What I have managed to do is move the acquisition of visas on my trip tracker from 'red' to 'amber'. This is on the basis that I've done some research and changing the RAG made me feel like I've made some progress. There's no getting away from it though, amber is a generous rating.
Update 23/9 - Ok. So I've made a right cats arsehole of the whole visa thing. I'm now down to 28 working days before I go and totted up, the remaining visas will take 29 working days to arrange according to the stated embassy timescales. I've got a couple of express options which might bail me out but it's going to be somewhere between tight and disastrous.
Given that my passport is still with the embassy of Uzbekistan at this point, my mood is black. Unless someone from their consulate section drops it off to me tonight on their way home from work (it could happen!?), I could be in a spot of bother. The only solution I can think of is a trip to the pub. Alcohol induced blind optimism will sort it all out.
As a UK citizen, This is what I think I need;
Bulgaria - N/A
Turkey - Visa
Georgia - N/A
Azerbaijan - Visa
Turkmenistan - Visa
Uzbekistan Visa
Kyrgyzstan N/A
Kazakhstan N/A
China - Visa
Burma - Visa
Vietnam - Visa
Of the seven visas I require, I've obtained precisely one. With six or so weeks to go. I am however able to share my experience of the one I have got, in an attempt to write something of use.
In detail, (with updates as I get them) this is what is required;
Turkey - eVisa. Very straightforward actually. online service costing $20. The link is https://www.evisa.gov.tr/en/ It takes a few minutes to complete and seems like nothing more than a revenue stream for the Turkish government. No in-depth questioning or review as far as I can tell. I've printed a hard copy but a soft copy is reportedly sufficient. We'll see if it works!
Azerbaijan - Update 15/10 - Finally got my passport with approved visa back today. What a palaver though. Postal application stated 10 working days plus postal time. I posted on the 24th Sept. I can't even be bothered to work it out but they went over by at least a bit - which has killed me time wise. Application made to the Azerbaijan Visa Centre (the embassy subs the work out). Cost including handling fees, £100. I'm only there for a day or two!
Turkmenistan - Visa with LOI (letter of invitation) and escorted throughout the duration of the stay. I've had to engage a tour operator in order to make any progress with this. They've been great but the process is very long and very expensive. Further updates as they come in. Update 17/10 - Brilliant service from the embassy. Dropped off on the 16/10. Took five minutes. Paid in cash, £53.36 for express service. Collected the next day. Took about a minute. Outstanding. Simple. Efficient.
Uzbekistan - Update 24/9 - Visa came through today. No LOI required but itinerary was. Fairly pain free postal service quoted as 10 working day turnaround but arrived after 8 days in the end. Postal order payment required (£50) which cost me £6 to obtain. Special delivery there and back to the embassy cost £6.40 each way. All in all, a fairly expensive short trip to Uzbekistan.
China - Update 1/11 - What a palaver! So here's the deal. The embassy has contracted out the visa application services to an agency who check the paperwork on their behalf (like Azerbaijan). One needs an appointment - it's compulsory. You book a date and time online (http://www.visaforchina.org/SGP_EN/) and turn up to one of their offices, London in my case, collect a ticket and wait to be called to a desk. Here are some important bits; My flight lays over in a city in a sensitive province for 7 hours (Urumqi). This meant I had to write a statement promising I wouldn't leave the airport. Had to do this on the spot. I had booked a hostel for 3 nights and received a letter of invitation from them. Apparently not enough. The format of the letter was wrong and I was told I needed to booked every night of my stay in China in advance. Had to do this at great speed on the spot too. The visa office closes at 3pm (my appointment was at 2pm and I wasn't called until 2.15pm). Finally, I wanted express service but they don't do that after midday. None of this information appeared in my research. As it happens, I applied on Tuesday afternoon and the standard service meant it would be ready on Friday. The guy at the application centre was in fairness very helpful. He told me what was missing and sent me off tot the nearest printer so I could get it. He let me come straight back to his desk when all done, no more queuing. Payment was made upon collection £66.
I have basically operated a 'just in time' approach to visas all told. There's been no slack in my plan whatsoever. All terribly time efficient on my part ;)
Burma - Update 24/10 - Burma visa required a personal visit to the embassy. While logistically awkward, very straightforward in practise. Simple single page application downloaded from the embassy website handed in along with £14 fee in cash. Pick-up was possible 48 hours later. total time in the embassy was about five minutes. How come doe visas are amazingly straightforward and some incredibly painful?
Vietnam - Update 18/9 eVisa came through after successful online application. It appears that one is required to take the eVisa and payment ($45), with x2 passport photos and x2 entry/exit forms to a desk at the airport and get a passport stamp there. So it's not actually a visa but a visa approval letter. Still, admin done.
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