Sudan is an Islamic Republic and we were there 30 minutes before normal visa processing. However it looked like the office might be closed today as well. Fortunately the three armed guards standing outside took up our cause and kept knocking until someone came out. We explained the situation and embassy official found stack of completed passports, looked to find mine and handed it back. Most importantly it has new visa attached. Yeah!

This errand completed left us plenty of time for a day trip to Alexandria. I’ll describe in separate post.

We started early and walked over to the main road near the Nile River. The idea was to see what early morning traffic might be like for bicycle riding. After that a trip on the Metro and then we found the Sudan Embassy (recently moved to new temporary quarters: 8 Ahmed El Shattoury St, Al Dokki). From here it was a somewhat interesting multi-step process:

• Waiting room is open, but tellers aren’t there yet. Wait 30 minutes.
• The little windows open up for business, pick between “cashier”, “immigration”, “consul” and “medical” and stand in what is hopefully the right line. It was a toss-up between “immigration” and “consul” so I picked “immigration” which seemed to be the right one.
• Eventually get to the head of the line. Present the paperwork I had which included a sponsor letter from TDA, a visa application downloaded from Washington DC embassy and completed, passport, pictures, etc. What seemed to be most interesting was the TDA letter. It was handed to someone who disappeared for a long long time. Eventually, it looks like they had a document with riders on the trip and cross-checked against my name. Hooray!
• Hand me a Visa application and explain to me in Arabic some things I didn’t completely understand but guessed to mean: fill out the form, make a photocopy of form and passport, make sure to add the sponsor company address, etc.
• Go back and have fill out the form as best I can, this takes a while.
• Stand back in line before remembering I was supposed to add photocopies. So stand in the line for photocopier. Discover the copier is powered off. Someone might be investigating how to get power, but this seems to take a long time, so eventually myself and others leave.
• Walk back to the street, find a small shop to make photocopies
• Go back to immigration line and eventually when get to the head, present the documents to be processed. These are received and someone disappears to cross-check my answers. Little check marks and Arabic script is added to my document, but looks like I pass and am told to get in line for cashier.
• Wait through the cashier line, eventually get up there. Right before I get there, the cashier puts away his calculator and goes on break. I wait 10 minutes and he comes back so I pay the fee. They staple a receipt to documentation, smile and say, “pick up tomorrow”.

Not sure why, but somehow this process took two and a half hours of standing in different lines, getting the next step done and then figuring out what comes next. I have a good feeling about this and am again optimistic there could be a visa attached tomorrow.

[See image gallery at bike2013.com]
After that trip, we rode the metro downtown to investigation train schedules and also walked along via Tahir Square. There is a lot of traffic downtown. There are also picture signs with horn and red slash through them, though compliance is spotty. Below are a few more photos along the way.
[See image gallery at bike2013.com]
Beautiful mosque downtown.
[See image gallery at bike2013.com]
Tahir Square has a bunch of tents in the middle. Reminds me a bit of “Occupy Portland” (and similar Occupy movements) where folks pitched tents in middle of public square to help spread their word. Other than tents, and slogans and banenrs, Tahir Square is pretty quiet.
[See image gallery at bike2013.com]
Though hanging from nearby street lamp.
[See image gallery at bike2013.com]
Mmmm schwarma
[See image gallery at bike2013.com]
Oranges plentiful and less expensive than bananas per pound.

Otherwise, my bike has been reassembled. Still need to pump up the tires, but looks like it made it fine on the flight.

[See image gallery at bike2013.com]
At least I have my passport back.  This lets me fly to Cairo where my next step will be to apply for a visa at the Sudan Embassy in Cairo.  Apparently, the embassy in Cairo is in new quarters, so will have to find the new location.

Rather frustrating to have sent away my passport nine weeks ago and then not yet have the visa.

Today was my last day in the office.  I manage a small team and hence made certain to write all employee evaluations, discussed those evaluations and made sure tasks and people were transitioned as best I can.  Cleaned out the cubicle and packed everything up.  I enjoy my work and teams I work with – but will also be nice to take a long break, doing different things.

Over the next week is what I jokingly refer to is transition to becoming “homeless and unemployed”.  In addition to starting a vacation + leave of absence for until July 2013, everything from my Austin apartment needs to get packed into storage and I give up the apartment.  Monday morning I pick up a U-Haul truck and load everything (keeping the TDA items to the side).  Just to add fun, I also have a closing sale for a condominium I owned in Portland, OR.  Keys have been turned in and paperwork signed but assuming buyers financing completes, the official sale will be done by Thursday.  I also drive up to Colorado after that.

Also in next week, is day the Sudan Embassy gave as pickup date for my passport.  I hope it has a visa stamp attached.  This has been a somewhat frustrating saga.  I originally sent in my passport to a visa expediter on October 25th.  It went to the Sudan Embassy in Washington, but they returned it five weeks later and said they needed more information from TDA.  So we pass along info as best we can and resubmit.  I was given a pickup date of December 28th for resubmitted passport.  Still no indication if it will have a visa attached, but if not I need to get the passport back to try in Cairo.  A visa expediter is supposed to ease this process but they can’t tell me any more than I can do myself and only a level of indirection here.

In two weeks is day I fly to Egypt. My bags aren’t yet packed but I’ll go through checklist and assemble things at same time I pack the apartment for storage.  Once in Egypt, it will be one more week until we start.  The trip itself will be a pretty big change from living/working in Austin, TX particularly after flurry of activity to have all in place for departure.  Unfortunately, I’ll get in some bicycling but not as much as perhaps might want, however will look forward to changing all that in Cairo.

It will nice to finally be on the road and have a simpler life with lots of cycling…

• Egypt: 30-day tourist visa on arrival
• Sudan: Obtain entry visa before travel, unless traveling with sponsor that got an entry permit in advance (TDA?)
• Ethiopia: visa prior to arrival
• Kenya: visa prior to arrival
• Tanzania: visa at entry point
• Malawi: visa permit at entry point
• Zambia: visa at entry point
• Botswana: no visa required
• Namibia: visa at entry point
• South Africa: no visa required