Getting the Russian Visa - we never now will!
Even though we are now seasoned hands at obtaining visas, we knew that getting our Russian Visas to drive Landy from London to Georgia via the Southerly part of Russia, was going to be a particular challenge.
Armed with photos and forms which wanted to know when and where our parents were born and died and whether our children, who were not accompanying us, had passports and their details, we knew we were going to need fortitude.
To manage my expectations, Jim passed me an extract from the Caravanserai website, alluding to the business of obtaining a Russian visa. It said: As long as anyone can remember, applying for a Russian visa has been the ultimate test of character. Over the years, it has resulted in hundreds of thousands of angry stares, slammed doors, profane rants and nervous breakdowns. Patience you must have. We gave up in the end!
Monday 24th February did not start out well. We boarded a train to Farringdon from Maze Hill, in the rush hour crush, to allow ourselves plenty of time at the Russian Visa application centre in Islington. This meant finding Oyster cards to pay our fare, as we were now in ‘pre-oldies’ time on the network. Not long into our journey, trying to put thoughts of the coronovirus out of our minds as people coughed and spluttered around us, the train ground to a halt. We were informed that someone had been ‘ill’ on a train and that all trains were backing up into Blackfriars. We were standing at this point and the delay went on and on. Jim opined that it was more likely that the person was on the lines or dead! The driver urged passengers to use their phones to find out what was happening! I really don’t think I could hack this 5 times a week and am glad that I am now only an occasional rush hour traveller. Give me Landy any day!
Eventually we pulled in to Farringdon and prepared to walk to Gee Street, armed with reviving cups of Prêt Coffee. We were already congratulating each other on being calm and after passing several shops selling passport type photos, we smugly approached the front door, weaving between cones where the pavements had been dug up.
However, there was an ominous sign on the door announcing that it was a Russian Bank holiday and that business would resume tomorrow. 🥴
We knew it was going to be tough, but it had now become even more of a schlep.
On day two we turned up full of enthusiasm and probably slightly smug. We had all the paperwork, the invitation letters, the correct photos, our passports and a letter of request, hotel bookings for our stay etc. We were called up to the counter quite quickly and it was not long before our optimism took a dent. The lady on the counter scrutinised our invitation letters and found that I had been designated male! As this was in Russian, I had no idea what it said!
She suggested contacting the company and requesting a change, printing it out and returning to her to proceed with the application. She also raised eyebrows at our request for a tourist visa when we were driving and said that we should be requesting a driving visa. Jim was uncertain about this as he had read all sorts of reasons why this might be tricky. Still we took this on the chin and scuttled off to a corner to request the change to my form, which arrived very quickly. The printing queue in the Visa Office was long and full of people starting to fill out their visa application forms on line on a bank of three computers at £5 a go.
Jim, resourceful as ever, found a printing shop around the corner and armed with the revised form we returned to our friend. We were all smiles as she scrutinised the paperwork and then there was a further pause. When they had changed my form to designate me to female, they had removed the reference to Landy, and her details. This was an error.
Jim’s form still had the car mentioned but mine now was silent on the car. I suggested that we could just say that Jim was driving and proceed without it. But no, if I was a passenger in the car, I would still need to mention it on my invitation letter which had been supplied by the Ostwest Travel Agency.
The second piece of information we were given was that there was no expedited system for crossings into Petrograd and therefore, the visa application would involve retaining both our passports for 1 month!
So we were sent away again to try and get Landy back onto my invitation letter and to consider whether our passports could be held by the Russians for one month. The latter problem seemed like a deal breaker.
There was nothing for it but to retreat to a good breakfast spot to consider our options. I spent most of the breakfast trying to persuade Ost West to add back the reference to Landy on my invitation letter. As experts they were adamant that it was unnecessary. Equally adamant as the Visa Officer was, of its necessity. To make matters worse, Jim had decided to take his Cousin visiting from the USA, on a trip to Paris in a couple of weeks time. This meant that his passport could not be lodged with the Visa Office for a month. Our optimism was beginning to wane. Jim decided to research obtaining a second UK passport as a last ditch attempt to enter Russia on our trip.
We decided to retreat to the comforts of home to plan our next attack.
After numerous attempts, some 6 hours later and various phone calls and chat room communications with our invitation letter colleagues, I got my revised invitation letter correctly set out. Jim spent the rest of the day filling out passport application forms and paying for an expedited interview to obtain a second passport within 24 hours.
If all went well, it would mean day three would involve him in getting a second passport and day four would be our third trip to the Visa Office. We now had the route well and truly memorised.
Day three started early for Jim as he sped off to the passport office clutching his paperwork for his 8.30am appointment. I stayed at home writing the blog! His appointment was on time and he exited half an hour later to inform me that his application had been rejected and that only Business Travellers could obtain a second passport.
This was a severe blow and would mean either the cancellation of his trip to Paris with his Cousin or giving up on the Russian Visa application. Guess what, we gave up on Russia. Jim is not a man that takes defeat lightly. He has now slunk grimly back into the study to plan a new route to Georgia without Russia.
This blog ends with a knock on the door, as Landy’s new Coolmax mattress for the pop top has arrived! We are worrying whether Landy will be released to us in time for the trip. I have a bad feeling about the emails from the garage reporting on glitches!
Onwards and upwards. Another day another challenge.
20th March 2022
Well Covid intervened! There was no visit to Paris that year and all visits to Georgia were abandoned. Landy’s works were completed BUT with the passage of time and failing joints, Landy was lovingly stored in a French barn with all her improvements in place. We spent the Covid period in isolation in France, plotting a hip operation for Sonia, planning a new route to Georgia and moving and selling our house in London. Some of the proceeds have gone into a hip friendly Mercedes Sprinter. Still a 4x4, but with an automatic gear box. Landy’s new awning, fridge, automatic poptop, electrics and mattress are probably going to havE to be put to the test by others. For now our truncated journey to Georgia starts on April 20th 2022! More of that later.
