On the coast

Well, look who it is. In Dubrovnik.

Why Dubrovnik, you ask. Is it the otters? No, not this time. Actually…

Well, last year, when I rescheduled my trip to France from early October to later, there was a delta in the fare. Naturellement, Air France was not about to refund that delta; I could use it within a year as credit against another AF trip.

So, I booked flights to and from Paris, then cast about for where else I might go.

At first, I thought I’d go to Switzerland to explore the village where a friend’s father was born. She’s never been there and she talks about it right much. However—the Swiss, man.

Back in 2001 I spent a weekend in Geneva. All I had to do was show my passport at immigration and get stamped out again. But evidently things have changed. Now, you need a visa. To get a visa, you have to fill out an application with a bunch of nosy-ass questions (including the address(es) if where you would be staying for each night you’re in country), print out the completed application and make an appointment at the Swiss consulate that serves your domicile for a personal appearance. In my case, that was the Swiss embassy in D.C., but if I lived in North Carolina it would also be the embassy, and if I happened to be in Atlanta for some reason, I wouldn’t have been able to make an appointment at the consulate there because rules is rules.

But, wait; there’s more.

Because when you show up for your personal appearance (first available date two weeks out, and the slot for appointments was precisely two hours per day), you had to bring passport photos, three months of bank statements and proof of insurance coverage of at least $40K. Then, if they find you acceptable, they charge you $80, fingerprint you and graciously condescend to issue a visa for a stay up to 90 days.

Well, as you can imagine, that got right up my nose.

They’re doing that to keep the riffraff out, I know that. But rather than jump through those hoops, I’d opt for the riffraff side every time.

So, Switzerland was right out and I cast about for where else I might travel. And, since I’d not yet been to Croatia, here I am.

The jury’s out on Dubrovnik. Mostly what I’ve seen so far is tourons. 

And there are beaucoup steps. 

On the other hand, people have also been very helpful. We’ll see.