Wanderlust: ...and I discovered everyone has the right to process and obtain VISA

Greetings folks,

It's a beautiful afternoon Sunday in this part of the world, and I hope it's so with yours. Thank God!

So, today, I will be participating in the Bdcommunity writing contest for the first time since its inception. And I think it's a good opportunity to write on how I found out that, like those touts who call themselves VISA agents, everyone is at liberty to process his/her own travel document and grab the VISA.

pixabay.com

It all started when I was involved in a fatal auto traffic accident sometimes in 2009, and lost my biological hip in the process. I was taken to several private and public hospitals in bid to fix my fractured hip to no avail. The search for solution later culminated in the National orthopaedic Hospital, Igbobi, Lagos, where I was clearly told that Nigeria health system doesn't have the infrastructure to undertake and treat my condition at that time.

As such, I was referred overseas for the purpose of remedying my situation. I was given two options: one is to travel to London and the other, Chennai. The doctor went further to clarify that it would cost us more if my case is to be treated in London than in Chennai. So after a careful review of my family's finances, I decided to go for the surgery in Chennai, India 🇮🇳. Hence, the scramble to obtain travel documents and a VISA began.

All my life, I haven't travelled before nor has anyone in my family. My only uncle who had travelling experience having lived in France for over 20 years, was already late by then. So we had no advisers as to how to get travel documents and VISA.

pixabay.com

Through my brother, I was linked to one VISA tout who told me all kinds of lies to allow him midwife the process of obtaining Indian Visa at the outrageous cost of $2500. I looked him in the face severally and his face didn't appear responsible enough to convince me to believe him. I was very skeptical about his ability to process and obtain the VISA on my behalf.

Before then, I had read several articles about how VISA agents swindle unsuspecting intending migrants of their hard earned money after lofty promises. It was not only that I had read about this in many newspaper publications, but some of my cousins have also fallen victim to VISA touts. So I was being very careful so that out limited resources won't end in wrong hands.

Thanks to internet

I finally told the supposed VISA agent that he should allow me think over everything. All this was despite the pains that were running all over me like a raging inferno or wildfire; I was poised to get it right. I was determined not to be swindled, and my patient eventually paid off.

[Wikipedia image: CC BY-SA 4.0]

While thinking over it, I got an inspiration to search the internet and see if it was possible for us to process the medical VISA by ourselves. And viola! It was possible! Even the embassy strongly advised against contracting a third party to midwife the process of VISA procurement for anyone. I then read the instructions on how to go about it on the embassy's website, downloaded it and had it printed out in hardcopy format.

However, I could not go about getting the necessary documents because I was bedridden. So I handed the printed guidelines to my elder brother, and he successfully gathered all the required traveling documents. I booked for interview appointment on the Internet, was taken to the embassy on the day of the interview.

Immediately we arrived at the embassy, a VISA officer that saw us took pity on me, walked up to us even while we were still outside the premises, collected my documents and left. After a while, he returned with my passport bearing six months VISA! We were dumbfounded and couldn't thank God enough for helping us to obtain that medical VISA. It was one of the most joyous moments I had ever witnessed.

I later travelled to India, underwent the hip replacement surgery successfully, and, today, I walk with my two feet to the glory of God.

Thanks for reading.

Eurogee Chukwuka