Renewing my visa

As well as my Residence Permit, and Alien Employment Permit. This is our (Renfen the HR manager and I) second attempt. Before I left for the U.S. I brought it up that we should renew it soon, but recommended it early to be safe, unaware that there was a specific time requirement for that. We went to Ningbo on the Friday before my departure, arrived at the government offices around three o’clock and were told that everyone was out for a meeting and wouldn’t return until the following Monday.

So three days before my permit expired we’ve returned. A man across the glass from us has become the face of Chinese bureaucracy to me. Renfen promptly showed her my old permit and said we only had two days left on it. He curtly responded that I’d have to go back to Israel (he really looked closely huh?), or the U.S. to get it. Between long sips of tea before and after which he slowly removed and replaced its lid, he seemed only capable of saying “so much trouble”, “he needs to return and handle it there” - even I could understand him clearly. He wouldn’t even look at us, just casually shuffled papers on his desktop, browsed on his computer and generally transformed himself into a brick wall.

As I said, I just got back from the U.S., my ticket paid for by the company costing three to four month’s salary for most employees that have been here a few years. Renfen, who tends to be a bit high strung anyway really started coming apart. She looses things and atleast partially due to being the one HR manager for 600+ employees always seems to be on the disorganized precipice of going crazy. But this was bad. At this point I walked away from the counter and starting calling a few other people who I guessed might have experience with this. While I was now aware that we should have handled this 30 days before the expiration, I was quite sure I didn’t need to go back to the U.S. or even Hongkong. I couldn’t quite follow along on all the intermittent discussions, but he was saying (incorrectly I knew) that I had to have my health exam done again and I ate today so I couldn’t schedule it and other problems.

At some point while I was on the phone she finally got our way. I later learned her leverage was she said she would quit if I had to go back because her boss would be so mad and he softened his stance. Seems he just wanted to make sure she lost enough face (she did make quite a scene) and groveled enough. I came back between phone calls to find him smiling smugly and saying, “don’t do this next time”, and the bureaucratic wheels finally turning. As we were there three others carrying foreign passports and documents casually strolled up for what appeared to be similar transactions. Seems I didn’t have to be there anyway.

So in the end we walked away with the stamp in my little brown Alien Employment Permit booklet and should the new Residence permit sticker in my passport within a week. Among other things I read a book Chinese Business Etiquette on my flight over. While it contained very little new information for me, it did explicitly spell out a few principles I’ve grown to understand while living here. One is, face is the ultimate currency, and there is very little connections, or the lack there of can do, especially in the face of the bureaucracy so often dealt with here. Make connections and cultivate them – and know how to use the power of face.

Back in the PRC

Back in the PRC

I’m sitting on a shuttle bus en route to a hotel in Shanghai - too lightly laden. My two checked bags didn’t make it.

It all started Tuesda morning, or should I say about 52 hours ago when I was scheduled to leave XNA using the usual Chicago route. The morning flights on all airlines to Chicago were either cancelled or delayed so much that there was no way I would make my connection. I called Darby so he could call Toni (her phone is long distance from the airport – I disconnected my cell phone the afternoon before), but he instead offered to pick me up himself. So I was lucky enough to spend another drowsy day in Fayetteville. The next morning, this morning 28 hours ago, I found to my dismay that during his attempt to re reroute me, the previous morning’s ticketing agent had created quite a quagmire for this morning’s agent to sort through. It took her 40 minutes to fix it. So I rushed to the gate and took my place in front of a short line in front of the United gate and waited patiently for loading to start anytime. A few minutes before the plane was scheduled to leave I broke line and asked the gate agent if the flights were again delayed. He said that while the sign at the gate didn’t announce it, he had announced that the flight was boarding several times and the flight had closed – I didn’t make the flight. Turns out the plane sat on the tarmac for almost an hour afterwards because of delays in Chicago, but it was just a few feet too far away. I went back out of security and the ticketing agent said I could either re-list for the next day, or take a grueling connection through London. I had time to think about it before that connection told the agent I would return with an answer in a few minutes. I decided that unburdening Toni and getting out of town was my priority, but when I told my decision to the agent she somehow came up with a connection on Northwest via Minneapolis>Tokyo. The only tricky part was my bags (illegally) already left on the United flight. I was assured by the Northwest rep that my bags would make a quick connection to Minneapolis and arrive in Shanghai either before me, or with me. I was nervous.

I managed emergency row seats, which had a huge impact on the perceived duration/comfort of my flight, and sat next to another expat on his way back to Manila where he worked managing a call center. He was only 21, working there since he got out of high school, and living like a king – impressive. We had interesting discussions about each of our expat lives as we flew over Canada and enjoyed amazingly clear views of Rockies in Canada and Alaska. Usually these amazing mountains are obscured by a heavy cloud cover.

So here I am in Shanghai with a carry-on full mostly books that were too heavy to check and the only other clothes to speak of are a pair of shoes. If I had made the United flight I would have gotten in much earlier and would likely be back in Fenghua now.

The bright side is I got to spend over an hour talking with a most interesting friend of mine, Barbra Bellows, getting her story of the last 30 years including her two undergrads thru her Phd in agronomy, her several long stays in the Philippines including with the Peace Corps and the rebels harassing her village, her cross country bike rides etc. As with many brilliant individuals she is eccentric but most interesting and always up for very interesting discussions. I just happened to meet her and her husband in the Fayetteville Wal-mart (where all the cool people hang out) and then at the airport. Two quite unlikely intersections in one weekend.

Lessons learned and relearned:

Persistence and patience pays when dealing with people in power, especially gate agents. I probably could have been on this flight yesterday.

Ask for exit row seats as soon as possible and as many times as possible.

Don’t assume any persons critical to your timely travel will look out for you even if it is in their job description, risk being rude if necessary to be informed of flight schedules, departures etc.

Always keep and extra set of clothes in your carry on. I would’ve been pretty miserable in my temperate-climate clothing if I had had to lay over in Minneapolis or Chicago.

Lesser points, keep the phone numbers to all hotels you enjoy staying at along with prices in your pda etc. Cell phones die when not used, keep a charger for that product in your carryon luggage. Call ahead to hotels, negotiating prices at the desk is not a negotiation, which is a necessary part of any transaction here. (signing off from my hotel room now).