Getting tested in Chuncheon

In Korea, all English teachers have to go through a series of tests before getting their Alien Registration Card, ARC card. Last Monday I finally went to Chuncheon to take care of all this. It was an interesting and traumatic experience.

I went to Chuncheon with my director, Erica, and Andrew. The weirdest part about this was that everything was done out in the open right next to the lobby. I first got weighed, and then the nurse measured my height. She also measured my boobs, not my hips or waist, just my boobs which I thought was really weird. I also got tested for my eyesight and hearing.

Then came the blood test. I have never had blood drawn from my arm before, just simple finger pricks which are bad enough. For those that don't know me, I am terrified of needles and blood. TERRIFIED. Especially needles. Just thinking about them sends me into panic mode. As soon as the doctor took out the tube and the needle and started checking my arms for an appropriate vein to poke, frenzy ensued; the shaking started, the tears slowly started to form. Did I mention this was all in the open next the hospital entrance?

I won't go into the gory details of the blood draining, it was not pretty. Tears and snot were dripping down my face. When the doc finally decided he took enough of my blood he chuckled at me and told me to hold the cotton on my arm. Whew. It was over.

NOT. Crazy vampire doctor wanted more of my blood.

He was searching my other arm for a suitable vein and he couldn't. I thought I was safe. NOT. He shoved a needle in the backside of my hand. I just about passed out. It hurt, it was awkward, and I was miserable. And then, it was finally over.

After the blood, came the pee test. I had to carry my cup of urine through the lobby for everyone to see which was gross yet kind of funny.

Last was my chest x-ray. That wasn't bad except for the fact that while waiting in a hall full of Koreans my director thought it was hilarious that I cried during my blood test and was telling everyone in the hallway. She also kept calling me "cry baby".

As miserable as this encounter was, it makes for a great story. As I look back, even though it was awful, it was pretty amusing and I was laughing during my blood test because I was so embarassed. So I hope you all enjoyed my tale of anguish.