U.S. Embassy & Consulate in the Republic of Korea — Local services in Seoul

Walking to the U.S. Embassy you will find many coffee houses, buildings full of art, outdoor tables and chairs to relax and people watch. It is a great vibe. Then you turn the corner and start walking by a line of police buses to an old drab building that looks like it’s from the Cold War era. There is a line of people and an old grumpy man behind thick glass shouting at each person as they make their way to the window. The vibe is depressing. As a U.S. citizen who has been to many country embassies it is embarrassing, to see such unfriendliness, unwelcoming, environment with little consideration for people or their comfort. I was not allowed inside because I only made a reservation for my wife and they will not let the spouse in the building. So make two reservations if you want to accompany your spouse, otherwise you’re going to be left standing in the hot sun. My wife said the inside is dark, old and dirty. The good news is the person doing the notary documents was very pleasant. He witnessed two documents which cost $50 each for a total of $100. Walking back by the line a police buses to the kinder world of S. Korea it occurred to me the embassy truly...

Communication skills at front gate can improve. Either that, people need to settle on what the rules are. Stop making it seem like it’s the end of the world just because I have an IPad with me. Offer a solution. Stop rushing and tell me there’s free lockers in the museum down the road or something. I arrived twelve 12:50, and when staff approached me outside and ACTUALLY EXPLAINED, NOT JUST POINTING MID AIR I I had walk around the corner and put my stuff inside the locker. I finally got inside just to sign papers. The rest was done by my spouse, where I could’ve been inside with my kid and not wait outside for 45 mins just because a security guard made it seem I couldn’t enter cause of my spooky iPad in my bag. I had a baby inside, who needed to be looked after and fed while my husband did the interview. Overall,...

Although the service was fine once inside, getting in was the issue. We new they were going to strip us of our phones, but my car keys? Really? What's the mastermind by taking my Honda Odyssey key? Also, both my small children had their IPADS with them. Don't make this mistake, they won't even let you in. I was directed to the nearest subway tunnel to put the IPADS in a locker before I returned. One would think the United States Embassy would be operated by US citizens that spoke English well. The people who thought that (such as me)...