American Consulate Experience

So, I have traveled to the northern and bustling city of Chengdu. My purpose is to renew my passport. Destination: The American Consulate. Now this place "the consulate" is a place of mystery. I had fabricated a wonderland of everything that is American in my mind. I envisioned a vast space that was warm and inviting and filled with vending machines that dispensed things like: Dr. Pepper, Skittles, 5 gum, Cheetos, and Diet Coke. I think I really imagined that it was just like a really great Coffee Shop where American citizens just hang out and be really friendly toward each other while they wait for their appointed time to see an official. My grandmother had sent me 20 US dollars last year and I have been keeping it safe so that I could spend it at the consulate. I also was led to believe it was going to be a mecca of young American military men in uniform. How little I knew. Sadly, all those dreams were not to be. Here are the four reasons the Chengdu American Consulate is like going to the doctor:

1. If you arrive earlier than your appointment, they can fit you in earlier.

2. You have to sit on a cold surface.

3. You get scrutinized by a man or woman who has higher credentials than you.

4. Your name gets called into the waiting room and you still jump like you have done something wrong.

Here are the four ways the Chengdu American Consulate is not like going to the doctor:

1. Your appointment lasts only 10 min.

2. All the doors are opened by armed men. (in this instance Chinese Military)

3. You have to wear a guest pass.

4. All your belongings had to be left at the front gate.

Four things you may not know about consulates or renewing a passport:

1. I didn't see one American Marine at the Chengdu American Consulate.

2. To petition for a non-citizen relative, such as a husband or adopted child, finger prints and lots of paperwork is needed.

3. Consulates are not all knowing or the final authority. Some things need to be validated by the State of Florida and then the Chinese Embassy in Washington D.C.

4. A renewed passport will have a new number, but they give you back your old one so you can use the current visa and if you have booked flights using the number from the old one.

Four things I am thankful for about the American Consulate"

1. The office clerk (is this the appropriate term for a consulate worker?) was very patient and kind. He answered all my stupid questions and allowed me to leave to retrieve the passport pictures I left in my bag that the gate guards made me leave at the front gate.

2. The fee to renew a passport was less than I anticipated and I was able to pay in RMB.

3. There was one chair left in the waiting area for me to sit one while waiting.

4. People smiled at me.

Now, I wait. I was told that it would take 7-10 days for my passport to be processed and that the Consulate would email me. So for the next 10 days I will bide my time in Chengdu. When I return to pick up my passport I will see if any additional observations crop up.