The visa run is a term synonomous with working abroad. Depending on what country you are visiting, there is always a time limit to the visa. Sometimes you can pay a mild fee to have it extended-sometime an exurbient amount depending on your nationality and how long you want to extend it for. Whatever the case, you can always have the option of doing a 'visa run'. A short holiday to a nearby country so that you can re-enter on a new visa without the hassle of the paperwork.
I am now approaching month 4 of waiting for the appropriate visa to be stamped in my passport. It's not a personal matter-or even a national one-it's a matter of what mood the official is in that day and if he feels like getting fifty more signatures and rubber stamp marks before making it official.
After receiving word that I have to wait yet another 3 weeks and my visa was set to expire after 30 days upon entry, it became necessary to either file for an extension or do a visa run. Given the time it takes for any bureacratic matter it was decided to send me to the nearest country. The fact that the Maldives are the nearest country and that my colleague and friend from when I worked in Afghanistan made it the most unexpected and pleasant visa run to date.
I don't know if it was my lack of sleep, extensive writing or poor planning, but I made every traveler mistake aside from leaving my passport at home. I packed in such a rush that I left virtually everything that would be useful...I only realized this after my 12 hour overnight train from Batticaloa to Colombo. In Colombo I tried to use my credit card, only to learn I had brought an expired one with me...my others were locked in my closet at home. Same was true for my underwear, bathing suit, laptop power chord and sunscreen. My poor planning actually shocked me-usually I'm good at packing on the fly.
It wasn't such a big issue until reaching the airport-which by the way took a ridiculous amount of time. I had called for a taxi because I knew it would take an hour to get to the airport. Instead, a tuk tuk driver shows up and not that this has anything to do with it, but he was albino. I've never actually spoken to an albino before. His tuk tuk broke down four times on the way to the airport and once he actually broke down in the middle of traffic. He had to get out, pull the tuk tuk through the traffic lanes and then do repairs on the side of the road. While waiting on the third break down a herd of cattle walked on either side of us, Michael Jackson's Thriller was playing and the albino driver was pulling a chord trying to start the tuk tuk like a lawnmower...and oddly this all seemed normal to me.
An hour later arrived at the airport. Had given myself a two hour cushion not realizing I was now actually approaching the cut off time for check in. Albino driver did not have change, I was angry and made him feel bad. I just can't help it when I'm tired.
Go to the Emirates check in counter. Give my passport and itinerary. The clerk looks at it, types in my name, then gives the screen a funny look. 'Do you have the credit card you used to purchase this flight?' Any other time I would say yes, but I had only the expired card with me. After I told him I didn't, his manager came over and explained I needed to show the card. Then I became a bit angry. I asked why-they said it was stated in the instructions when I bought the ticket-which by the way I have yet to find. Then they stared at me blinking. I told them that I was up to a Silver status with the airline so why was I having this issue. They said it happens everywhere...I assured them this was not the case.
So the solution was I had to carry all my things and follow a man like a criminal to the third floor office in order to log on to the computer and show my credit card account online for verification purposes. The Internet was beyond slow and he just stood over me watching. After nearly 15 minutes the screen finally loaded and I was able to get my boarding pass. On the way out I asked him what the deal was with the flights and he told me there was a ton of fraud in the area. Usually men from India buy tickets with fraudulent credit cards and then try to bribe their way onto the flights. I stared blankly at him and told him I wasn't Indian and I was a frequent flier, so I really didn't appreciate the treatment. He told me that the same thing would happen in the Maldives. For the record, it did not.
And on to the Maldives I went. It's a tiny set of islands-the smallest country in Asia. Sea leves are rising and threaten the future of the country. The coasts are already shrinking and looking at the main island of Male looks like a series of buildings sitting on top of water-they quite literally are. It's predicted the country will eventually be underwater...yet they still continue to build on the island.
Following the 2004 tsunami the country has experienced a radical wave of conservative Islam and nearly all the women are now wearing hijaab. On the landing card I had to complete was a list of forbidden items...numbers 3-7 include the prohibition of anything contradicting Islam, idols for worship, pork and/pork products and dogs...all directly related to Islam, though it's not an Islamic state. My theory is that the Saudis have a hand in doing some behind the scenes funding.
I spent three days on the islands and they are gorgeous. Did not get to do diving as I had planned-mainly due to my lack of credit- but did do some snorkelling and saw more marine life than I have ever seen in my life...including a series of black tip reef sharks. At one point a shard was swimming towards me and a freaked out and crashed my leg into some coral...I still have a funky rash a result. Apparently the sharks don't go after humans, but they sure do make you believe they will.
Nearly all the workers in the Maldives are Sri Lankan...I began distinguishing the Maldivian men from the Sri Lankans based on their long wavy beach hair or afros, which there were many. Maldivian men also take pride in using copious amunts of hair gel and wear designer sunglasses, so very Lebanese of them.
When speaking with the Sri Lankans I would tell them that I am working in Batticaloa and everyone had the same reaction. Their eyes got wide and they would repeat as if I were joking...'Batticaloa? Are you playing with Tigers?' Referring to the Tamil Tigers no longer in the area. One man got very emotional and thanked me for working in the area. He condemned the Sri Lankan government and the discrimination against the Tamils that has gone on too long. He really looked shaken. It's sad but refreshing to learn that a country has a divide between what their government does and what the citizens believe. Sadly, their voices are usually never heard.
