As I stood waiting for the victory parade to start in Moscow and I watched the bored soldiers puffing away in the cold, I thought to myself to get a pack of cigarettes to try offer to boarder officials to help alleviate their boaredom, should they decide to pick on me on my way out of Russia and into China.
I was up at 3am, had checked out by 3:30 and was waiting for the 4am bus at Vladivostok station by 3:45am. By 4:10 there was no sign of said bus and I was getting a little worried. With much relief it arrived at 4:30. As I stepped on I handed my proof of payment and thanked the women who took it in Russian. “I speak English you know” she replied in perfect English. Brilliant!
Anne was leading a group to Beijing and had been put on the bus with her group to travel as far as Suifenhe where she would direct me to a bus that would take me to Harbin, or that was my understanding at least.
I was woken when we arrived in Pogrinitsa (I think) and Anne asked me for my ticket to Suifenhe. What ticket? I only had one ticket and I had given that to her. I made her problem mine and she went into some office, came running out with my passport and had soon sorted me out and told me to stay on her bus to Suifenhe as planned.
As we approached the boarder, I stashed all currency I had in my camera bag as I had heard that a strict interpretation of Russian Customs regulations entitles official to confiscate it. I had read terrible things about the Russian side of this boarder crossing, which was apparently in stark contrast to the efficient and friendly Chinese immigrations and customs. My experience couldn’t have been more different. Although every page of my passport was examined thoroughly under UV light, I breezed through Russian immigrations, and customs didn’t even ask to look in my bags.
In the queue of Chinese immigrations I was singled out three times to open my bag and show the contents to bored officials. Once I got to the front of the queue and presented my passport, I was instructed to join another queue. Once again, as soon as I presented my passport, I was asked what country I was from and sent off to go and sit on a chair.
A more senior official came and took a look at my passport, then my visa, and then disappeared muttering something about India (I had obtained my Visa in New Delhi). Another official sidled up to me for a chat. Although he was being friendly, all his questions were very leading and I was clearly being interviewed.
Eventually the older, more stern official returned with my passport open on one page and pointed at it. It was a page with an entry stamp to Ecuador. I was a little surprised as I didn’t realise China poor diplomatic relations with Ecuador. “Ecuador?” I asked. “No!” he scoffed and pointed at a little tear in the page and turned around and stormed off.
After a 10 minute wait I was told that I could pass through immigrations, a younger official filled in my arrival card for me, and the friendly women behind the desk then chatted to me about all the stamps in my passport and whether I intended to stay to watch the olympics. I thought it might be a trick question as I new my visa doesn’t extend that long so I told that I unfortunately wouldn’t be.
Customs! For the fourth time I had to unpack my bag, but this time it was done pretty thoroughly. The were mostly interested in DVDs I had and all my reading material.
By the time I had cleared customs and emerged from the building, my bus and savior Anne were gone. I had been deserted in the middle of no where. What now????
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