bureaucracy is fucking amazing.
i was much exasperated after thursday's failed attempt at getting the visa, but friday was a new day. getting to this embassy, by the way, takes a 45 minute car ride plus a 30 minute metro ride plus a 15 minute walk. my brother offered to come along after i cajoled him with promises of all the glorious shopping that georgetown has to offer, and so i had an audience for the now foreshadowed ridiculousness.
it went like this:
11:15am-11:30am -
get to indonesian embassy and wait wait wait.
11:30am -
shiny smiles at the lady behind the window, hear that visa is not ready, and that necessary forms have not been submitted.
11:30-11:45am -
fill out forms and bring to window.
11:45am -
hear that two glossy passport photos must accompany forms.
11:45-11:55am -
dash to cvs, take photos, print photos, run back to embassy.
11:55am -
hear that visa will not be available for 3 business days. ha!
i'm somehow ok with all of this, with missing my flight and drifting for about a week. but let me tell you, i saw red for a good portion of the early afternoon. the fury of the moment dissolved when i realized that there was nothing that i could have possibly done to fashion a different ending. sometimes life just throws you into a sketch comedy routine where everyone has gotten a script but you. i am letting it float away.
so the important information, i suppose, is this:
new itinerary - leave dc on saturday, june 2. if you want to call me before then, i will be happy to whine and to yap to you about the visa circus adventure. or else we could talk about something fun. like bangs. or you :)
in the meantime, i will be stowing away on my brother's vacation to the beach, visiting friends, and spending more money. it will be the best accidental vacation ever. i might even get to see pauline, it turns out. being stranded in dc is making me into a very happy little traveler.
Saturday, May 26, 2007
Thursday, May 24, 2007
it is late afternoon in the one quiet corner of DC that i could find today.. i love dupont circle. it's busy and bright, and you couldn't throw a quarter without it landing on a little hole in the wall with a decent beer menu.
the indonesian embassy is only open until 1pm and, because of a very unfortunate morning, i arrived at precisely 1:15pm. which i was ok with, because there is still tomorrow. it could be worse, it could already be tomorrow and that plane could be one person less when it takes off on sunday. let's hope...
everyone is splintering. leah to peru, katie to baja, and kim is defending her thesis on friday. good luck, kim!
i'm feeling a bit frantic. i've got plane tickets and a passport and shots and antibiotics and even a few little bottles of tequila to stash in my bag. i am not an alcoholic. don't think it. but there's still such a lot to buy and to do and to think about before sunday morning. there is the small matter of paying the credit card bill and the larger matter of choosing books out of the giant stack that i poured into the car yesterday afternoon.
the most fabulous thing about traveling like this is that, upon boarding the plane, warm and luxurious relief flows over you because you know that you CANNOT DO ANYTHING ELSE TO GET READY. i want that feeling now.
the indonesian embassy is only open until 1pm and, because of a very unfortunate morning, i arrived at precisely 1:15pm. which i was ok with, because there is still tomorrow. it could be worse, it could already be tomorrow and that plane could be one person less when it takes off on sunday. let's hope...
everyone is splintering. leah to peru, katie to baja, and kim is defending her thesis on friday. good luck, kim!
i'm feeling a bit frantic. i've got plane tickets and a passport and shots and antibiotics and even a few little bottles of tequila to stash in my bag. i am not an alcoholic. don't think it. but there's still such a lot to buy and to do and to think about before sunday morning. there is the small matter of paying the credit card bill and the larger matter of choosing books out of the giant stack that i poured into the car yesterday afternoon.
the most fabulous thing about traveling like this is that, upon boarding the plane, warm and luxurious relief flows over you because you know that you CANNOT DO ANYTHING ELSE TO GET READY. i want that feeling now.
Monday, May 21, 2007
interlude
there is a bbq on tuesday at my house. 7pm. you should come.
after what's been a hectic (but fun!) weekend, i'm down to just a few days to get ready. i'll be leaving boston on weds, spending just a few days in baltimore before flying out of dulles on sunday. the plan is this:
5.27 - 5.28
dulles - tokyo - singapore
5.29
singapore - medan - banda aceh
execution will take a little luck and probably some help from a few unsuspecting strangers, but i think i'm mostly excited for the long relaxing plane rides. or else i'm completely lying and would much prefer to be unconscious through the whole ordeal. the only hang-up right now is that my visa is somewhere in limbo and the man at the indonesian embassy in dc did not seem at all interested in giving me an eta.
in the meantime, here is an article that gives a little background on current events in aceh:
http://www.economist.com/world/asia/displaystory.cfm?story_id=9084802
after what's been a hectic (but fun!) weekend, i'm down to just a few days to get ready. i'll be leaving boston on weds, spending just a few days in baltimore before flying out of dulles on sunday. the plan is this:
5.27 - 5.28
dulles - tokyo - singapore
5.29
singapore - medan - banda aceh
execution will take a little luck and probably some help from a few unsuspecting strangers, but i think i'm mostly excited for the long relaxing plane rides. or else i'm completely lying and would much prefer to be unconscious through the whole ordeal. the only hang-up right now is that my visa is somewhere in limbo and the man at the indonesian embassy in dc did not seem at all interested in giving me an eta.
in the meantime, here is an article that gives a little background on current events in aceh:
http://www.economist.com/world/asia/displaystory.cfm?story_id=9084802
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