visa struggles
My visa application for my trip to China next month is in motion at last!
..but in the process I have fostered a deep hatred for the Chinese embassy in Tokyo, where they apparently do not believe in answering phones, or putting the right phone numbers on their website.
And for the travel agencies here, for being frustratingly uninformed, generally irrational, and, well, greedy.
The Chinese embassy's website tells me exactly what kind of visas there are and how much I need to pay for each. Tacking on well over $100 in extra charges (in some cases over $250!!!!) for mailing my papers, walking them to the embassy, and mailing them back to me is akin to robbery.
On top of that -- while the embassy usually charges more for visas that span a longer period (one time versus multiple times), there is a flat rate for Americans (which is already more than three times what they charge people of other nationalities), so the best deal is to get the longest visa -- multiple entries valid for a year.
The difference in how you apply for each visa is literally a matter of checking a different box. But...
Travel agent: We can only apply for the single-entry visa.
Me: Why is that?
Travel agent: ........I don't know.
AUGH PARDON ME WHILE I GO DESTROY YOU ALL.
I went back and forth between two agencies who alternately underestimated their price quotes and failed to give me the information I was asking for (just prices! not hard!). Oh the fucking incompetence.
..but in the process I have fostered a deep hatred for the Chinese embassy in Tokyo, where they apparently do not believe in answering phones, or putting the right phone numbers on their website.
And for the travel agencies here, for being frustratingly uninformed, generally irrational, and, well, greedy.
The Chinese embassy's website tells me exactly what kind of visas there are and how much I need to pay for each. Tacking on well over $100 in extra charges (in some cases over $250!!!!) for mailing my papers, walking them to the embassy, and mailing them back to me is akin to robbery.
On top of that -- while the embassy usually charges more for visas that span a longer period (one time versus multiple times), there is a flat rate for Americans (which is already more than three times what they charge people of other nationalities), so the best deal is to get the longest visa -- multiple entries valid for a year.
The difference in how you apply for each visa is literally a matter of checking a different box. But...
Travel agent: We can only apply for the single-entry visa.
Me: Why is that?
Travel agent: ........I don't know.
AUGH PARDON ME WHILE I GO DESTROY YOU ALL.
I went back and forth between two agencies who alternately underestimated their price quotes and failed to give me the information I was asking for (just prices! not hard!). Oh the fucking incompetence.