E-day! [part i]

Today was the big day! E-day. Embassy-day. After days (well, hours at least) of careful preparation, Claire and I each had a neat folder of copious paperwork to present to the Thai Embassy. We had our passports, bonus passport pictures, visa application, letter of recommendation from the BSC, bonus letter from Thongchai about the BSC,  transcripts, a background check done through our church, teaching certification, teaching recommendation letter from our TESOL tutor, TESOL certification, resume, bank statement and cash payment.

After a smooth trip to D.C. (which, in itself is a miracle!) we eventually found ourselves at the Thai embassy. There may have been some detours along the way, but we hit the 9-1:00pm window. Happy as organized little clams, we waited our turn and presented the receptionist with our compilation of paperwork. She was not nearly as proud of it as we were. She hadn't heard of the BSC and wanted a copy of the BSC's registration from the Ministry of Education... And a different background check. After we got home I went on the website referenced to get more information on the Ministry of Education. This is the front page:

[click picture to enlarge]

Needless to say, my Thai tutoring is going no where near this well, so I just closed my browser and we passed the question onto John Lapos-- our awesome POC in Thailand. (But seriously... please look at this picture. What in the world. Graphic designer friends: please apply to work for Thailand)

While we were hoping to get our work visa today, there was so much good that came out of this trip. For starters, my long-lost wallet (a month and a half and counting...) was found! Claire's car had swallowed it in one of our previous adventures, and there it was waiting for me, wedged between the console and passenger's seat. Yay!

Also, the pile of things we had to compile has inspired me to make some kind of "Going to Thailand" spreadsheet for future sojourners. There is a lot to keep track of and multiple time-lines to be aware of. I think that having some kind of master-list would be helpful for people wanting to do this in the future. It's my new project!

 And lastly, it's my Spring Break this week-- and every break needs to be celebrated with some sort of trip. It was nice to not have to work, and to talk about Thailand with, perhaps, one of the only people who isn't bored by my verbose ramblings on the topic. :) 

For those of you who prayed for us, and for today, thank you! I know that God has a plan that is bigger than ours, and that He is always working out circumstances in our lives to maximize His glory. My prayer is that He would continue to give us patience and joy as we persevere in what He has called us to do.

As the Thai would say, "Mai pen rai" (no worries)-- God is still in control!

Stay tuned for the "E-day [part ii]" post in the next 2-4 weeks.

PS: Today marks our "2 mo." mark before D-Day: Departure Day.