Visa Shenanigans

We got home late last night from San Francisco, where we had to go in person to submit our visa applications. This required a five-hour drive from Quincy, except it stretched into six hours since I had to pull into a field just north of Woodland to do a conference call for work. While I talked the kids walked the dog (oh yes, we had to bring Liberty too because our dogsitter was away) and stared philosophically out across the fields, a stiff wind blowing into their faces. We stayed at the cutest little dog-friendly Marina Motel overnight, where I had a very difficult time wedging my four-wheel drive large truck into the petite little garages. Crissy Field, a drive through the Presidio, and dinner at Pompei's Grotto completed the day. The kids immediately decided that when we move back from Asia we should live in San Francisco, and I had a hard time disagreeing.

The next morning we got mobilized and to the Japanese consulate by 9:00 a.m., where we took passport photos and headed upstairs to submit our visa applications. This is where three important tips come in:

1. When you embark on a move like this, get lots and lots of passport photo prints of each family member. You need them for everything -- passports, work permits, visa applications, school applications. I ran out of prints and my printer is now packed up and on its way to Japan so I couldn't print more.
2. Apply for the visa in person, and bring every member of the family with you. Alternatively, bring only the adults but sign all the applications and passports of the kids yourself. The consulate was very picky about making sure that every little detail matched between the passport, the work permit, and the visa application for each member of the family. And of course, I misunderstood some of the questions so there was some back and forth. Luckily, I had called the consulate beforehand and got the strong impression from the woman on the phone that I had better come in person, although she refused to say I had to come in person.
   
3. Bring all the backup documentation. I have two accordion folders with everything related to the move, and I brought them both just in case there was some question or piece of information that conflicted.
   

Oh, and a fourth tip: Don't drive a big truck and expect to find parking in the financial district! I was feeling like a total country hick with my wide truck and high roof racks.


We managed to finish up at the consulate general's office just in time for me to get on another conference call while the children took the dog for a walk along the Embarcadero, where they stared philosophically across the bay with a stiff wind blowing into their faces. They will probably have stories to tell about their mother forcing them to stand on the corner while she irresponsibly chose work over her children. But the day ended nicely with a brunch, shopping, and another long visit to the beach at Crissy Field.