Hello again!
Let me tell you some more about the procedures I had to follow to obtain my visa. First of all I've decided that I want all my visa until China. After China I'll be in South East Asia, where (most of the time) it's quite easy to get a visa at the border or get it quickly. Russia, China, Uzbekistan and Tadjikistan however are visa that cannot be obtained at the border and need to be obtained earlier. For Kazachstan (15 days) and Kyrgyzstan (60days) I do not need a visa. Because the train Paris to Moscow passes Belarus I would also need a transitvisum for Belarus. After some searching I discovered that it would be a lot easier to obtain my visa for Tadjikistan (and the GBAO permit necessary to cycle the Pamir Highway) during my travels, in Bishkek. There I should be able to get my visa the same day, or the next. One visa less to worry about! I first applied for the Uzbek visa. The procedure and documents where pretty easy, so this was a good starting point. When I came to the embassy I only had to drop off my documents and 2 minutes later I was out of the door. One week later I could pick it up. When I arrived however, it turned out that the guy responsible for the visa wasn't around because of a delegation arriving in Zaventem. He would be back in one to one and a half hour, so I waited. When he arrived, he recognised me immediately and gave me my passport. The payment (80euros) I could do at home, through internetbanking (cash would've been 100euros...). After this visa I wanted to apply for the Russian visa. This requires an appointment, but unfortunately there is a waiting list of 3 weeks - 1 month! This meant that I couldn't get my Russian visa before June, as I planned. So I studied the month of June very closely in my agenda and decided to apply for the Chinese visa first (in June). To get the Chinese visa I had to book a flight to China and back out again. Furthermore I need to have hotels booked for the entire period I'm being there. I made a fake itinerary in the hope of getting a 3 month visa (telling them you're cycling is a certain way to get a no...). Unfortunately that wasn't possible, but they did provide me with a multiple entry for 30 days. This means I get to enter China twice and stay for 30 days each time. The other positive thing is that this visa is valid for 6 months instead of 3. This means I don't have to hurry to get into China. To abide by the 30 days I've decided to cut my plans in China in two. I'll cycle as planned to Chengdu, where I'll take a plane or train (depending on the time, possibilities and prices) to Hong Kong. After a stay in Hong Kong (no idea how long, but probably at least a week, maybe two or more) I'll take a train to somewhere in China and cycle to Laos. After that hurdle I thought I could handle everything, but along came Russia... . On the day of my appointment they told me that I wasn't allowed to ask a transit visa. I had researched and taken with me all the documents necessary to get a transit visa. I would arrive by train in Moscow on the 1st (in the morning) and leave for Kazachstan the next day in the evening. The lady at the embassy told me that 36hours in Moscow is too long for a transitvisa and that I would need to apply for a tourist visa. This meant that I would have to book a hostel that would give me the necessary documents and then come back to apply again. The lady told me I didn't need to make a new appointment (thank God! I wouldn't have been able to do that AND leave at the planned time) and could come in at any time. I immediately booked a hostel and asked for the paper. The next day I asked again for the paper. Since I didn't receive any respons I decided to contact STANtours. This is an organisation that helped me with a lot of questions. They provided me with the necessary documents, but it still took me almost a week before I could apply again. This time my application was approved and I can pick it up next week. 2 days later I'll apply for my Belarus visum. I can only do this two days later, because of the opening hours of the embassy of Belarus. For Belarus I need a transitvisa, because my train will pass Belarus. I will not get off the train there or visit anything. To get this visa I'll need prove that I'm allowed to enter the country of destination (Russian visa) and the trainticket. I'll also have to pay the fee for this visa in advance and bring proof of the payment. I'll probably have to ask express service, but it will be doable (just). Fingers crossed and let's hope that I won't have any issues anymore! :) Greetings, Kelly
1 Comment
13/2/2017 07:52:40
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