Somewhere between Heidelberg and Shanghai

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I'm in a strange sort of limbo this Sunday evening. On Friday I was directed to go to China this weekend to help our colleagues who are in a bit of a technical pickle. The trouble is, I need a visa and the normal application process takes two weeks. So I'm sorting out my travel to see when I'll be able to get there.


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There is a procedure for obtaining an express visa, but this entails heading up to the Chinese consulate, which I will do tomorrow. However, the application itself involves a paper chase that isn't yet complete.

Currently -


  • I need evidence of health insurance (which the company should provide on Monday morning - I don't know what time).
  • I need an invitation letter (received) and a letter of urgency (not yet), plus a travel itinerary from my colleagues in China - again, hopefully that'll be waiting for me when I wake up on Monday.
  • I need my "Anmeldungbescheinigung", Registration certificates, which I couldn't find over the weekend, so I'll need to get one of those on Monday morning, too. I hope my local friendly bureaucrats don't put up too many barriers...


... and then there's the Consulate itself. Goodness knows how that will go...

And then I'll be able to book my flights, without knowing precisely when I'll be back, as it looks like I'll have to visit suppliers near Shanghai and customers in Chongqing.

It's with mixed feelings that I get to fly out to China again. In the old days before the family, it was simple. Now I'm leaving my wife to look after the kids on her own for an as yet unknown length of time; it's harder now for sure than it was back then. And the unknowns don't make things much easier right now...


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