The day after Sentencia: Passport, Doctor, Embassy, CRAN, Party!

Thursday was a LONG day!

Helena picked us (Isabella, Esteban, Grandma Dawn and I) at 7:30am! We were off to the Passport Office early, early, early. To be ready meant that we had to all get up when Isabella woke at 5:30! Dressed, fed, diaper bag ready for 2 kids, and important papers all collected. And we managed to be ready exactly at 7:30am. At the Passport Office, we first got Isabella's passport photos for the Colombian Passport and for the US visa taken at a little shop conveniently located just outside the door to the Passport Office. She took a great photo!

Then we headed into the Passport Office, bypassing the line of about 40 people, as happens when accompanied by Helena. In true Helena style, she handed me the papers I needed and told me which window to go to while she paid the passport fee. My mom and Esteban waited very patiently for us. After I spoke to the woman at the window and verified that she had all our information correct, I joined my mom and Esteban and Helena. We waited about 30 minutes for the passport to be ready. All told, we spent about an hour at the passport office.


After the Passport Office, we headed to the US Embassy doctor. Before the Embassy would grant a visa, they need a clean bill of health from their doctor. So we went to see Dr. Fajardo, who is the same doctor we saw with Esteban. He put Isabella's immunization record into the official form for the Embassy and gave her a quick examination. Isabella weighs 8730 grams (19lbs 4oz) and is 27" long. I think our girl has grown! The doctor pronounced all well and gave us a sealed envelope to give to the Embassy.

All this happened before 10:30am! We headed for the US Embassy, knowing that we were one document short for our visa application and hoping that they would accept it anyway. We were missing the Conformity document, which comes from CRAN and is then issued by ICBF, and it states that our adoption was conducted in accordance with the Hague Convention on International Adoption. Our Conformity document was due to be ready early Friday morning. If the Embassy would accept our incomplete (for now) visa application, then maybe we could drop off the Conformity document on Friday morning and still pick up the visa on Friday afternoon. We arrived at the Embassy at about 11:00am. There were about 1,000 people lined up outside the Embassy (not kidding) and still Helena went right to the front of the line. As she pointed out, they were all there applying for tourist and work visas, and we were there for an adoption visa. We walked right in and Helena went to submit the papers at the appropriate window. The Embassy waiting areas are all outside and you do your business at windows where you use a phone to talk to the personnel on the other side. You never actually enter an embassy building. Helena returned and said we should wait about 15 minutes and then go to wait near a specific window. Isabella's name was called and we went to the specified window. The first person I spoke with checked that all my documents were there - and wanted to know about the Conformity document. She said that if we could get it to the Embassy that afternoon, we could pick up the visa on Friday. If they didn't get the Conformity document until Friday, then the visa would not be ready until Monday. The next person I talked to took my money (those visas aren't free!). Then I waited about 10 minutes and they called me to another window, where a vice consul asked me a few questions and looked at Isabella to make sure her photo matched her face. Then we were free to go. We got in a cab at 12:15pm - only a little over an hour at the Embassy!

Helena took us directly to ICBF to ask, in person, for the Conformity document. Esteban and I went with her and waited in the hall. I am sure she asked, in her very nicest way, for that document to be done NOW! When the right staff person returned from lunch, it took about 10 minutes to get the paperwork in order - and we left with the Conformity document in hand!

We were scheduled to visit CRAN at 2:00pm for our tour and post-placement visit (to ask any further questions about Isabella) so we headed there. Helena arranged for her most trusted driver to meet us at CRAN and hand-deliver the Conformity document and Isabella's passport to the Embassy while we were visiting CRAN. Reynel is my hero!






Our visit to CRAN was nice. I had a chance to ask some more questions about Isabella's case, and they gave me a CD of photos from her foster home. We took a tour - which was good for both Esteban and my mom. CRAN has three main programs - the on-site program for children ages 2-8 whom they are trying to re-unite with their birth families (90 children), the program for pregnant women whose babies are then placed with foster families (about 70 children), and a pre-school program for children from the community (40 children).



There were also high school age kids there volunteering - a different colegio (private high school) sends students to volunteer every day of the week. Esteban asked why there were so many kids there and why they had beds there.









We finally headed back to the hotel, and arrived at 4:45pm - just in time to join the festivities! Five families were celebrating Sentencia! We had a pre-dinner gathering with beverages and snacks, and a wonderful cake for dessert. There are families from Sweden, Norway, the Netherlands, and Denmark here right now - and most are heading home in the next week.


What a feeling of relief to have all that done in one day! The kids were great with all the time in the stroller and taxis - and Grandma Dawn survived pretty well, too.


I'll believe we're really going home when we have Isabella's visa in hand on Friday! Helena called Thursday evening to tell me that Reynel would pick me up at 10:15am Friday for an 11:00am appointment at the US Embassy to pick up the visa.