Five visits! It took five trips to the foreign ministry but now everything is finally sorted. But damn! Five visits!?!?The first visit was to submit my paperwork for a two-year extension on my green card.
The second visit was to request an extension on my previous visa because of the processing delay at the ministry.
The third visit was to pick up my visa but they only gave me a visa sticker until December.
The fourth visit was to have my picture and fingerprints taken.
The fifth visit was by far my favorite because now everything is finally sorted. But it was all worth it because now I can carry my new ID card and no longer have to carry my passport with me everywhere. Yeah!!
The ID cards are new so there's still a little confusion as to when it should be used. I was told to use the ID card, instead of my passport, when traveling within the Schengen zone. This means that at the airport I should stand in the EU citizen line. But use my passport when outside of Schengen. This sounds odd to me. I guess I'll find out what happens in September when I fly to Rome.It seems that I'm not the only American to get a new residency card. According to Mladá fronta Dnes, so far this year, Americans have been issued more Czech residency permits than any other nationality. My fellow Americans must all be in Prague because they sure aren't here in Brno.
Again, I'm just glad that now I have my ID card. And it's a good thing that I really like my flat because if I ever move then I will have to go back to the ministry, at least twice, to have my address updated and a new card issued. Ugh!!
