Monday, August 9, 2004
The bad news
Our trip to Kyrgyzstan was cancelled for a couple of reasons.
First of all, there were no tickets available (that is, train tickets, because plane tickets are way too expensive).
Second, I was told in the last instant that I need a visa for the CIS (GOS/СНГ).
Third, a number of people discouraged us to go there, because it would be difficult to get back into Russia and they take very big bribes in Kyrgyzstan.
It turns out that no foreign citizen is allowed to stay in Russia for more than 180 days. We're not sure if that rule applies to people with contracts, but nevertheless, I will most likely travel to Belgium for a couple of days in September or October. Let's hope my employer is willing to pay at least part of the costs. After all, it is a demand imposed on me by Russian law. It's not that I WANT to go.
Anyway, in order to avoid my having to travel to Belgium every 6 months (and spend half my yearly wages on plane fares), I've to decided to try and get a temporary residence permit for three years. Once you have one of those, you can apply for a permanent residence permit, which can be extended every 5 years.
But our first move is to get married. We're pretty sure that will simplify things. It's not as romantic as we'd hoped it would be, but hey, "if life give you lemons, make lemonade"!
First of all, there were no tickets available (that is, train tickets, because plane tickets are way too expensive).
Second, I was told in the last instant that I need a visa for the CIS (GOS/СНГ).
Third, a number of people discouraged us to go there, because it would be difficult to get back into Russia and they take very big bribes in Kyrgyzstan.
It turns out that no foreign citizen is allowed to stay in Russia for more than 180 days. We're not sure if that rule applies to people with contracts, but nevertheless, I will most likely travel to Belgium for a couple of days in September or October. Let's hope my employer is willing to pay at least part of the costs. After all, it is a demand imposed on me by Russian law. It's not that I WANT to go.
Anyway, in order to avoid my having to travel to Belgium every 6 months (and spend half my yearly wages on plane fares), I've to decided to try and get a temporary residence permit for three years. Once you have one of those, you can apply for a permanent residence permit, which can be extended every 5 years.
But our first move is to get married. We're pretty sure that will simplify things. It's not as romantic as we'd hoped it would be, but hey, "if life give you lemons, make lemonade"!
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