A roller coaster ride!

When I was a kid I would ride roller coasters with my mom. My brother was too scared and my dad didn’t like them.  To me the scariest part of the ride was that long slow climb to the top of the first hill. It almost always felt like it wouldn’t make it and the anticipation of the ride would build the closer you got to the top.  As the saying goes, it was all downhill from there, with a few twists and loops thrown in!

The other night I dreamed we were on a ride.  I think it was just a simple water ride, or flume.  One that was just a hill with water at the bottom that would splash all over you.  We were on the long climb to the top of the hill.  But as we would get closer, we would slip back and have to start the assent again.  We would get a little closer, and slip back some more….you get the picture.  I woke up before we ever made it to the top.

That is what this summer, or at least the last month, feels like.

We have had some trouble getting our visas figured out to go back to China.  There are two main reasons for this.  One is that Jon’s employer in China did not start the process on his end early enough.  We were supposed to have had all the paperwork on his end completed before we even left China.  That did not happen.  The other problem is that China changed some rules regarding visa regulations this summer. 

We knew there were some issues, but we thought that we could go enter China on a tourist visa and then take a short trip to Hong Kong (paid for by the company) and change the visa type to a working visa.  We were told that would work and we rushed and got our visas.  The day we received our visas we were then told that the regulations had been changed and now we (or at least Jon) would have to fly back to the USA in order to change his visa.  So we decided to change our tickets and wait for the correct visa to come. 

We were told that it would take 10 days for the paperwork to be done in China.  It took a week longer than that.  But that part is finished.  Now we are just waiting for the paperwork to arrive.  We hoped we would get it Friday, but we did not.  Since Monday is a holiday we should receive it Tuesday.  Then we will send off for Jon’s  “working” visa.  It should take about a week. 

We have a black and white copy of the paperwork and we noticed that the kids and Jenn are not listed on the paperwork.  We were told that it will be ok and we can change over when we get the residency permit, which we do once we are in China.  I really hope they are correct.  I think it will work.  This is what we did two years ago.

This is actually a blessing, because it means that we will not have to spend the money to pay for visas when we already have a visa (just the wrong type).  Jon will be the only one “wasting” a visa.

This is all very complicated but we are nearing the top of the hill.  Pray that we don’t slip back too much and that this ride will not have too many twists, and loops!