A Day in the Life of…
The Consulate General.
Dan, Rebecca, and I decided to hang out at the Consulate General’s office in Amsterdam for a couple hours last Wednesday. I’ve been to the office before, but I’ve never spent any length of time there. Wow! What an interesting place. In the couple hours we were there, I witnessed a lot:
-It was easy to tell who was American and who was Dutch: all the Americans’ heads were turned toward the TV screen to learn about the election results.
-There are two rooms in the office, one mainly for American citizen services, best I can tell, and another for visa applications to get into America, among other things, I’m sure. The visa application room is a perfect representation of America: Asians, Africans, Europeans, Indians, Latins, and Middle Easterners all waiting to be interviewed.
-A Dutch lady applying to work in America, but who didn’t have the correct photos. It was a “big problem”, she exclaimed. She was sent away to the nearest photographer, being urged to hurry. I wonder how much that photographer makes in a day doing U.S.-sized passport and visa photos for people like her.
-A very nervous American businessman who lost his passport the night before. It looked like he was going to be able to have one reissued so he could make his meeting later that day AND leave the country.
-An American father with 2 or 3 kids who needed to renew their passports. Obviously married to a Dutch woman, he spoke only Dutch with the kids.
-A Dutch mother who needed to renew a passport for her adopted son. I’m curious how he is an American citizen. He liked the puzzles in the waiting room.
-A young man who lost everything. I think he only had his passport and the clothes on his back. The Consulate’s office helped him get in touch with people back home in California. I’m sure it happens everyday, but it made me thankful I’ve never had such an experience.
-Oh, and it was fun being ushered to the front of the (outdoor) security line because we had a “minor” with us. And because I could barely stand – there are better things to do two weeks postpartum than run around Amsterdam.
Dan, Rebecca, and I decided to hang out at the Consulate General’s office in Amsterdam for a couple hours last Wednesday. I’ve been to the office before, but I’ve never spent any length of time there. Wow! What an interesting place. In the couple hours we were there, I witnessed a lot:
-It was easy to tell who was American and who was Dutch: all the Americans’ heads were turned toward the TV screen to learn about the election results.
-There are two rooms in the office, one mainly for American citizen services, best I can tell, and another for visa applications to get into America, among other things, I’m sure. The visa application room is a perfect representation of America: Asians, Africans, Europeans, Indians, Latins, and Middle Easterners all waiting to be interviewed.
-A Dutch lady applying to work in America, but who didn’t have the correct photos. It was a “big problem”, she exclaimed. She was sent away to the nearest photographer, being urged to hurry. I wonder how much that photographer makes in a day doing U.S.-sized passport and visa photos for people like her.
-A very nervous American businessman who lost his passport the night before. It looked like he was going to be able to have one reissued so he could make his meeting later that day AND leave the country.
-An American father with 2 or 3 kids who needed to renew their passports. Obviously married to a Dutch woman, he spoke only Dutch with the kids.
-A Dutch mother who needed to renew a passport for her adopted son. I’m curious how he is an American citizen. He liked the puzzles in the waiting room.
-A young man who lost everything. I think he only had his passport and the clothes on his back. The Consulate’s office helped him get in touch with people back home in California. I’m sure it happens everyday, but it made me thankful I’ve never had such an experience.
-Oh, and it was fun being ushered to the front of the (outdoor) security line because we had a “minor” with us. And because I could barely stand – there are better things to do two weeks postpartum than run around Amsterdam.
posted by Beth at 11:56 AM
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