I got my visa, FINALLY! And my flight is booked. It's so crazy I can't even believe it's real because traveling to foreign places is always something I've dreamed of, but it's becoming a reality and it seems almost too good to be true. Of course, it wasn't so easy and it didn't just happened, but rather a series of hoops I had to jump through. The most recent/most difficult/most stressful being the process of acquiring my visa.
The is the series of events that concluded this past Wednesday:
-Stayed up late Tuesday night making sure everything for my visa was perfect (didn't want to make another trip to Chicago)
-Wake at 7:30 and get ready
-Pick up some needed paperwork
-Leave town about 8:30 (drive was suppose to take two hours, place to get my visa was only open 11:00-12:00)
-Gas light comes on while on the expressway in Chicago in a traffic jam only a few miles aways from my destination
-Get a little worried
-I miss my exit, somehow, still not sure how
-Look for a gas station
-Get lost
-Call my sisters, no answer
-Find a gas station
-Finally get a hold of my sister
-She gives me directions, praise the Lord
-I finally find the place, it's 11:55
-I don't have a place to park
-And I don't want to drive to Chicago again (I'll have to come back if I don't make it by noon)
-I park at a taxi stand (cab parking)
-I run inside, excuse me, I sprint inside
-Get a number, meaning I was in line to get a visa
-Run back out to my car, it's been maybe 10 minutes, tops!
-I have a hundred dollar parking ticket
-I want to cry
-Call my sister to help me find where I can park
-Find the parking garage
-Get lost in the parking garage
-Start to cry to my sister
-Find a place to park
-Get yelled at by the parking attendent, twice
-Walk back to get my visa
-Wait an hour
-I have everything I need and the nice lady said I could come back to get my visa at 4
-Kind of excited
-Walk in the rain to get lunch
-Eat lunch
-Was really cold on the walk back
-Get in line about 2:30 so I can be the first to get my visa, so I can go home, very tired at this point
-So tired and I decide to sit on the floor, my feet hurt, and it was nice
-Sit on the floor and enjoyed the music on my ipod
-An attendant came up to me and said, "You're not allowed to sit on the floor, but you can still listen to your ipod" and then laughed
-Yes, he was serious
-I stood up
-I want to cry, again
-I wait three hours, a very unpleasant three hours
-I get my visa
-Walk back to my car, wait, tried to walk back my car
-Get lost, again
-Find my car
-Drive home and cry, again
-Realize I lost my student ID
-Bitched to my roommate about the shitty day I had
What it cost me to get a visa:
Passport - $100
Visa fees - $245
Gas - $40
Toll booths - $10
Parking ticket - $100
Parking fees - $24
The most horrible day in Chicago - Priceless
Yes, it was a painful process, but it's over and I'm so HAPPY for the thought of that!!!! The best is yet to come!
Turning Two . . . and Three
9 years ago
6 comments:
That sucks, but it's better to have your hiccups here than abroad.
That's why I always have a google map that includes parking before I head to unknown destinations. I hate the stress of not knowing where I am or where I'm going.
Glad you got your visa, I'm sure your getting so excited now.
Keel
Did Chand help you out? She's always so good at that.
Trip to Europe: Priceless! You are going to have a blast and all the pain will be worth it. I'm so excited for you. See you Thursday. What time you coming?
Yay for you!
Sorry it was difficult, but that's Chicago for you. I'm wearing my "complaint-free life" band so I can't say what I used to say about Chicago because that would be astonishingly negative, so I'll put a positive spin on it: I'm positive I'll never go to Chicago again and I'm glad for that. :)
that sounds awful - i cant believe you couldn't sit on the floor - weird
you are going to have so much fun in europe - i'm so happy for you:)
I'm sorry kirst but I laughed at the "get a little worried".
kujo
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