We are planning to travel to Bolivia in August of this year. But along the way we have run into some snags.
Yoli needs a new Bolivian passport. The last time we tried to renew her passport, we were told that the consulate was out of new passports. So instead, Yoli got a stamp, extending her passport temporarily.
We also want to register our girls, so that they can enter the country as Bolivians, rather than Americans. Bolivia now requires American tourists to obtain visas prior to travelling, and these puppies cost $100 each. I have to get one, but if we can avoid the girls needing them, it would be optimal.
But here's the rub: we can't use the nearest Bolivian consulate.
The closest and most convenient would be the one in Chicago. We could drive there, take care of our business, and drive home to St. Louis. The only problem is that they refuse to help us because we are from Missouri.,
Apparently Missouri is not part of Chicago's jurisdiction, and they won't bend the rules. Instead we were referred to the Oklahoma consulate. No matter that Oklahoma is 200 miles father from us than Chicago would be.
In true bureaucratic fashion, though, Oklahoma doesn't perform some of the services we need ... so they referred us to Houston.
That's right, we have to travel to Houston to take care of this stuff. 550 miles farther from us than Chicago.
Unless something changes, at this point it appears to us that we will have to travel to Houston in order to be able to travel to Bolivia. A trip in order to go on a trip.
(And best of all -- apparently the consulates are still out of passports!)
