My battle: Getting to South Africa

I'm Colombian, I'm proud of it but damn it can be seriously frustrating at times, mainly when it comes to traveling. Having that burgundy red passport is like having the coodies or something, any consulate, embassy or airport will simply look down on you or catalogue you as "guilty" for drug dealing, drug consumig, drug producing, prostitution, you name it. So, you can imagine what an ordeal it is for anyone with a little burgundy passport to get a visa to go, well..basically anywhere! Even though there are countries that don't require colombians to have a visa (mainly South America which in the past years has "opened up") you basically have to get a transit visa in order to get to them.

I have traveled to the following countries, all of whom have required for me to apply for a visa: U.S.A, The Netherlands, Spain, Germany, Austria, Italy (all these Schengen), Czech Republic, Switzerland, Mexico, Costa Rica and Guatemala. Argentina and Peru have been two countries I have been to that don't require visa for colombians.

Now, as you all may know im planning to go to South Africa. Off course I need a visa to go to South Africa...so, I sent my papers and they arrived at the consulate the 30th of July. I waited 10 days before calling because those were the days it took for the process of the visa to go through. The 10th day I call...and I get told that my papers aren't ready and I need a stamp on some documents, yata yata yata. Long story short, basically a whole other month goes by with failed calls, getting hung up on by the oh-so-nice secretary from the consulate and a lot of un-responded emails. (btw, the consulate of South Africa dealing with Colombians is in Venezuela).  I hear from other colombians who have traveled to South Africa and learn I am not the only one, some got their passports 2 hours before heading to the airport, another 2 days before leaving...basically last minute.

So, my flight is scheduled to leave tomorrow September 12th at 3 p.m to Washington Dulles via Miami. My flight to South Africa is scheduled to leave September 13th from Washington Dulles at 5:30 p.m. 
My visa was approved yesterday, Monday September 10, at 3:30 pm. I ran over to DHL and begged the guy so my passport would be picked up today and I could have it here in Panama by tomorrow Wednesday before noon. Papers are sent, things are on their way. Today I hear from the woman at the consulate telling me that without an air guide the guy from DHL won't take my passport because its happened before. I call DHL dude in Panama and he tells me the guide will be made when the thing is picked up, he doesn't create the guide but Venezuela DHL created the guide. Ok, so I wait...(mind you, Hugo Chaves decided for some crazy ass reason that Venezuela time was 30min ahead than it actually should be so, 3 here is 3:30 there, and at 4 they closed the consulate). By 3:30 the DHL guy hadn't gone to pick up the passport, I gave up. Suddenly I get a call that the guy is there but there is no guide so he won't take it. Long story short, I'm screwed. Big time screwed. The consulate is closed, the guy left because there was no guide, there is absolutely NO chance of my passport getting to Panama before   my flight. It can get here Thursday morning.

Before I even knew I had my visa approved (I emailed and called Thursday and Friday and wasn't really told anything, that I would or wouldn't get it or how long it could take, they just dont answer anything) I called South Africa Airlines to find out how much it would cost to move my flight one day (for friday 14th instead of thursday 13) and well the answer was $685 dollars - to change my flight 24h.  
So, now that I KNOW I don't have my passport I have to move EVERYTHING around because there is no chance in hell im paying $700 dollars for 24h (not including what my flight Panama-Washington change is going to cost). 

The plan so far: 
1 - Originally I was scheduled to go to the Thanda Photography Conservation project from Sept. 16-October 14, travel for 2 weeks and then begin on Nov. 1 my Sodwana Bay conservation volunteering. 
2 - The Sodwana project begins the 1st of every month. 
3 - Solution: Change my Sodwana Bay volunteer to the month of October instead of November. And change Thanda to begin Nov. 11 - Dec. 9.
4 - Change my South African tickets could cost me $400 dollars (changing both ways), which would mean I can go the 18th or the 20th and come back December 17th. 

Basically, I move everything about a week. It's still a LOT of money because that was basically the money I had to spend IN South Africa but I can't really think of any other solution. Only inconvenience is the time change, I can't hear back from any of the coordinators confirming my changes until tomorrow between 2-3 a.m but I know that I have to change my tickets ASAP so I guess I'll just have to change them and hope for the best.




Life has taught me everything happens for a reason even though we might not always or ever understand those reasons. I know there had to be a reason for my brother dying, even though I might not want to recognize it. All this ordeal had to happen for a reason, maybe to relax and not stress about money so much (even though I am freaking the eff out over all this money that changing tickets will cost), perhaps its because I was meant to be in Panama this week and enjoy time with my mom who is on vacations and my grandparents who happen to be here this week. I honestly do not know WHY all this happened, why I had to deal with such awful people at the consulate and why seriously ever little thing that could have gone wrong - did! (including the fact that I was dialing 30min straight to contact the consulate, and when someone important actually picked up (a south african not the venezuelan bitchy secretary) my cellphone ran out of minutes and cut the call). Life simply works strangely, I think we're never really supposed to understand it (it would become pretty boring don't you think?). So now, im off to making a bunch of calls and hoping for the best, I guess I have one more week in Panama to enjoy.


This post may sound all cheery and happy but trust me, my eyes still get watery with frustration when I have to explain what happened to someone and im still really upset about it...but I know, inside, everything I just wrote..perhaps writing it down makes it more "real" to me and I can really assimilate it.  

