How to Get a Spanish Visa the Hard Way – Part Six

1. Monday — Bring kids to school two hours late because we had arrived home from New York in the wee hours the night before.  Call doctor to try and get an earlier appointment.  Nope.  Bring papers to the translator.  Far north.  Pick up kids.

2. Tuesday — Ack!  Forgot to bring my Letter of Intent to the translator!  (This letter may be the strangest request from the consulate; I have to explain why we’d like a long term visa.  What is the purpose of this?  Do they expect villains will confess their nefarious plans in this way?)

No worries, they say.  I can scan and email it to them.  Great.  Now, how does this scanner work again? …. No…. that’s not it… no… not that… nope… IM Rob.  He says the new update scrambled the scan directions and it’s too hard to explain over IM.  Sigh… another day to wait for IT help.

3. Wednesday — Call doctor to try and get an earlier appointment.  Again.  Nope.

Finally unpack.  Finally clean house.  Parent-teacher conference. Homework. Dinner.  Etc. Etc.

4.  Thursday — Have a mild panic attack that our W2s from last year will not be enough proof of future income.  Ask Rob to request a letter from his boss.  *cringe* Hope this isn’t so annoying that the company will decide they’d rather not deal with a remote employee.

Success!  Letter received! Scanner issue overcome!  All papers emailed to translator! 

5. Friday — Wow.  This is great.  I can relax!  All I need to do now is go to my doctor’s appointment on Monday, pick up the translations, make photocopies of everything, and head down to the Spanish Consulate in Houston.  Whew!

At this point, I’d like to direct your attention again to the title of this series of blog posts.  Spoiler alert: It’s not going to be that easy.

6. Monday — Get a 7 a.m. call from my doctor’s office.  HE HAS THE FLU.  Guuhhhhh.  Try to reschedule.  Nothing until mid-April!  Panic.  Schedule an appointment with another doctor, realizing this person I’ve never met before will never sign papers vouching for 3 other people she has never met before.  Panic.  Call all the travel clinics in Austin.  They don’t sign these papers either.  They just give shots.  Sigh.

7. Tuesday — Write a pleading letter (longhand!) to my doctor, explaining the situation.  Enclose it in an envelope along with all the certificate of health paperwork for the four of us, and leave it for him at his office.  Cross fingers.

8. Friday — Pick up translations.  They’re beautiful and professional and very official looking.

Get a call from my doctor.  The signed documents are waiting for me!  Yes, Yes, Yes!  Houston, here we come.