I am now approaching month 4 of waiting for the appropriate visa to be stamped in my passport. It's not a personal matter-or even a national one-it's a matter of what mood the official is in that day and if he feels like getting fifty more signatures and rubber stamp marks before making it official.
After receiving word that I have to wait yet another 3 weeks and my visa was set to expire after 30 days upon entry, it became necessary to either file for an extension or do a visa run. Given the time it takes for any bureacratic matter it was decided to send me to the nearest country. The fact that the Maldives are the nearest country and that my colleague and friend from when I worked in Afghanistan made it the most unexpected and pleasant visa run to date.
I don't know if it was my lack of sleep, extensive writing or poor planning, but I made every traveler mistake aside from leaving my passport at home. I packed in such a rush that I left virtually everything that would be useful...I only realized this after my 12 hour overnight train from Batticaloa to Colombo. In Colombo I tried to use my credit card, only to learn I had brought an expired one with me...my others were locked in my closet at home. Same was true for my underwear, bathing suit, laptop power chord and sunscreen. My poor planning actually shocked me-usually I'm good at packing on the fly.
It wasn't such a big issue until reaching the airport-which by the way took a ridiculous amount of time. I had called for a taxi because I knew it would take an hour to get to the airport. Instead, a tuk tuk driver shows up and not that this has anything to do with it, but he was albino. I've never actually spoken to an albino before. His tuk tuk broke down four times on the way to the airport and once he actually broke down in the middle of traffic. He had to get out, pull the tuk tuk through the traffic lanes and then do repairs on the side of the road. While waiting on the third break down a herd of cattle walked on either side of us, Michael Jackson's Thriller was playing and the albino driver was pulling a chord trying to start the tuk tuk like a lawnmower...and oddly this all seemed normal to me.
An hour later arrived at the airport. Had given myself a two hour cushion not realizing I was now actually approaching the cut off time for check in. Albino driver did not have change, I was angry and made him feel bad. I just can't help it when I'm tired.
Go to the Emirates check in counter. Give my passport and itinerary. The clerk looks at it, types in my name, then gives the screen a funny look. 'Do you have the credit card you used to purchase this flight?' Any other time I would say yes, but I had only the expired card with me. After I told him I didn't, his manager came over and explained I needed to show the card. Then I became a bit angry. I asked why-they said it was stated in the instructions when I bought the ticket-which by the way I have yet to find. Then they stared at me blinking. I told them that I was up to a Silver status with the airline so why was I having this issue. They said it happens everywhere...I assured them this was not the case.
So the solution was I had to carry all my things and follow a man like a criminal to the third floor office in order to log on to the computer and show my credit card account online for verification purposes. The Internet was beyond slow and he just stood over me watching. After nearly 15 minutes the screen finally loaded and I was able to get my boarding pass. On the way out I asked him what the deal was with the flights and he told me there was a ton of fraud in the area. Usually men from India buy tickets with fraudulent credit cards and then try to bribe their way onto the flights. I stared blankly at him and told him I wasn't Indian and I was a frequent flier, so I really didn't appreciate the treatment. He told me that the same thing would happen in the Maldives. For the record, it did not.
And on to the Maldives I went. It's a tiny set of islands-the smallest country in Asia. Sea leves are rising and threaten the future of the country. The coasts are already shrinking and looking at the main island of Male looks like a series of buildings sitting on top of water-they quite literally are. It's predicted the country will eventually be underwater...yet they still continue to build on the island.
Following the 2004 tsunami the country has experienced a radical wave of conservative Islam and nearly all the women are now wearing hijaab. On the landing card I had to complete was a list of forbidden items...numbers 3-7 include the prohibition of anything contradicting Islam, idols for worship, pork and/pork products and dogs...all directly related to Islam, though it's not an Islamic state. My theory is that the Saudis have a hand in doing some behind the scenes funding.
I spent three days on the islands and they are gorgeous. Did not get to do diving as I had planned-mainly due to my lack of credit- but did do some snorkelling and saw more marine life than I have ever seen in my life...including a series of black tip reef sharks. At one point a shard was swimming towards me and a freaked out and crashed my leg into some coral...I still have a funky rash a result. Apparently the sharks don't go after humans, but they sure do make you believe they will.
Nearly all the workers in the Maldives are Sri Lankan...I began distinguishing the Maldivian men from the Sri Lankans based on their long wavy beach hair or afros, which there were many. Maldivian men also take pride in using copious amunts of hair gel and wear designer sunglasses, so very Lebanese of them.
When speaking with the Sri Lankans I would tell them that I am working in Batticaloa and everyone had the same reaction. Their eyes got wide and they would repeat as if I were joking...'Batticaloa? Are you playing with Tigers?' Referring to the Tamil Tigers no longer in the area. One man got very emotional and thanked me for working in the area. He condemned the Sri Lankan government and the discrimination against the Tamils that has gone on too long. He really looked shaken. It's sad but refreshing to learn that a country has a divide between what their government does and what the citizens believe. Sadly, their voices are usually never heard.