Stress, whining, and friends

Beware, this is a pretty complain-y post...too bad, its just one of those weeks.

This week has not been going great. My visa application has been awfully stressful and having a venezuelan lady with some serious attitude problems be the one who answers the phone to give me bad news (I have to dial many times before they actually pick up) does not help. Turns out the need the papers I sent from where I'll be volunteering to have a stamp...yes, a stamp. A regular stamp that has the companies name. Seriously, stamps haven't been used in ages! That's what one of the companies told me, so...my days begin  my opening my eyes and having e-mail conversations with people across the world trying to figure out what they can do to help me get my visa...but when some of those e-mails say "things don't look good...talked to the project manager and there was a similar case about some stamps and the person had to end up cancelling". Here's the thing, I CAN'T (yes, the right word would be WON'T) cancel! Not only have more than 70% of my saving been spent already, this trip is in my life plan...I mean, what else will I do these upcomming months? I need to do this...for myself!

So, this visa stress began on Monday because not only is all this incredibly annoying and frustrating but I am also traveling to Bogotá next Wednesday...meaning, I need my passport back! Well, that would be $60 for getting my passport sent back + another $60 for resending it to re-apply + $60 for getting it back...and having about 20 nervous breakdowns in between because I'll need it to travel back from Bogota on the 2nd anyway.

So, option 2: Get an emergency passport! It automatically cancels my other passport but it doesnt matter because I need the visa on my passport, even though it isn't valid anymore as a traveling document (like when your passport expires but you have your U.S visa on it...the visa still works!). It will cost me $150 and a morning full of running around and sweating under panamanian humidity. That day will be tommorow, I need to drop off my mom at work, fight against traffic and pray for a parking spot, make my "denuncia" (spanglish, get used to it...don't remember the english word right now) then go to the Colombian consulate which is ALWAYS full (seriously, it wouldn't be a colombian consulate if it wasn't always full) and do all the paperwork necessary, go to a bank nearby and pay $150 dollars (although in Colombia i costs 150.000 COP (half) ). With this done I think I'll be able to de-stress just a little bit.

Besides all that visa stuff, IM SICK! Yup, woke up Tuesday morning with a really sore throat and it has simply gotten worst over the week, my ears hurting now. I went to the doctor today, he basically said it was nothing and sent me some meds (homeopatic everything)...still, $100. 

Can't complain too much though, yesterday was the foundation celebration of Panama La Vieja so schools were off meaning I was able to go tuesday afternoon to El Valle to spend the day with one of my best friends, Maria T. and her awesome bf, JacobO! It was a great trip, short but great...wine, blackout, broken glass, lamp-lit veggie lasagna dinner, passing out on the couch in less than a min (that was just me, I was exhausted...they danced around and bothered me). The next day I woke up first, stressed over my visa as I held an hour-long email conversation with someone in England trying to help me out...then yummy breakfast and a hike to La India Dormida. Now...that hike was a serious, serious kick to my ego. I feel I have never been in such a poor physical state, its disgusting (didn't help that I had to be weighed in at the doctor today..."omfg" was my reaction to my weight). And yes, I know, I have to get off my ass and actually exercise and then close my mouth and stop eating bread daily (my uncle is an awesome baker and has an awesome bakery...its HARD!), and cut out all my daily desserts. But mainly, I need to exercise again...I realized I haven't exercised in approximately 7 months (with a 3-4 week interval of Insanity which I loved!). I need to get back on track...somehow. I just get home SO tired from work, its insane...I love the kids but for reals, they are like little energy vampires, its amazing how tired I am from working 5 hours a day!

Here are some pics from Wednesday:

Cutes
Pre-sweatyness 

I love living in Panama

We did the same dorky face without knowing

Sadly we missed this waterfall on the way down but we were able to find another great spot to jump in

I love them

Not so great pic, pero tengo que salir en alguna foto!

  

We are good at doing stupid poses

On our way down!

Wednesday (besides getting my ass kicked by the mountain) was fun. The drive back home sucked though, I was so tired and really needed a co-pilot to keep me awake at some points.

I love Maria and Jake, but being with them in this trip made me miss Mr. P more...

This week I've really missed him, being all stressed out over visa and other little decisions I have to make and not having him around is hard...I normally don't say it, to anyone (except today when I told my awesome cousin). I guess I don't like sounding vulnerable to people, I still feel I have to portray this image of being a strong, independent woman for some reason and it might come off as rude or insensitive but I do miss him, a lot. 

Hopefully everything will work out...my dad keeps telling me that whatever happens is meant to be, if I don't get my visa then it's because some white shark in Cape Town had me planned for dinner. I try to tell him that it does matter, and all the money I put in to it, but he tells me to take it easy and just wait and see what happens...which to me is pretty ironic considering how he stresses over money and well, I do to because of him (a good and bad thing at times). 

Here are a couple more pictures of my summer so far, these were two weeks ago at a Happy Hour raising money for the Panamanian Flag Football Team who is competing in Sweden right now. One of my best friends, Victor (we paddled together when I was 16 and he's like a brother to me), is in the team and it was a great chance to meet up with friends and talk non-stop.

I love how the SlowSync Flash makes it seem like we were having some crazy wild time when it was a very chilled out night.