy asking too many questions and how I was going to pay for everything. I didn't want to go through all the grief of telling them that stuff, haha. Anyway, after a few days I got my passport in the mail. This is the pre-paid envelope I bought. You see the over sized stamps?:

Front of Envelope

Back of Envelope

I open up my passport and to my absolute utmost surprise I got a.......

......D4 visa. Not a C3 visa, but a D4 visa. Do you see THAT? haha. I wasn't trying to get one until I got to Korea. I had to check 3 different times to see if I was seeing an illusion. I definitely wasn't, haha. D4 visa is definitely better than a C3 visa. BINGO!!!!! I think I hit a jackpot and this will give me more time to have fun ^__^V. I actually wanted to see what the process was to change my C3 visa to a D4 visa while in Korea, but I guess I'll do an entry later on how to extend your D4 visa.

I just noticed why my pre-paid envelope was so much. The top stamps were $4.90 each. The middle stamps were $1 each. The bottom left stamp was $0.10 and the bottom right was $0.75. So I paid $13.65 just for stamps =__=

Visa Part 1

I read a blog awhile ago about changing visas in Korea. Specifically a Tourist Visa (B2) to a General Student Visa /General Trainees Visa (D4). I guess what I forgot to remember was for American citizens I needed a General Short-Term Visa (C3) first in order to change my visa status to a D4. I thought I had read another blog saying I could do that, but I think I was mistaken. I confirmed you can't change a B2 visa to a D4 visa while in Korea. It's about 3 months before I'm about to leave for Korea and I didn't get one yet. Luckily someone told me I couldn't, haha. I checked visitkorea.or.kr website and confirmed it.

Applicants should obtain a student visa or a training visa (visa status C-3 or D-4). It takes about a week or longer, depending on where you are, to get a 90-day student visa at the Embassy or Consulate office. After 90 days in Korea, applicants may extend their visa as long as they continue to study at the Korean Language Program. People who enter Korea on a tourist visa cannot extend or change the visa status within the country.

These are the materials you'll need for the Visa application as per what the USA Korean Embassy website tells you:

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General requirements for Visa Application

• A valid passport
• A completed visa application (ms-word) (pdf)
• Passport size photo (2”x 2” color)
• Fee: $45 for American citizens (Cash or money order only; Pay to the Order: Korean Consulate General)

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There are no documents to send in for a C-3 Visa.

Status	Required Document
Short-Term Visitors (C-3)	- No documents are required.
General Trainees (D-4)	1. A student who learns Korean language at a language institute attached to college or university, or who is involved in study training according to academic exchange agreement between colleges or Universities needs the following documents; - Certificate of school enrollment or school attendance - Financial Affidavit * Certificate or remittance or money exchange (More than U.S. $3,000) - Letter of personal reference notarized is required in case that the applicant cannot prove his or her capability to pay travel expenses necessary to stay, including school fees etc., or if Justice Minister deems particularly necessary 2. A student who participates in other training programs will need the following documents: - Certificate of training - Documents regarding establishment of training institutes - Financial Affidavit * Certificate or remittance or money exchange (More than U.S. $3,000) - Letter of personal reference notarized is required in case that the applicant cannot prove his or her capability to pay travel expenses necessary to stay, including school fees etc., or if Justice Minister deems particularly necessary

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The application form is a little confusing if you don't know the jargon listed on the application. Luckily I was able to figure out most of the information was actually on my passport. The only requirement you need to fill out the Visa form is your passport. I'll show you what I put on mine:

For #8. Classification, they didn't have P listed to choose from, but P and OR are the same, so I just circled OR. These are what the abbreviations mean:
          -DP = Diplomatic
          -OF = Official
          -OR = Ordinary
          -P = Passport (I thought it was Personal)

You can find more information on Consulate General of the Republic of Korea in Vancouver, United States Passport on Wikipedia, and USA Korean Embassy. This is a sample visa.

After filling out the application I went to one of my company's retail stores, Rite Aid, to get a picture taken. The quality was pretty horrible. It's nothing like the picture that the post office took of me for my passport. Lighting was bad and there were no care for the customer (ie. tilt your head down, move to the left, etc). I get what I paid for I guess. It was $7.99 compared to the postal office's price of $15.00.

I took the picture, my passport, and my application off to the post office. I put everything in a cardboard envelope like this, but half this size:

I walked up to the counter to purchase a $45 money order. I paid it to Korean Consulate General with the mailing address on it. With Western Union money orders I know you don't have to put the mailing address, so putting a mailing address on a USPS money order was kind of weird to me, haha. If you don't live in Virgina, Maryland, District Of Columbia, or West Virgina you can not send your application to the Korean Embassy in Washington DC. Since I live in Pennsylvania, the Korean Embassy in New York has jurisdiction as stated in USA Consulate Service Gerneral Information and USA Consulate Service Area Of Jurisdiction:

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Consulate-General	Address	Phone/Fax	District
New York	Main Office : 335 E. 45th St.(4th Fl.), New York, NY 10017	T:(646)674-6000 T:(212)692-9120 F:(646)674-6023	Connecticut, Delaware, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania
	Public Office (Visa Section): 460 Park Ave. (57th St.) 6th Fl. New York, NY 10022	T:(646)674-6000 F:(646)674-6023

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I also purchased a pre-paid envelope and got it certified. The total amount to send everything to New York was......a whopping $65.60. As the clerk was putting stamps on my envelopes and putting all my materials in it, I kept asking several times, "This is the cheapest?" and "Are you SURE?". Come on now, it was close to $20 just for the pre-paid envelope itself. It was mind boggling on how expensive it was. I paid for it anyways and it was shipped on 11/30/2010. Here's the receipts:

Sales Receipt

Money Order Receipt

Certified Mail Receipt

On the left of the Certified Mail Receipt you have a serial number where you can track your package.