Day 33: I'm An Alien

"I'm an alien, I'm a legal alien, I'm an Englishman in New York." ~Sting

Ummm....no Sting....actually I'm a Canadian in Seoul, but yes I am a legal alien.

Today was a big step in getting closer to finishing all the necessary Korean bureaucracies for me to have a 'normal' life here, as a foreigner. Steven took me down to the Incheon Immigration Office and I filled out all the paperwork so that I can receive my Alien Registration Card. This card is very important, as it allows me to open a bank account, counts as official residency status, and helps keep the Korean immigration officials from kicking me out after 90 days here in town! I won't actually get the card until next week, but I was approved and everything went through and it was a big relief to have that taken care of. One less hoop to jump through... It can be a bit tricky living in a foreign country, with all the rules and bureaucracies surrounding immigration and work visas and passports and taxation laws and all that other fun stuff, but I always remind myself that I'm certainly not the first Canadian guy to come over and teach English here, so there is always a way around whatever 'roadblocks' come along. It's kinda fun though to say "Hi, I'm Scott, I'm an alien!" and be completely telling the truth! (cause I have the identification to back it up! haha!)

I was invited up for a big family dinner with the Parks tonight. Today was the four year anniversary of Steven's father's passing, so him and all his relatives always get together on this day to remember him. I got to meet his siblings and nephews and nieces and many other relatives which was really cool, but it was on such sad terms. When I came up for dinner they had just started their praying (they're a very Christian family) and everyone was just so sad, you could *feel* the mourning in the room.... They read from their bibles and sang a few songs, and most of them were crying by the end of it. I felt a little awkward being right in the middle, not knowing what they were saying, and feeling a little uncomfortable with all the open emotion around me. At the same time though I felt honoured for being there, because this was obviously a very personal, important family affair and just the fact that I was invited to participate shows how welcoming this family is.

After the prayer session dinner was served, and the mood lightened up tremendously. That awkward silence that was just hanging in the room was broken as people began to engage in 'everyday' conversations again, and I was formally introduced to all the family. Only two other relatives spoke English, but they were all very friendly to me. Dinner was delicious (more chicken - yah!) and the family was very curious to hear about what I thought about Korea, what life was like in Canada, and what my own personal interests and hobbies are. One of the relatives was Steven's 16-year old nephew and he was very friendly to me. His English is quite good actually and I enjoyed talking to him about music, sports, the weather, and a variety of other topics. He plays drums at his church during ceremonies, and I was invited to watch him perform this Sunday at his church. I'm not religious by any means, and normally feel uncomfortable in church settings, but I think it would be cool to go and check it out and see him 'do his thing' with the drums. I'll let you know how all that pans out!