United States Embassy

Getting up was pretty easy for a 6:30 wake-up call.  Lizet isn’t much of a morning person, and at the breakfast table, she resembles someone in a coma.  But, once she has something in her tummy, there’s no stopping her!  We got a taxi in front of our condo around 7:30, arriving at the United States Embassy early, but we allotted for traffic.  We met Raúl in front of the building only minutes apart.  The line wasn’t long, but we entered it to be greeted by someone who’s been expecting us.  He knew we were the Nelsons. That was impressive!  Of course, being the only adoption case for the day and at the top of the list doesn’t hurt.  We entered security after having our passports reviewed and they kept our camera and phone for the time being.  We then entered another line in a different building within the confines of the Embassy, going through another security check.  We headed to the correct window, presented our information and unsealed documents to the appropriate person, and paid.  She entered our information and organized the already organized packets into separate blue file folders.  We waited.  Finally, we met with the Consulate.  I think I finally found a job I would love – if I were bilingual, that is.  We went into a little room with a security door facing this young woman shielded by bulletproof glass.  In fact, all the windows were bulletproof.  She was very nice, asking the children some questions and then us, and then them again.  We were with her for about fifteen minutes and she approved us.  She said their visas would be ready Monday. That’s when my blood pressure rose a bit.  Raúl was right in suggesting we print out our plane  reservations, so Dave calmly said that our flight is on Sunday and our condo lease is up on Monday.  She responded with a quick, “okay, hang on just a second…” She returned and said they would try their best to have them ready between 2:00 and 3:00.  She handed Dave the second half of these red tickets and said it was only necessary for one of us to return.  Raúl said they would have it done - Americans always get the job done.  To us, it was just a matter of when.  So, around 10:45 we were finished, said goodbye to Raúl and headed to Larcomar.  

Larcomar is a spiffy outdoor mall on the beach.  We let the kids play in the arcade for about forty minutes; Lizet tried to turn in her tokens for toys, immediately.  I persuaded her to come join Angela and me at one of the machines.  Dave and Xavier played with machine guns in a mock safari and drove racecars.  The girls found a basketball game to be fun, as well as racing cars.  That was worth the $21.00.  Xavier collected a lot of tickets, but we were all getting hungry so we told him we would return to “buy” something from their “store” after lunch.  We had lunch at TGI Fridays.  There was also a Chili’s and a Tony Roma’s.  I had nachos, Lizet had a chicken plate with green beans (which she didn’t care for since they were steamed) and French fries, Angela had a regular hamburger with no cheese.  Xavier had a barbecue beef sandwich, and Dave had something off the lunch menu including tacu tacu, fried plantains, French fries, and a thinly cut piece of meat, grilled.  Tacu tacu is different, but very good.  It is a mixture of beans and rice that have been rolled in a crisp breadcrumb, like Panko, and fried.  The kids all got a fruity beverage; Angela chose a banana-pineapple smoothie, and Lizet and Xavier chose a strawberry slush.  After lunch, I took the kids back to the arcade to redeem Xavier’s ticket, which ended up being something SO not worth the time, but he was happy, so it turns out it was.  You all probably know what I mean… carnival trinkets aren’t that impressive.  Dave met us in front of the arcade after attempting to find a calling card, having no luck.  We walked up the steps to the main entrance and were greeted by someone offering us a taxi service.  We accepted.  It’s often that when leaving the airport, grocery store, department store, etc., taxi services are readily available.  It’s a good business strategy on their part.  We headed back to our condo and the kids and I relaxed watching television while Dave headed back to the Embassy.  I was thrilled when Dave returned within the hour with their passports and visas enclosed and the unsealed envelopes for each child to hand to the appropriate official in Florida when we reach Customs.  We’re done!  We had a good dinner of leftovers and ended with more birthday cake.  Next, it will be time for Al Fondo hay Sitio and then to bed.  What a great day!