Today I nervously sent my new passport to Ottawa for a visa. I'm tracking it online. The visa cost $75, the money order $5.50, 2 xpresspost envelopes another $21. One supposedly can get an entry visa at Kilimanjaro Airport easily enough but after my complicated money-wiring experience on Friday, I think I'd rather have it now. I also know I'll be dead tired when I get there and one less line-up will be great.
Note: Canadian banks charge very high fees to wire US dollars overseas. First you pay a currency conversion fee and then the wire transfer fee. I was rather perturbed by the clerk taking about 1/2 hour to do it, staring blankly at the screen more than a few times. I asked "what happens if it goes to the wrong place?" "Oh it's a real mess", he answers, "All kinds of fees and complications." The teller finally fetched his supervisor for help. Now I had 2 serious faces staring at the screen. Eee. I should have stayed with paypal. HS had warned me about paypal's "take" but actually it would have been about the same and far less nerve-wracking for me.
When I got home, I checked my account right away - no WARNING YOUR MONEY HAS GONE TO HELL AND YOU WILL NEVER SEE IT AGAIN... messages - good. Then I emailed HS and asked him to let me know when he got it. Three days later, yes, everything was fine.
Update: Passport and visa arrived safely home within one week. The visa is a full page fancy-loooking affair printed inside my passport - a great souvenir.
