EPTAfter I hopped back on the blogging wagon yesterday, it occurred to me how very much I have not told you lately. Like more than a month I did stuff and didn't share. How rude of me. As they said: ''Sharing is fun, sharing is sexy'' - so that's exactly what I'm gonna do, I seriously wanna throw a cow carousel in here first, although it's not utterly related to what's next, I just want to get it off my chest cos you just don't see that every day ;P
![[image loading]](http://www.wcasfmra.org/appleton2009%20002%20holsum%20parlor.jpg)
cow carousel
What I really want to share is the universally important project I've been working on: the visa (oh, not that kind of debt card you are thinking of). If you have ever applied for a visa before, I guess you already know how it feels, but if you didn't or never need to apply for a visa, you can consider yourself a very lucky one (luckier than those who won lottery or shopping discount coupons).
The visa I'm applying is called ''Post-Study Work''. As the name indicates, a visa for those who are in the stage of just-graduated-and-looking-for-jobs. Well I'm one of them (if you did read my last post). So over the last few weeks, I've been reading the policy guidance to help me filling the form, preparing numerous requested papers and documents (I already felt annoyed even before I started). Did I tell you that the form has 49 pages? It took me almost a hour just skim through all the questions - what a form!
![[image loading]](http://skyplayer.sky.com/SVOD/SKYENTERTAINMENT/IMAGES/U/UK%20Borderforce/L_UKBordForce-SI.jpg)
''We must be satisfied.''
Some of the questions need to be referred to the Immigration Rules, which just made me want to scoop my eyes out and feed them to the duck: 'We cannot begin the consideration process until the payment has cleared.' What an irony example of a capitalised-only minded country.
Also I have come across one raffishly abused word in the guidance - satisfied, which just made me sick-minded, it must be such a peevish chore for those agents, but I believe they enjoy every minute of it: ''Applicants must also satisfy us that the requirements for the category under which he/she applied have been met.' 'We must be satisfied, by considering the evidence provided that the applicant meets the necessary criteria, and prove them they will not becoming the burden of UK.... we must be satisfied...'
Gender?
Given the choice between Male and Female.
This is one the few questions confuses me the most. You might ask, ''It's such a perfectly ordinary question, what's wrong with that?'' Well the question itself is not that awkward I agree, it's what written inside the Policy guidance that cracked me up, it gives a full page of explanation of what those terms mean, and persuades the applicants to tick only between these two. It also emphatically points out 'An applicant should tick the gender carefully as indicated on his/her GRC.' I admit Chinese students always have problem differentiating ''he'' from ''she'' when learning English language (I didn't have this problem though), but seriously, who on earth would get his/her own gender wrong?! I guess the guide is either for the dumbest or those are pretty much fail at life. Also transsexual is never a controversial topic nowadays, I wonder what applicants advanced to this species would fill in here.
Has the applicant ever been involved in, supported or encouraged terrorist activities? If yes, please provide proof and give further details in the space provided below.
In the guidance, the term ''Terrorist activities'' is explained as: 'Any act committed, or the threat of action, ideological cause that involves serious violence against a person; that may endanger another person's life; creates a serious risk to the health or safety of the public; involves serious damage to property....' As I read it I couldn't stop thinking about Counter Strike - if you ever played this game as a terrorist, you know these are the exact spirits required and the activities carried out - either completing a bomb mission objective, preventing hostage be rescued or eliminating the counter force. I was in a CS clan in high school and have always been as a terrorist. I wonder whether I need to put that in here with replay VODs and all the medals that we won as supporting evidence?
After 15 days of waiting, (which I swear was an eternity) I finially got this red+purple thingy, which called something like 'UK Residence Permit' stamped on my passport. I immediately phoned Spainish Government and Schengen Office enquiring whether I need any additional document/visa as I'm seeking to work in Gibraltar, unfortunately this new status, which seems to have upgraded from a student visa to a higher level, is typically restricted to these places now. I was like WTF?! This is so ridiculous! Entering Spain or anywhere else within Europe, I need a Schengen visa, but still can't cross the border to Gibraltar BECAUSE I AM A CHINESE. Been granted the UK residency now, I couldn't visit its godamn overseas territory BECAUSE I AM A CHINESE.
Worst of all, under any circumstances, Hongkongnese (belong to China) could travel anywhere like Europeans without any restrictions, whereas China Mainland people are unwelcomed by all the West. They said China is '5,000-year great ancient Country', 'the most up and coming economy' and the 'focal point of the world'. From this experience of visa issues only, I say it's still a piece of shithole.
