Medical Check-Up

Friday morning was 'feel like an idiot' day at the local hospital. I needed to get another medical check-up to renew my visa and Avalon recommended I do it as soon as possible and as early in the day as possible, so I skipped dinner last night in order to get up early and get it done.

I got to the hospital around 10 am, but couldn't find where I was supposed to go. A friendly doctor helped me find the right place, but I'd completely forgotten that I needed to bring my passport and some passport photos. It seemed to be okay, but I need to bring them when I come back next Friday to pick up the three copies of the report I need. It also cost me 135,240 won out of my own pocket; Avalon apparently isn't reimbursing me for it, which I'm not thrilled about.

I was then directed to go to the changing room and change my clothes, where the next round of embarrassment began. Not realizing that I only needed to take off my jackets and shirt and change into a hospital shirt/half-gown, I walked out without any pants on. A nurse directed me to put them back on, but then I forgot to put on any slippers, so I had to go back and get those, too. After that things went pretty smoothly, though I did have to sheepishly admit that I didn't speak enough Korean to understand their questions in every room. The staff spoke enough English to tell me which room to go to next, but not much more. They checked my blood pressure, height, weight and waist size, took urine and blood samples, took a chest X-ray, and checked my teeth. Thankfully, the whole thing only took about an hour, and that was including all my fumbling about.