Visas and Passports

We have our entry visas! Finally!! I was getting worried.

I sent in our visa applications to the Nigerian Consulate last month with only the slightest trepidation. I mean, sending your passports away for an undetermined amount of time is always a little nerve wracking, but I thought we had plenty of time. More than eight weeks, I think, I had allowed. And after sending them UPS 2nd Day and enclosing a prepaid self-addressed UPS 2nd Day return envelope, and with the Consulate’s web claim of a three day turn around, I was expecting to have them back within a matter of just a few days. That was not the case.

Nervous, I called them after three or four days after I thought we should have received the visas. No answer. I tried again. No answer. I left a message. No reply. A week passes. Getting more nervous. So I contact Bro. McLean (the veteran missionary who has been in Nigeria ten+ years) and he says chill out. Okay. Another week passes. Starting to get a little frantic here. I call the Consulate again and again. Finally I get a hold of someone. He transfers me to someone else. Voicemail again. Ack. I send them an email. I call Bro. McLean again. He assures me that there is really nothing to worry about. There is plenty of time. Just, don’t worry. Everything will be fine. Okay. I feel better. I can handle this. No more worrying. I mean, we still have five weeks to go.

Yesterday I received a confirmation email / bill from UPS. Ah yes! Shipment sent on Thursday. Should be arriving on Monday. Arrive it did. And guess what else? Instead of receiving three passports, me, Stephanie, Timothy… there were five passports in the package. Whew. Glad it wasn’t our passports that were sent to someone else by mistake.