I recently applied for a Japanese tourist visa. It’s not been a pleasant experience. Of course, I have never been out of the country, so I didn’t know the processes and how to go about it. Didn’t help that I am handicapped living alone either.
Anyways, my first flight going to Kolkata to visit the Japanese embassy outsourced company - VFS Global - was on 19th May. And it was an early morning flight and somehow the CISF guys decided today is a good day to whisk him to a secluded environment to check him.
Between that and the slight delay on my end, I was very anxious to get to the flight. And in that process, I forgot my pouch which contained both of my passports and my prosthetic charger.
I realized the loss of my bag at the BBI airport CISF security counter mid-flight. And when I landed in Kolkata and it wasn’t there, that’s when I started becoming anxious. But it’s ok. I am at the Kolkata airport, I can handle this, right? I just need to make sure the bag will be presented to me when I return back to BBI later that evening. The passports weren’t really the problem, the bigger issue was the prosthetic charger.
Now on a full charge, the prosthetic holds the charge for about 48 hours. It might hold for a bit longer, but I account for 48 hours of juice, after which it really depends on usage duration and type of usage (slopes, steps, weather, etc)
If I didn’t get the prosthetic charger back in the evening when I return to BBI, it would leave me with very little time to actually get it back before my charge runs out. Now I can still walk without charge, but it’s going to go into stable mode, and that’s not really a super pleasant experience to walk - especially outside.
So I bought a new flight ticket (an immediate one back to BBI). Came back here and asked a bunch of Indigo attendants to help me. The apathy of the Indigo staff both at Kolkata and BBI Airport was clearly visible. Are you only standing there to help passengers with their bags? Surely a handicapped person who is searching for lost luggage takes more priority? But forget more priority, I wasn’t even helped by the staff. She just pointed me out of the airport and away from here in whatever direction I would go. It was really unhelpful and frustrating.
My issue isn’t with the fact that I am a handicapped person asking for help. The issue is with the nonchalant attitude displayed by the Indigo staff to go and help with anything that is not related to baggage issues. All I was asking is to just put me in contact with someone who can handle this, and she had no idea. Height of incompetence considering she is supposed to be the airport liaison for the airlines.
Anyways, a couple of days later, went for the VISA and now facing a new issue. They think I might be going for work when clearly stated that it’s supposed to be a tourist visa and I have specified I am going for work.
But yes, I am getting a letter from work stating I am not going for work. In all likelihood, if this visa is denied, I have no interest in going to a foreign location. The process of going through the VISA is quite cumbersome and frankly, not worth it. Definitely not going for an esports event in all frankness. There’s a lot to explore within India and my travel list for countries outside of India has been drastically reduced since the accident. I will still visit those countries, of course, but it doesn’t need to be THIS Year.
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