Things I Learned While Obtaining A Tourist Visa

While it's not necessarily a traumatizing experience, it's not terribly fun either. Here. Please learn from my mistakes.

1. Staple the required passport-like photos-- two identical shots, two inches by two inches each-- to your application *exactly* where it says "staple two photos here". Do not deviate from this.

2. When you are stapling the photos to the first page of the application, take care not to staple the second page to them as well. That requires a different staple over in the top left-hand corner. You will be chastised if this is done incorrectly.

3. Try to download the application and fill it out before you go in. It's likely that this helpful bit of information will be nowhere to be found on the website for the consulate/embassy of the country you're trying to get a visa from. I had actually done this already, hoping to save time, but also a bit worried that they might not want that and would make me re-fill out the information in front of them. Turns out I did exactly the right thing and ended up saving myself a LOT of time (compared to the poor sods who hadn't filled out an application when they arrived).

4. When someone hands you a number to wait in line, and you don't notice any numbering equipment displays, keep your number anyway. Keep it handy and do not lose it. You will have to give it back to get your place in line or risk starting over with a new number. (Fortunately I did not do this but I witnessed it.)

5. Perhaps most important (at least if your'e heading to India): KEEP YOUR RECEIPT. It's likely that this crucial information will not be posted anywhere or even told directly to you by the cashier as she/he hands you said receipt. But if you want your tourist visa, snugly stuck to a page inside your passport, you'd better have it. Seriously.

All that aside, it was a much less painful experience than I thought it would be.