Arriving shortly after 9:00am, we entered an older type building that was remodeled on the inside and actually looked like a new government building. Walking a long hallway and descending the stairway, we went into a tomb-like basement level floor with a number of doorways. I thought to myself, "Hmm...so this is where they send all the bad people who do not get the correct visa." Sveta assertively led us to a locked doorway and then as good ducklings following a Momma duck do, Dom and I spun on our heals to see Sveta talking in Russian with some offical looking gentleman. She nodded her head and motioned for my passport. Sveta, with her endearing charm, managed to explain that we needed to have this error corrected in one day instead of the usual 10 days processing that can be required. We, all three - Dom, Sveta, and I - sat on a small bench across from the office waiting for some word about my mistake in purchasing the wrong visa...business instead of business adoption.
And so we waited...and waited...and waited...
We were then told that the cost for my error would be 4000 rubels or about $140 USD. The good news was that I did not have to pay at the bank - the usual process, as the office had a machine that accepted payments. The bad news was that I only had 200 rubels on me. So, we walked to the bank, exchanged some USD for rubels and hurried back to the office where we waited and waited and waited a little longer.
At 12:00 noon, I had to sign a paper that said I was wrong for getting the business visa. The three of us were beckoned to the original doorway that Sveta had tried to enter. The older thin gentleman with glasses, black graying greasy hair, and summer clothes that screamed the 1950s was pleasant and asked me if I liked the weather (all in Russian of course). Responding in Russian with my answer, Svetlana said, " this room is much cooler than the hall..." but I think she dropped the part about me saying it was very musty! :)
This 50's guy proceeded to process me as what you and I would think of as a criminal. First, all my finger and hand prints were taken electronically - a process used when we filed our I600 papers. Next, were the photos - "Sit in the chair, take off your glasses, and look this way." Two photos were taken,...you guessed it, a front and side view. By this time, Dominic and Sveta were commenting on my criminal record. Lastly, I had to give two pages full of prints in black ink, sign on the dotted line, and my personal favorite that happens with every document in Russia...get a stamp on the paper.
So, back to the office where we sat, nearly forgetting my passport, as Dominic eyed it and noted to Sveta to get it. We thought perhaps in the next twenty minutes, the papers would be finalized ... but to no avail. The man working this particular task was slow and Sveta said, "lazy." Apparently he talked and talked to Sveta and his co-workers about nothing to do with work.
Frustrated, Sveta was told to come back after lunch, pick up the papers, and pay and we would be done. On the way out the door for lunch, we ran into the chief of the department - the official looking gentleman Sveta had run into first. He was not happy to hear that the "lazy" worker was still on this task. But...as Kenny knows - and those of you who have been following our blog know - it never seems to go quite as planned.
While we finished our lunch at a buffet in the local mall, purchased a modem for internet access, and tried to stay cool, pool little Julianna was confined to a room by herself, covered in green dots because she had chicken pox. Sveta had called earlier in the day and was told that our little girl looked like a frog with all the green ointment they put on her. (If you look at the Reece's Rainbow site, you'll recognize what I'm describing.) Sveta will be calling tomorrow to speak with the doctor and if not successful, she will be calling the ministry of education regarding this ridiculous situation.
Meanwhile...we returned to the office building at 2:15pm or so. The paper was ready, but now, I must pay the money to the machine located near the entrance of the building. Sveta, the lazy guy, and I went to the machine. Both Sveta and the guy tried for 10 minutes, but the machine would simply not work. Sveta and I grabbed Dominic who was waiting in the tombs and drove to the bank. Sveta was tired of walking!
The bank was the most awful experience you could imagine. The front area had many people waiting and there were even a few empty chairs. The back hall which was 15ft x 8 ft had one of two teller windows open with a teller who was "in training." The room had at least 25 people in it in line and you guessed it...there was no ventilation and no way out of this dead end hall. The worse part was the awful smell of body odor...sorry, it was bad! (My kids know that Kenny has the sensitive nose, not me...but this was nearly unbearable.) Did i mention that there was no air conditioning in any of the buildings?
We waited until 4:00pm, the window was closing, and we got to the front of the line. Now, we would pay and go to get the papers at last. Sveta stood at the window explaining to the teller the paper that we had. The teller coded it on the computer using the number that the "lazy" guy had put on the paper. The teller told Sveta there was an error in the code and that is could not be paid. This meant we would have to come back tomorrow to pay and then pick up the papers...all because this guy was not doing his job right.
We drove back to the office, and Sveta was not happy. The "lazy" guy happened to be out front of the building talking. Sveta walked up to him and told him it was the wrong number. He took the information and we followed him to the machine in the building that takes the money. He punched in a bunch of numbers and Russian letters, and voila, magically it would accept my money! I paid my fine, and the entourage followed the guy through the hall one more time to the basement. This time, he had to make copies of the paper. (Some time before this, i had signed it at least 10 times...and of course it was stamped.)
Our day was nearly over... and yes, it only took one very long and agravating day to pay the penalty for getting the wrong visa. Let this be a lesson to those adopting from Russia...get the right visa - business adoption.
I'm finishing this blog at 12:30am our time or 4:30pm EDT from our apartment attached to the church. That is another blog that will have to wait until tomorrow. Tomorrow brings a call to the doctor and maybe the ministry of education by Sveta. She will also go to the passport office and see if she can get our application for Julianna's passport accepted on a "non" visitor day!