When the Embassy Said Yes

Some time ago, I blogged on the process of applying for a tourist visa to Pakistan. Since then, I thought it prudent to keep my Pakistan trip on the down-low until after I returned safely to American. I mean, I’m sure none of the ten people who actually read this blog are forwarding my information to the Taliban, but I suppose you can’t be too careful.

Well, at this time I want to briefly relive the joyous moment when the embassy said yes.

My visa was approved in an unexpectedly short amount of time, ONE DAY  – to be exact, and then I could finally say the phrase “I’m going to Pakistan” without the awkward preface of, “well my visa hasn’t been approved but…”

Although, my declaration was soon replaced by another awkward preface. 

"Holy shit. I am really going to Pakistan."

Surprisingly (or perhaps, not surprisingly), once everything was  finalized I no longer had ay doubts about the trip. Somehow, having to go through this formal process alleviated my concerns about safety.

I had not been able to find any information about Pakistan through travel bloggers. All of the usual blogs I follow do not cover Pakistan, and after must Google searching, I have come across only a handful of thorough and candid accounts.

One such portrait of Pakistan, by journalist Amy Heardy, made me want to turn around and run the other way. Security guards, food poisoning, anti-American slanders at what is supposed to be a multicultural party. And she was on a business trip for crying out loud. I’m not sure what to think about all that. For someone who teaches her journalism students not to interject their own bias into reporting, her blog is sure riddled with bias. But on the other hand, this is her personal memoir, (how can it not be biased?) and I appreciate her honesty in sharing her experiences. After all, she is one of the only Western women blogging her travels about Pakistan.

Recently women have come under a lot of heat for travelingalone, so I want my journey to inspire readers. I hope one day that my modest presence on candidanimal becomes a resource for someone looking to go where relatively few young, American females have gone.

Applying for my first Tourist Visa

Recently I have discovered something more stressful than buying international plane tickets, more stressful than packing for a three-week trip, more stressful than reserving hotel rooms and squeezing a three-week itinerary into three days….

Applying for a tourist visa.

As a U.S. citizen I now fully realize how lucky I am to be able to visit dozens of countries without applying for a tourist visa in advance,  because the visa application process sucks. 

Now I know how much work my friends from China and India have to deal with all the time. Being at the mercy of a foreign embassy is an anxiety-inducing waiting game.

It is also surprising to me that I have traveled my whole life without ever having to apply for a tourist visa until now. It’s true, I have been able to just show up at every country I have visited. Although I did have two scares: once when I passed through London Heathrow on my way to Prague, a British Airways employee looked at my ticket and said, “Don’t you need a visa to go to the Czech Republic?” And after I just about fainted, he said, “Oh wait, never mind.”

Another time I was talking with an airport employee in Tokyo Narita, who was certain I needed a visa to go to Taiwan. Apparently this was true at one point, but more recently U.S. citizens can travel to Taiwan for 30 days without a visa, so I made it there after all.

No way around it this time. I’ve got to apply for a tourist visa.

And where am I going?

Pakistan.

Why? Well, I’ll get into that another time, but I will be attending the wedding of two good friends. God willing.

So what’s the problem? Why am I stressing out over this? Well, besides this being the first time in my life that I’ve had to apply for a visa, this application process is just slightly less rigorous than applying to grad school.

I submitted no fewer than the following items to the Consulate General of Pakistan:

1. Complete visa application plus one copy
2. Four photographs
3. My original passport
4. A check for $120
5. A copy of my driver’s license
6. An invitation letter from my friend’s father
7. A copy of the wedding invitation
8. A copy of my friend’s father’s Pakistani ID and passport
9. Employment verification letter
10. A letter from my supervisor stating that I have been approved for leave
11. A copy of my resume
12. A recent bank statement

Whew! Glad to be done with that. 

Wish me luck!