Thursday I woke up at 5 am in order to catch the bus to Quito to go to the Migration office. At around 9 they opened, and I waited and waited and waited. Finally, they got to me. I told them about how the consulate in San Francisco had wrongly told me that I didnt need a visa, and they listened, and after awhile they said ´´no problem, heres all the papers to apply for a volunteer visa.´´ I was hugely relieved, gave my friend Santiago the thumbs up and went to sit down. ´´But let´s look over the requirements, first, in case I have any questions,´´ I said. He agreed. I had a lot of questions. I kinda skipped over the part that said ´´copy of previous visa.´´
So I got back in line, waited another hour, and finally got to the window. After all my questions, I said ´´oh, and I dont have a previous visa.´´ You dont have a previous 12-VII visa?? Oh, we only do renewals from within the country. You cant get a visa here. Oh, and you are only here for four months? The minimum for a volunteer visa is six consecutive months... And no one thought to mention any of that to me BEFORE! Good thing I asked a ton of questions. SO INCOMPETENT! Well then, we cant help you. They didnt care that I had a letter from the school. Nothing. I begged and pleaded, and finally, they gave me information on a 12-X visa, which doesnt look like it will apply for me either, because the maximum is 6 months in one year, and I will have been here already for that amount of time. So they told me the only thing to do is come back 4 days... 4 DAYS! ... before my passport stamp expires with a letter begging the director of Migration Affairs himself to let me stay until my flight leaves. And if they refuse, I will have three days to get out of the country for 7 weeks! So August 4th I will know whether I am leaving August 5th for Bolivia or if I am teaching in August and September. Arrrrgh! I am writing appeals to the San Francisco consulate, too, hoping they might feel bad because this is their fault, but Ive never received an email reply from them in the past so I am not too hopeful.
On the Quito street I screamed ´´NO QUIERO GENERALIZAR, PERO TODOS LOS OFICIALES EN TU PAIS SON COMPLETAMENTE INCOMPETENTES (I dont want to generalize, but all of the officials of your country are completely incompetent),´´ to Santiago. But he agreed wholeheartedly. Yes, they are like this, he said. He was stressed and tired of the highland cold. I was shaking with anger and very preoccupied. So, obviously, we caught the next 9 hour bus... to the beach!
It was ridiculous, travelling for a day there (Thursday) and a day back (Sunday) to spend two days on the beach en Canoa. But we needed it. Oh man, it was so freakin amazing. The weather was perfect, hot. We did nothing but lie on the beach sipping coconut shakes and plunging into the warm ocean. The coast (la costa) is a totally different climate than the sierra where we live. It is tropical, hot, and humid. It was beautiful to wear a sarong and a bikini top and lie around in hammocks complaining about Ecuadorian migration, fickle tourists, and the Salasacan cold. And the best part, being with a great friend, where the talking just comes easily and everything´s great. Lindo. Beautiful.
But all good things, and warm things, come to an end. I am back in Salasaca, where, of course, all my food is gone (someone ate it) and fifteen people are wandering in and out of my house uninvited, which I finally escaped by hiding in the Internet cafe. Now, its back home to the multitudes of uninvited guests who just finished drinking all my Coca Cola without me or my permission!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment