after all these weeks, and after having begun to formulate an escape plan that i didn't want to write about online in case the info fell into the wrong hands, involving sneaking across and around borders, finally some action to spare me any form of real adventure.
summoned to court this morning and made to appear before a judge in a little smelly room.
'What do you plead?' asked the funny looking man.
The question kind of took me by surprise. I suppose I had never really thoughtabout it that much before, but somehow I always just kind of assumed that they only ask that question in the movies.
I blundered through my answer. 'Ah, what do I plead? Um, well, I suppose I'm guilty aren't I? I mean, I'm in the country illegally, but, really, I didn't mean to be, I didn't know that I was until recently...'
Bla bla bla. He scribbled down 'guilty', which was the only word that really needed to come out of my mouth.
He wasn't so bad. He smiled at me a little and scribbled down some more things and asked me a few questions, and then announced the fine, which wasn't such an outrageous figure.
I popped into the fines office and paid up. Do I get my passport back now?
Oh no, no, no, we can't give it to you. It has to be immigration who give it to you.
But it's just there. Right there on the desk in front of you.
No, no. Go to immigration. Show them the receipt for your fine. They will come down here and pick up your passport. Then you can go to immigration again to collect it.
BLOODY BLOODY BLOODY...
So I trundle off to immigration to see the awful Ato Mohammed. Show him the receipt.
Can you go and get my passport please?
Oh, no no no. I am busy today. Come back tomorrow morning. We will go down there together, then we will come back to immigration, then we will complete the paperwork, and THEN you can have your passport.
nothing ever ever EVER is allowed to be simple in this country.
Posted at 03:23 pm by
dors50
