Roadtrip.

le 26 octobre    Visitors to Rwanda are not required to obtain a visa before arriving here. For the first 90 days, they’re able to be classified as “tourist.” If you’re staying for a period longer than 90 days, then you are required to apply for one of the few classes of visas. As I’ve already been in Rwanda for about 30 days, I mentioned to Sr. Gisele that I might want to start thinking about getting my paperwork in order and figure out how exactly to take care of this.

I will need to be filing for my visa with the Rwandan Immigration Office, however as she suggested and I’m fully supportive of, I’ve arranged to meet with the US Embassy in Kigali to sort out what I have, what else I may need and how this system should work. As the government here is not as credible as the US government, there can often be shades of gray between how things should work and how things do work, and how much something should cost and how much it will cost. I’ve been learning a lot about that being a “muzungu” (white person).  Hopefully through going to the US representatives first and getting a solid grasp on the process, I will not run into any problems when it comes time to apply for my visa.

The US Embassy is open for citizens by appointment from 9-5 Tuesdays and 9-12 Fridays. I’ve arranged to have a meeting at 11am on Friday, so that I can take a bus in from Gisenyi in the morning. This means I get to take my first trip to the Capital City after my original arrival into Rwanda – I’m absolutely thrilled. I will actually have time to read my book as well as the whole countryside of Rwanda to keep me entertained for the 3.5 hour bus ride each way.