The ROK Customs Rocks-CP/PC Sucks

Canada Post Sucks/Postes Canada Sucer

I've been going through a rough patch what with sinuses, viruses, papers, exams, lost original university degree certificates. I have 4 (read: four days) to find them, get them, present them at the immigration, or else... or else, anyongheekyeseyo Hanguk-nara. I mentioned yesterday the silly letters I had sent to Korean Customs office and Canada Post. While Canada Post are probably still rolling on the floor with laughter, a certain curteous Mr. Kwon of the Korean Customs is doing his best to find my docs. All of us who like to bitch about things in Korea emphasizing how things back home are much better organized, and governement agencies much more helpful should be blushing now.

I came home from a gruelling day of grading, exams, meetings, bad lunch... Was just power-napping around 9:00 pm when the phone rang. A hesitant voice asked for Ms. Turalidza (as my last name is commonly mispronounced). He introduced himself as Mr. Kwon of the Korean Customs and apologized for his bad English (that was quite good, actually). Informed me that he had already conducted a search for my sweetener-original docs package. The result of the search: Korean customs is not holding anything of mine! He claims that the glitch occured either at the Canadian or Korean Post; he had also contacted the Korean Post and is awaiting an answer; he'll let me know as soon as anything new surfaces. He also agreed to send me an email repeating exactly what he had said to me over the phone (something I can show to the Immgration office, if need be). Lo and behold, 1/2 hour later, there's the letter from him.
Hard to believe that his office would go into so much trouble for a little package of a little me, and all this courteousness prompted by a simple bur profoundly desperate email.

I have nothing as good to say about Canada Post. They have a fancy web-site with billions of links and numbers to call except that any number given for calls from outside of Canada, when called [all day long] 'is temporarily busy; please try your call later.' Bastards! They charged $50.00 dollars guaranteeing a 6 day delivery BUT when things go wrong they are impossible to reach.

I don't know who has my docs, Canadians, Koreans... Perhaps, somebody else has an appreciation for Splenda... or fancy documents on fancy cardboard. At least, the official Korea is trying to help which is far less than my country is doing or intending to do. Should I contact his excellency Marius Grinius (his real name!), the Canadian ambassador? It might be laughable to you, dear reader, but my whole cushy uni job existence is in jeopardy here. What am I to fricking do about this? Cancel my trip to Nepal and order a fresh batch of originals that would cost me an arm and a leg and probably get lost all over again?
My plan B is to go to the Immigration on Wednesday with my original dry-seal anti-fraud protected but unsealed transcripts, play dumb and hope for an unexperienced ill-trained immigration officer. If that doesn't fly then I'd pull out a pre-prepared folder filled with the sorry records of my Customs/ Post Pandemonium: emails, phone numbers, tracking numbers, contact names, I'll look as helpless and as innocent as possible, I'll shed crystal tears. Perhaps an ajoshi would take pity on me. What a nightmare/Quel Cauchemar!