Bratislava, Slovakia -- Visiting the US Embassy for a Document
It is a total pain to deal with our US embassy these days. I stopped by at the end of my lunch hour. This means walking around a fenced off enclosure 10 yards surrounding the entire compound of buildings to the guard tower, showing a passport and answering questions from 4 Slovak security guard to get to the door, then 2 more Slovak security guards, through a metal detector, turn off and check in my mobile, then to the bulletproof glass window, slide passport through and answer more questions, then more questions on a security phone, then through the same two guards through two locked security doors, to another bulletproof window, then to receive a single piece of paper on Value-Added Tax refunds.
If she had told me the title and source of the page on the phone when I asked this morning, I already a copy, I could have saved 30 minutes.
There are US Marines in there somewhere, but I've never seen them (except for Pivos at the 17s Pizza Pub across the street).
The US Embassy uses 3 large buildings on one side of the largest square in the center of town (Hviezdaslovovo namestie). In this bank of 7 buildings, the US has the three largest; the German embassy is in the next largest, the Czech embassy in the next. This roughly approximates the influence and wealth of the various countries. Embassies for France, UK, Austria, Japan and Greece are all within two blocks.
There is a huge and nicely remodeled Hotel Carlton Radisson just outside the security fence. The underground parking garage was considered a threat to the US Embassy. Thus, 6 months of reconstruction have moved the entrance and exit (and part of the tunnel) away from the embassy, disrupting all the auto traffic and mass transit lines through the center of town.
I regularly jog by the Ambassador's house, near the top of the hill, surrounded by the nicest houses in this part of Europe. It equals or exceeds them all. It was only finished about 6 months ago. It reminds me of the White House, white with columns, but has much more intricate furnishings, and a 10-foot wall surrounding it. Sometimes the Ambassador's 3-year-old son played on the balcony in the summer; sometimes he was there. I see Marines there, as well as Slovak security guards.
I met him once, on his first reception by the American Chamber. The only thing he wanted to know, concurrent with the handshake, was "Who are you with?" I answered "I'm not with anyone . . . just an American and wanted to welcome you to Slovakia." The very second he ascertained there was no money behind me, he abruptly turned around and walked off, leaving me standing with his wife. She seemed quite nice. My answer was true; at that time I hadn't started working for the American law firm or the American University yet.
If she had told me the title and source of the page on the phone when I asked this morning, I already a copy, I could have saved 30 minutes.
There are US Marines in there somewhere, but I've never seen them (except for Pivos at the 17s Pizza Pub across the street).
The US Embassy uses 3 large buildings on one side of the largest square in the center of town (Hviezdaslovovo namestie). In this bank of 7 buildings, the US has the three largest; the German embassy is in the next largest, the Czech embassy in the next. This roughly approximates the influence and wealth of the various countries. Embassies for France, UK, Austria, Japan and Greece are all within two blocks.
There is a huge and nicely remodeled Hotel Carlton Radisson just outside the security fence. The underground parking garage was considered a threat to the US Embassy. Thus, 6 months of reconstruction have moved the entrance and exit (and part of the tunnel) away from the embassy, disrupting all the auto traffic and mass transit lines through the center of town.
I regularly jog by the Ambassador's house, near the top of the hill, surrounded by the nicest houses in this part of Europe. It equals or exceeds them all. It was only finished about 6 months ago. It reminds me of the White House, white with columns, but has much more intricate furnishings, and a 10-foot wall surrounding it. Sometimes the Ambassador's 3-year-old son played on the balcony in the summer; sometimes he was there. I see Marines there, as well as Slovak security guards.
I met him once, on his first reception by the American Chamber. The only thing he wanted to know, concurrent with the handshake, was "Who are you with?" I answered "I'm not with anyone . . . just an American and wanted to welcome you to Slovakia." The very second he ascertained there was no money behind me, he abruptly turned around and walked off, leaving me standing with his wife. She seemed quite nice. My answer was true; at that time I hadn't started working for the American law firm or the American University yet.