Visa Paperwork Complete!

The e-mail I've been waiting for since this adventure began, "Visa Paperwork Complete!" Finally. There are a total of 15 documents needed for the Visa to Spain (btw, it is a temporary visa, you apply for the student visa once you get there). The documents needed can be found at the website (www.consulate-spain-chicago.com) for the Spanish Consulate. If you live in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, N Dakota, Ohio, S Dakota, and Wisconsin the consulate is in Chicago. Our travel agent (that does all the Rotary exchange travel plans) also gave us a list of what we need and will be submitting all the documentation to the Spanish Consulate on our behalf. Once the visa is ready we will have to go by appt to the consulate in person to pick up the passport with visa.

The most difficult part of the visa application was the FBI background and Apostille. It took me forever to figure out what an Apostille is, so here you go. An Apostille verifies the authenticity of a notary. The appostille has to come from the same state that the document and notary did. So when we sent off for the FBI background in Washington DC, the Dept of Justice notarized the document (you have to request this when you send in your fingerprints) and then it has to go to the State Dept in DC to be authenticated (by the apostille). So the FBI sends you the notarized background check and then you have to send it back to DC to the State Dept to be authenticated. The State Dept takes 5 weeks (and they were backed up this year, so it may have taken longer) but since we were running short on time and didn't have 5 weeks to wait for it since it is needed to apply for the visa (which can take 6 weeks on its own) I asked how I can expedite it. If you go to the State Dept in D.C. in person you can get it the same day. (Authentications office - Columbia Plaza store front, 518 23rd Street NW, Washington D.C. - office hours are Mon through Fri, 7:30-11) I had friends going to D.C. for vacation and they were gracious to go there for me and take the background check to get the apostille. I sent a Fed Ex envelope and prepaid billing slip for overnight delivery and had in within days. So if you are tight on time and can take a trip or know of someone going to D.C. or in D.C. then it's worth asking. Anyone can submit the background check for the apostille, but be warned that the waiting time may be long (my friend waited about 2 hours).

We also had Josie's last fundraiser last weekend. This was our 3rd and last fundraiser and each one was a yard sale. We asked friends, co-workers and neighbors and even posted an ad in the classifieds for people to donate saleable items. Wow, and did people respond. We made $1200 on the first sale, $800 on the second (it rained - yuck), and (drumroll please) $997 on the last. WOW!!! $3000 total for all three fundraisers. That should be enough for her ticket!!! Josie is still working at Hy-Vee grocery store and at the Iowa Speedway on race weekends as a ticket taker. So she has been working very hard to earn the money needed for this trip and I am so proud of her!

Tomorrow (Sat, July 16) is the final Rotary picnic for all the outbound students and we are excited to have one last opportunity to talk to the rebounders (those sho have already been on an exchange). Josie and I are both making a list of questions to ask.

One of the other Iowa outbound students that is going to Spain also found out that he is leaving Sept 4. We have not heard when Josie will be leaving but since they try to schedule all the students leaving for the same country at the same time we can't help but wonder if that will be Josie's departure date also.

I think that's all for now. The time is going so fast and I hate to see my baby go, but I am so excited for her.

Insurance - check, Fingerprinting - check, Contact FBI - check?

We received an e-mail a few days ago from the inbound coordinator in Spain with spcific instructions about getting a visa and insurance. We've been eagerly awaiting the guarantee form but found out in the e-mail that they won't send it until we have purchased the health insurance. The insurance is with CIGNA Life Insurance of Europe S.A.-N.V. The cost is 500 Euro for the year. We were able to pay online with a credit card. The most difficult thing was navigating the website in Spanish. Good thing Josie knows her Spanish!

We need that guarantee form to apply for the student visa. The visa she will get will be for 90 days, but they said that once she gets to Spain she'll have 30 days to apply for a long-term visa that will cover the whole school year. We also found out a new requirement for attaining the visa. She needs a "absence of criminal record" report. This is attained from the F.B.I. You can find more info at http://www.fbi.gov/. First though, Josie will have to go to our local police department and have her fingerprints taken ($10). Those get mailed, along with a form, postage paid return envelope and $18, to the FBI. Once the FBI send the report to us, we then have to take it to our Secretary of State office and have them legalize (apostille) it.

Josie leaves in about 4 months (they are approximating departure for the end of August). So much to do . . . . But we are still feeling very good about things. We are anxious to go to Chicago to apply for the visa. Once we get that we will be pretty set (I hope I don't jinx anything by saying that).

We are so excited to hear that Josie's exchange sister has some friends that go to a Christian church and she said she will introduce Josie to her friends that go there. She sent Jo a link to the church's website and we are feeling good about it. God is good and I feel so at peace in know that he is directing all of this.