More updates (part II)

That was the story for 15th of July. 17th of July, Friday, was a rather nasty day. It started pretty nicely though. My ex-classmate from IIT called me up to inform that he has got his visa. Considering he had also been put under the pink slip, this piece of information was a moral boost. However, come evening, I got the shock of my life. I was supposed to check the status of my case on the website of the US Embassy at New Delhi. On that day I saw that my case (which was “pending” till the day before) was completely missing from the list! I didn’t know what to make out of it. I became paranoid and called up the embassy. It was 8:00 pm, and the guy asked me to call back on Monday. I got even more nervous and sent an e-mail to the embassy explaining my case and asking the status of my case. The weekend was a rather anxious one for me. But they compensated for everything on Monday. As a reply to my mail, they informed me that I have been given F1 visa. JUST the mail I was waiting for!!!

And I must say, the Blue Dart guys are pretty fast. I checked from the VFS site that they had released my passport from New Delhi on Tuesday, and it reached me in Calcutta on Wednesday! That too when on that particular Wednesday (21st July) transport in Calcutta was virtually crippled by a political rally.
A couple of things, however, kept me from being the happiest person. One, the embassy had crumbled up my form I-20 very badly (and my mom says I don’t take care of things the way I am supposed to! The form was with me for 3 months and didn’t even get a single crease. And look at what they have done to it in three weeks). Second, they have given me visa for four years while most of my friends have got it for five. That, I guess, would be manageable once I land up in the US. The crushed I-20, although, would probably still be crushed after four or five years.

I would conclude this post by adding that I have already given the necessary documents to my travel agent, and she has also informed that she has done her job. All I need to do is go and collect a printout from her. Apart from that, I have ordered for a couple of glasses and a powered sunglass. I would leave shortly for the tailors. Need to get a suit made you see! Also need to get three pairs of jeans. Good going buddy!