Dear all,
yes..I'm still out here alone,pretty much up and alive.
I just got some very bad experiences to share,and I hope that something like this
would never happen to any of you.
It's indeed the ultimate nightmare of all travelers...I've lost my PASSPORT...
Before you read on,trust me,it's not as stupid as it sounds.I'm normally super
cautious aboutt my belongings,especially personal identification like the pass.
But during my weekend trip to Vienna,Austria,somehow the impossible happened.
Hours before my return trip,I found out that the most important item I'm
carrying with me,hidden safely in my inner pocket,was gone,with the jacket zip
wide open.
I'm not trying to defend myself,but something tells me I've been pickpocketed.
With that many tourists hanging on the streets of Vienna,this is not totally
unthinkable.Still...I couldn't believe my luck has turned its back on me this
mercilessly.
So...think about it. What would you do if you found yourself in the middle of
Vienna,without a passport,with no Austrian Schilling cuz you'Re about to leave
the country,and with no one in company?
I have to admit this scenario contributed to my first panic attack in years. I
could literally feel my heart skip a beat and beads of sweat explode on my
forehead. What if I got checked on the German border? Would I be treated as
illegal immigrants?
Thank God of all the places,the police station is always open.(while all the
regular shops,supermarkets,book stores,everything,is closed on Sunday.) I went
to one,reported the case,and tried to calm myself down. The police offered to
contact the ambassy,but thanks to the lousy service our government offers to
its citizens,the foreign office in Austria was not only closed,but provided no
emergency contacts whatsoever.And thus began my little trip-through-the-Vienna-
police-network detour. I walked all around the city,turned at every corner for
the police sign,checked every city map post for the police,went to each and
every one of them,and asked if anyone has reported a passport to them.
Those 6 hours were tense,no kidding. I have never been more effcient in my
city travels. I really felt like I've stepped on every stone in Vienna in 6
hours.But as it turned out,hard work and great input does not always lead to
positive outcomes.I didn't get my passport back(which also adds to my conviction
that someone has stolen it from me) But I did make a formal statement by the
Austrian police though.Some of them have been extremely kind and helpful,and
apparently experienced with this kind of situations.
And so I traveled back to Germany Sunday night.There was no border check. I had
a good night's sleep on the train,deciding to let the anxiety attack hit me
the next day.
Surely it did. On Monday, (yesterday) I tried every possible number for
official assisstance. And today I went to Frankfurt to get a temporary permit
done.I still feel very uneasy with no passport and visa by me,but at least the
travel back home is all cleared.
Yeah...this would make for really REALLY good nightmare materials,trust me.
From the moment I realized the passport was gone on,I simply couldn't see a
policeman on the street without turning my head around and gluing it to the
floor.It's really bad BAD experience. And I'll have to live with it for anothr
2 weeks...
As to my planned trip to Bruessels,Belgium this weekend...do you think I'll go
ahead with it?
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◆ From: zdvk224.zdv.Uni-Mainz.DE