visa process has begun…
oh the enjoyment of getting visas. Nothing but red tape as far as the eye can see.
Each country has their own madness of information you must handwrite in the correct font (ie kazakhstan explicitly says block) and make sure your passport photo is the correct size. Each country has their set of pet peeves too. Some require staples for your photo, others require glue. The visa machine team says that visas have been denied from having the staple at the wrong angle. What's worse than that, is that they deny you your visa and keep your money.
I'm not clear why the walgreens and UPS store charge $10 for 2 passport photos, but it's definitely a pretty sweet deal in their favor.
Russia's visa seems on the more extreme, if you are self-employed you must provide a bank statement showing that you have at least $100/day available for your stay. Clearly some bitterness between countries and the difficulty level to get a visa.
anyways... let the games begin!
The Mongol Rally is a UK-to-Mongolia, no back-up, no support, no set route adventure for charity - involving 15 countries and 10,000 miles' worth of mountains, deserts, bad roads, no roads, bandits, and various other pickles in comically unsuitable 1-litre cars.
Freedom costs a buck-oh-five. But we've heard that in Mongolia $1.05 also gets you a 3-story yurt mansion on the shores of Ögii Lake.
So off we go in our Fiat Panda. And since terrorism is officially over, Team America is now all about charity and liberation! Viva la Facebook!
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