Bonjour Tout Le Monde!
Now that the shopping for the orphanage is nearly completed I have moved on to carrying out the final preparations for my trip. I got my yellow fever vaccine on the 9th of February and I received a little yellow booklet as proof, in case I get asked at passport control. The nurse warned me that I must ALWAYS have the booklet with me in case I am asked because failure to do so may result in airport officials giving me the yellow fever vaccine on the spot. This could be very risky in terms of hygiene because the needle may have been used before and not sanitized properly. So, the two little booklets below (yellow fever booklet and my passport) will be guarded with my life whilst I am traveling and staying in Benin.
In the pre-departure manual they talk about visas and they mention the two biggest Béninoise embassies, which are located in Paris and Washington D.C. So I immediately thought that getting my visa would be a long and complicated process because I would need to send my passport to either Europe or America and wait for them to prepare my visa and send my passport back to the UAE. Thankfully, however, I found a Béninoise Embassy in Abu Dhabi, an hour (or so) drive from Dubai. I called the consulate and the consulate told me everything I needed to bring and that my visa would be done within a couple of hours of giving in all of my documentation. I was so relieved at this! So I got my visa and it took almost no time at all. The Embassy of Benin in Abu Dhabi is located in a tiny villa amongst tens of other identical looking villas. I was shocked that I was even able to find the consulate! But I am glad that this tedious but important task has been taken care of. :)
Now that the shopping for the orphanage is nearly completed I have moved on to carrying out the final preparations for my trip. I got my yellow fever vaccine on the 9th of February and I received a little yellow booklet as proof, in case I get asked at passport control. The nurse warned me that I must ALWAYS have the booklet with me in case I am asked because failure to do so may result in airport officials giving me the yellow fever vaccine on the spot. This could be very risky in terms of hygiene because the needle may have been used before and not sanitized properly. So, the two little booklets below (yellow fever booklet and my passport) will be guarded with my life whilst I am traveling and staying in Benin.
In the pre-departure manual they talk about visas and they mention the two biggest Béninoise embassies, which are located in Paris and Washington D.C. So I immediately thought that getting my visa would be a long and complicated process because I would need to send my passport to either Europe or America and wait for them to prepare my visa and send my passport back to the UAE. Thankfully, however, I found a Béninoise Embassy in Abu Dhabi, an hour (or so) drive from Dubai. I called the consulate and the consulate told me everything I needed to bring and that my visa would be done within a couple of hours of giving in all of my documentation. I was so relieved at this! So I got my visa and it took almost no time at all. The Embassy of Benin in Abu Dhabi is located in a tiny villa amongst tens of other identical looking villas. I was shocked that I was even able to find the consulate! But I am glad that this tedious but important task has been taken care of. :)
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