Friday, October 06, 2006
So It's Been Awhile...
In the interim, I was able to travel to New York City for work. A co-worker who planned to go ended up taking another job so I got his ticket (yeah for me). Only 4 days after returning from NYC, Josh and I spent 4 days in Paris and 4 days in Amsterdam. Our time in Europe was much too short and we have said that any trips under 10 days should be spent on a relaxing vacation like Mexico and anything over 10 days should be a trip to Europe, Asia, etc. We'll see how that rule holds up. I'm already ready for Mexico again and have tried to scheme my way into a Thanksgiving or Christmas trip but I know that is unrealistic. Heck, we weren't even supposed to go to Europe because of school and getting ready to move and now that has already come and gone.
Speaking of the move, we are making some progress as we close in on the 3.5-4 month range. The departure date is not set as we haven't received our tickets yet. Only yesterday did Josh apply for his specific event visa. That turned into an ordeal for awhile because we thought he would be a student, however, he really wanted to be a research scholar and not have to take classes. So, good news, he was awarded a Visiting Research Associate title (sounds good for the CV but it doesn't pay anything). So, since he wasn't a student, he couldn't apply for a student visa. Also, he couldn't get the student insurance...what were we thinking with this VRA?
Our insurance contant, however, got back to us with good news. Although Josh will not technically be a student, StudentSafe Insurance is offering us coverage at 440 NZD/person for the year. The insurance includes coverage for many things that are in addition to Rotary's requirements-GREAT!
Regarding his visa, Josh applied for a Specific Purpose or Event visa yesterday. He had to mail his application materials, including his passport, to the NZ Embassy in Washington, D.C. He included many supporting documents like his letter of financial guarantee from Rotary and his letter of support from Massey University. There was no fee, however, we don't know how long it will take to process his visa. Hopefully, not too long.
Josh went in for the medical exam this week and had that form completed by the doctor (good). Last Sunday we completed the tickets request form, however, it can not be submitted until all other forms: medical, purchase of insurance, and copy of visa are completed. So, we wait. We requested to fly out on January 25 so Josh could honor the February 1 start date for his Visiting Research Associate position.
More good news came today as Josh learned that emails from his two advisors can be submitted in place of their signatures (good since one advisor is in New Zealand and the other one is in England). But the best news is that Josh will continue to receive his Walton Fellowship money while we are in New Zealand. That is incredible!
We are making progress. Rotary requires all documents 2 months prior to departure. I would like all documents to be in 3 months prior which is November 1. I hope we can have it all in by then because maybe we'll get our tickets sooner so we can have a for sure departure date.
We have been receiving updates from the Takaro Rotary Club. I like that our arrival is listed in the Upcoming Events section.
That's all for this edition...
So It's Been Awhile...
In the interim, I was able to travel to New York City for work. A co-worker who planned to go ended up taking another job so I got his ticket (yeah for me). Only 4 days after returning from NYC, Josh and I spent 4 days in Paris and 4 days in Amsterdam. Our time in Europe was much too short and we have said that any trips under 10 days should be spent on a relaxing vacation like Mexico and anything over 10 days should be a trip to Europe, Asia, etc. We'll see how that rule holds up. I'm already ready for Mexico again and have tried to scheme my way into a Thanksgiving or Christmas trip but I know that is unrealistic. Heck, we weren't even supposed to go to Europe because of school and getting ready to move and now that has already come and gone.
Speaking of the move, we are making some progress as we close in on the 3.5-4 month range. The departure date is not set as we haven't received our tickets yet. Only yesterday did Josh apply for his specific event visa. That turned into an ordeal for awhile because we thought he would be a student, however, he really wanted to be a research scholar and not have to take classes. So, good news, he was awarded a Visiting Research Associate title (sounds good for the CV but it doesn't pay anything). So, since he wasn't a student, he couldn't apply for a student visa. Also, he couldn't get the student insurance...what were we thinking with this VRA?
Our insurance contant, however, got back to us with good news. Although Josh will not technically be a student, StudentSafe Insurance is offering us coverage at 440 NZD/person for the year. The insurance includes coverage for many things that are in addition to Rotary's requirements-GREAT!
Regarding his visa, Josh applied for a Specific Purpose or Event visa yesterday. He had to mail his application materials, including his passport, to the NZ Embassy in Washington, D.C. He included many supporting documents like his letter of financial guarantee from Rotary and his letter of support from Massey University. There was no fee, however, we don't know how long it will take to process his visa. Hopefully, not too long.
Josh went in for the medical exam this week and had that form completed by the doctor (good). Last Sunday we completed the tickets request form, however, it can not be submitted until all other forms: medical, purchase of insurance, and copy of visa are completed. So, we wait. We requested to fly out on January 25 so Josh could honor the February 1 start date for his Visiting Research Associate position.
More good news came today as Josh learned that emails from his two advisors can be submitted in place of their signatures (good since one advisor is in New Zealand and the other one is in England). But the best news is that Josh will continue to receive his Walton Fellowship money while we are in New Zealand. That is incredible!
We are making progress. Rotary requires all documents 2 months prior to departure. I would like all documents to be in 3 months prior which is November 1. I hope we can have it all in by then because maybe we'll get our tickets sooner so we can have a for sure departure date.
We have been receiving updates from the Takaro Rotary Club. I like that our arrival is listed in the Upcoming Events section.
That's all for this edition...
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