The May 2007 Blog
Getting My Visa - Friday May 18th, 2007On Tuesday evening, I sent off my Visa application. The Chinese Consulate has a rule where you have to either apply in person for your visa or designate somebody to visit the consulate for you. I chose the Chinese Visa Office in Houston, TX. Their website is visa-chinese.com. They have cheap rates and they let you pay your own shipping. (Most sites charge $20+ for Fed Ex shipping - but if you go to Fed Ex personally, it costs more like $5.)
Anyway, I'm hoping to be able to get a 90-day stay in China. That way, I won't have to worry about getting my visa changed or extended until I'm comfortably nested at Jiangsu University. From my few contacts with the Provincial Department of Education, it won't be a problem to rubber-stamp my visa into a working visa since I'm technically working for the state. I think that's probably the biggest advantage over working for a public English school like Aston (where I originally interviewed).
The only official thing I can state right now is that I'm scared out of my wits. Am I making the biggest mistake of my life? I mean, life is pretty cushy right now: I like my highly-paid job, I work with great people, I have a lot of friends in town whose company I really enjoy, I have a big and cheap one-bedroom apartment a block from my job, and I just met a cute, smart girl. But I'm willing to just give this all up for a little adventure in my life.
This trip isn't about "happiness." I don't feel unhappy now and I don't feel like I'm looking for happiness in China. Lately, a lot has been said in the news and in international forums about "finding happiness." The consensus is that nobody is really happy. I think that's crap. I'm happy now. I grew up happy and anywhere I've lived, I have found a way to be happy. I enjoy life and I can't imagine that I'm going to hate my life in China.
When I get to my new apartment, I'll clean it and arrange it in a way that makes me comfortable. (That should be easy with the exchange rate working in my favor!) I'm going to be adventurous enough to find a few nearby restaurants and "hang out" spots that I can frequent often. When people start recognizing me as a "regular" and not a "foreigner," then they should warm up to me. When I start learning more Chinese other than just how to make a monetary transaction, how to find a bathroom, and how to introduce myself, then life should become easier.
I guess the moral of that whole musing is that no, I'm not making the biggest mistake of my life. I'm making the best decision of my life. I know the keys to making myself happy, and I'm positive that I can find those things in China. This is why I'm more excited than scared to move there.