Why Join the Foreign Service? Part III

“To my mind, the greatest reward and luxury of travel is to be able to experience everyday things as if for the first time, to be in a position in which almost nothing is so familiar it is taken for granted.”

- Bill Bryson

Viajes Mexicanos: San Miguel de Allende

San Miguel de Allende is a picturesque little town in the mountains of Guanajuato:

 The winding, cobblestone streets can take some getting used to, and the altitude can be a challenge for those of delicate constitution.

 Still, SMdA is undeniably charming and full of character, will a village-like air. Like many Mexican cities, it is based around a central square dominated by a large cathedral:

 Over the years, the town has become home to large numbers of artists (particularly painters) and American expats. This has led to a profusion of high-end restaurants, silly-expensive real estate, souvenir shops, and art galleries:

 As a tourist site, I highly recommend it for the shopping alone. It is one of those places with few specific destinations or sights/ Simply amble through the town and enjoy it.

The Foreign Service on Stage: Madama Butterfly

In Puccini's masterpiece Madama Butterfly an innocent young Japanese girl is seduced (well, bought) by a caddish American naval officer who quickly abandons here. While she waits patiently for his return, her one line of communication is the American Consul, Sharpless.

Poor Sharpless has a pretty thankless role, both in the drama and in the opera. He must be the perpetual bearer of bad news and has no arias and very little memorable music (except the 'Letter Duet' with Cio-Cio San). He is usually depicted as a good-hearted but feckless bureaucrat, overdress and out of shape.

So it seems that art often imitates life...

A Few More Words

214(b): Intending Immigrant, AKA the Consular Officer's best friend. Allows officers to reject non-immigrant visa applications because they believe the person will not return to their home country in a timely manner.  The majority of NIV refusals are 214(b).

Amcit: American Citizen.

ACS: American Citizen Services. The section of Consular Affairs that deals with American citizens abroad. Birth certificates, lost passports, prison visits etc.

CLO: Community Liaison Officer. In charge of social planning and wellness activities for the mission community.

EER: Employee Evaluation Report. The annual review all FSOs must go through.

EFM: Eligible Family Member. Refers to dependents of FSOs who can share their housing, transport, and receive priority for certain in-mission jobs.

FLO: Family Liaison Office. Usually an EFM, in charge of community activities and services for families with children.

 IV/NIV: Immigrant/Non-Immigrant Visas.

IWP: Interview Waiver Program, by which someone who has a valid US visa can renew it without going through the interview process.

LES: Locally employed staff. Refers to the non-US workers who make up the majority of the workforce in most foreign missions. Also known as FSNs (Foreign Service Nationals).

TDY:  Temporary duty. Describes when an FS professional is sent to another mission on a short-term basis.

VLA: Visa Lookout and Accountability. A program to review visa issuances to ensure that consular officers are not issuing visas to people with prior ineligibilities.

Lake Chapala at Sunset

Mysteries of the Mexican Supermarket

Behold!

Green oranges!

Low sodium salt!

 Oolong tea marked as 'blue tea'!

Where am I?!?!?

A Word About Refugees

I've been seeing a lot of uninformed hysteria (as opposed to well-informed hysteria) flying around the social media lately concerning the Syrian refugee program. Most of these 'concerns' boil down to 'OMG MUSLIMS!', but at heart it's a more basic paranoia of the Different.
 
When people hear that X number of Syrian refugees will be offered asylum, the image in their heads is a huge crowd of dirty, disheveled, swarthy-looking people muttering in some unknowable guttural language standing behind a gate. A uniformed guard opens the door, and they all come pouring in.

Does anybody realize what it takes to get into this country?

Everyone is fingerprinted, photographed, their name and vital data is run through a series of databases and transmitted to numerous federal agencies. They are questioned, often at length, and their education, background, and work history is scrutinized.

And THAT is just for a tourist visa. The refugee application process is slow, exhaustive, and exacting.

Is it CONCEIVABLE that one of the Syrian refugees could do some bad things? Who knows? It's possible that one of the children who got the polio vaccine could grow up to be the next Hitler. It's a nonsensical line of reasoning.