Emergency Passport

I have never been more determined to get something in my life as I did yesterday morning. After being told the earliest I could apply for a new passport was Tuesday morning set on receiving one that day and getting on the first flight to Peru. I set my alarm was 7 am, and as soon as my alarm went off, I was ready to go.

The US Embassy was only a 5-minute walk from my B&B and opened at 8 am. So by 7:30, I was in the US Citizens line ready and hell-bent on getting my emergency passport. Something to know about the US Embassy is that absolutely no technology is allowed, so if you have a cell phone, watch, or electronic car keys, those all have to be left in a locker or car. You also have to have an appointment (duh) and have all the paperwork you need; but if it's an emergency like it was for me, you wait in line and talk to the guard about seeing someone inside. From there they will instruct you to use to telephone on the wall and they'll patch you through.

For my phone call, I was transferred three times before finally being able to talk to someone. After I explained my situation, the lady informed me that they were full of walk-ins and that I will have to come back in a couple of days when they are less busy. Now in these circumstances, I was not someone to be told no. I asked what I needed to do in order to be seen, to which they specified that I could not be seen, but that I also did not have the paperwork needed for an emergency passport. I got the details on what was needed, and within 15 minutes I was back with all the paperwork.

I called them back on the phone and begged the women to be seen. She continued to state that they were all booked through and that there was nothing she could do. I replied back and said that I understood that, but I was in desperate need of an emergency passport and I would sit outside the embassy all day if I had to in order to get one. After pushing and pushing she finally gave in.

After many forms of paperwork, meticulous conversations with embassy employees, and almost 5 hours of waiting, I had an emergency passport in hand and grabbed the first taxi I could find to the airport. I was in extreme luck, as the man (Mauricio) who had first denied me entry to leave the country, recognized me at the check-in counter. He gave me a free flight to Peru and waived my checked bag fee.

So, that is the end to "my puppy chewed my passport and I got stuck in Costa Rica" story. And in case you need any tips from an expert in this matter; keep your ringer on when you have an international flight, get to the US Embassy at least an hour before they open, make sure you refuse the leave the property if they tell you no, and never and I mean never, let your dog chew your passport.

PS - learn Spanish. I almost missed my sixth flight because they changed the gate number. The only reason I didn't was that they called my name over the com. I've never run faster in my life. Happy Wednesday!