How things get done in Russia
After court Tuesday, a few hours after our court hearing, our agency rep showed up at the hotel and told us we must get ready right away and go. She had received the final court documents and we needed to take them over to the Dept of Vital Statistics to get Yana and Ruslan's adoption papers and birth certificates (with our last names). Once those were finished, they then needed to be taken to the passport office -- they need a passport in order to get on a plane and leave Novosibirsk, so the passport is essential. And once we leave Novosibirsk, we go to Moscow and spend a day at the US Embassy where the kids will be examined bby doctors, and have their visas processed, etc...
So we had to make the first step in the paperwork quickly, because our flight back to the US is scheduled for next Wednesday, which means the Embassy visit must occur Tuesday (the US Embassy for some unknown reason is closed the last Monday of each month.)
So our agency rep rushes us off at 4:45 p.m. from the hotel to get us to two different Depts for each each child, each dept on a different side of town. The sooner the adoption papers/birth certificates are done, the faster we can get the passport office our paperwork (and apparently the passport office closes its doors to visitors on Wednesdays. They work, but just don't take kindly to visitors on Wednesdays).
We arrive at the first Dept of Vital Statistics. Our agency rep asks us to wait outside the office, but asks for one of the $9 glass containers of Platinum instant coffee -- a jar about the size of a grapefruit -- which we had bought as gifts for the baby home officials.
A few minutes later she comes out of the office with a smile, and invites us in, where we sit down with a woman from the dept and sign a few papers and PRESTO Yana has her birth certificate done. All it took was 5 minutes.
Instant coffee.
Instant birth certificate.
We left with the paperwork, and left behind the bribe, er, instant coffee with the woman in the dept.
Our rep then rushed back in the taxi and over to the other Vital Statistics Dept. She asked us to wait in the taxi and to give her another of the $9 containers of coffee. After a few minutes, she came back out to the taxi, but this time she still had the coffee.
We would have to wait until 2 p.m. Wednesday to get Ruslan's birth certificate.
Maybe they preferred tea over coffee.
So we had to make the first step in the paperwork quickly, because our flight back to the US is scheduled for next Wednesday, which means the Embassy visit must occur Tuesday (the US Embassy for some unknown reason is closed the last Monday of each month.)
So our agency rep rushes us off at 4:45 p.m. from the hotel to get us to two different Depts for each each child, each dept on a different side of town. The sooner the adoption papers/birth certificates are done, the faster we can get the passport office our paperwork (and apparently the passport office closes its doors to visitors on Wednesdays. They work, but just don't take kindly to visitors on Wednesdays).
We arrive at the first Dept of Vital Statistics. Our agency rep asks us to wait outside the office, but asks for one of the $9 glass containers of Platinum instant coffee -- a jar about the size of a grapefruit -- which we had bought as gifts for the baby home officials.
A few minutes later she comes out of the office with a smile, and invites us in, where we sit down with a woman from the dept and sign a few papers and PRESTO Yana has her birth certificate done. All it took was 5 minutes.
Instant coffee.
Instant birth certificate.
We left with the paperwork, and left behind the bribe, er, instant coffee with the woman in the dept.
Our rep then rushed back in the taxi and over to the other Vital Statistics Dept. She asked us to wait in the taxi and to give her another of the $9 containers of coffee. After a few minutes, she came back out to the taxi, but this time she still had the coffee.
We would have to wait until 2 p.m. Wednesday to get Ruslan's birth certificate.
Maybe they preferred tea over coffee.
posted by The LeForts | 3:30 PM
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