Uneventful morning

I have just returned from the Embassy. For some reason they have modified the sequence of activities inside and now one is issued a number when his fingerprints are taken. The number is used to call for an actual interview. There are no warnings so one might sit idly for half an hour before he recognized that he should do something. We wasted only about five minutes :)

I can affirm that an interview is unnecessary if you are applying for the same visa type within a year from the issue date of the previous visa. While I was learning the details of such an abridged procedure a curious episode happened. Having taken the fingerprints a nice lady gave me a paper allowing me to pay for a two-year visa. At that moment I was unsure about the need for an interview (and half expected it to be required anyway) so I was surprised they wanted me to pay for the visa immediately (usually this happen after one has passed his interview successfully). In addition my wife was not given a similar paper so we performed a few chaotic movements between windows. I became rather confused but when I returned to the officer responsible for fingerprints I got surprised even more. She told me that was it and I could go home.

I was going to listen to her but something was still missing. What could it be? Bingo! They took my money and let me go. BUT THEY DID NOT TAKE MY PASSPORT. No, it was not an elaborate visa scam. When I (with a pretty dumb face expression I believe) returned to the officer she agreed with my observation and took the passports. Now, I understand many people are quite relaxed after a two-week Christmas vacation but I do hope they at least won't forget to return my passport stamped with a proper visa tomorrow. I would definitely like to complete my relocation this week.