Second Titre De Sejour

On the 9th of April(Friday), the day we were set to collect our new Titre De Sejour (Long-term VISA) from Cite Prefecture de Police, things took an unexpected turn. Despite reaching before our scheduled time, we had to wait for almost an hour until our turn finally arrived around 4 o’clock.

To our dismay, after meticulously checking our papers, the officer mentioned, “Oh! You need to pay 55 Euros now since you have a new passport.” Cue the trouble. I headed to another counter to purchase the Notary Stamp for the same amount. However, they only accepted cash, which I didn’t have enough of at that moment. After inquiring about the nearest ATM, I stepped out, returned with cash, only to find the main entrance closed.

Attempting to persuade a lady police officer to let me in, I explained that my wife, my passport, and everything were inside, and I was stuck in this “no man’s land.” It took some repetitive appeals, but she finally understood or got bored enough to let me in. To my dismay, the counter that provided Notary Stamps had closed.

Trying to keep my composure, I asked the lady on the counter to provide me with something in writing officially so that I wouldn’t become a “refugee” in France until I got my new visa. After some time and repeating the same problem, she wrote on paper that I needed to come back on Tuesday morning after the long Easter weekend. The silver lining was that Pamela got her work done without any problem.

The issue, it seems, is that the French tend to think in only one way, the French way. Sometimes, I wonder if they even realize there might be other ways to achieve the same goal, potentially better ones. For instance, canceling a cell phone contract takes two months after sending a registered letter with acknowledgment. In contrast, getting a new connection only takes an hour.

Thankfully, during these past three days, no one asked for my passport, and I had to wait for two hours in the same place to get a 9-month extension to stay in France. The bureaucratic hurdles continue, but the journey …