On January 14th, 2013, I took a red-eye flight to Canberra for the day to organise my Visas for entry into the countries I intend to visit, including Cambodia, Vietnam, and Laos. I had been informed that Virgin had upgraded their booking system and that I might expect delays checking in. I left the house early on my BMW GS650, trying to get as much riding experience on the new bike as I could before I departed for exotic shores, cultures, and traffic.
I arrived at the airport to find I had forgotten my phone. After nearly 15 years of commuting to Canberra on red-eye flights, I have NEVER forgotten my phone. I must have been too excited in riding my motorcycle that I simply forgot it. Checking my watch and realising that I had just over an hour before my flight, I was sure I could make the 40 minute return trip before my flight left. Screaming home, I grabbed my phone and screamed back to the airport to find no lines at all at the Virgin check in area, just a mass of milling people.
One of the lovely attendents, noticing my confused expression and searching looks toward the front desks, approached to help and directed me to a line. As I stood there ready to check in, another attendent asked me if I were departing on a 5.55am flight. I told her that I was departing on a 5.30am flight and the startled look on her face told me all I needed to know. We then ran up and down the line of desks like a blue heeler chasing a postman along the fenceline.
Finally, with no check on luggage, they were able to get me onto the flight with only seconds before cut-off. I raced up stairs only to find the flight delayed by an hour. On arrival into Canberra, I met a nice Sheik gentleman who drove me in his taxi to the Cambodia embassy and gave me his mobile phone number so I could give him a call when I was finished.
The Cambodian embassy was a small house in a quiet street, with a converted garage acting as the entry point. The place was very quiet and in talking to the young man at the front desk, it seemed that a calm spirit pervaded all things. In nearly a whisper we talked about my requirements and plans and he had no problems with what I intended to do. My passport was returned to me within about 20 minutes with a visa stamp on the page giving me a three month single entry visa to Cambodia - better than I had hoped. It cost me $90 Australian dollars for the visa.
I phoned my helpful taxi driver who immediately picked me up to take me to the Vietnamese embassy and told me to give me a call when I was ready. Since the Lao (Laos) embassy was just around the corner, we agreed I would call him to pick me up from there when I was ready.
The Vietnamese embassy was a bustle of activity with people moving in and out of the much larger and more embassy-like front room. At first the kind, yet firm, gentleman behind the desk told me I could not drive in Vietnam at all. On talking to him a little more, he admitted that he only told me that because driving in Vietnam was dangerous for foreigners like myself. When I asked about bringing a motorcycle into Vietnam, he told me not Harley's would be let in, but then agreed that it would really be up to the border crossing and customs officials at the land border crossing.
After about 30 minutes where I was able to puruse the library of communist, socialist, and military history books, I was given my passport back with a one month Vietnam single-entry visa for $135 Australian dollars. The kind gentleman politely reminded me that it would be dangerous for a foreigner to drive in Vietnam and urged me to reconsider my plans. He also informed me that the UN International Drivers Permit (IDP) is not recognised in Vietnam and that I would need to organise a local license if I wanted to drive, but then told me that no one held a motorcycle license. I will need to do some more research regarding this, I suspect.
Walking down to the Lao(s) embassy, I note on the front of the embassy that it is for Lao, not Laos. I have since spoken to some people who have been unable to explain to me the difference in use of Lao and Laos. I shall have to investigate this a little more, too.
This embassy was busy, but calm at the same time. I really did feel like it was a middle point between the bustling and active Vietnamese embassy and the calm and collected, smiling Cambodian embassy. In discussion about my plans, the young man who staffed the front desk told me he was envious and wanted to know all about my tour plans. He could see no impediments to taking my own motorcycle into Laos for a tour and even said he would like to do the same some day. About 20 minutes later, I had paid $60 for my month long single-entry visa.
It was about this point that my phone decided to fail on me, after all my trouble getting it on the train and with me. My lunch appointment was difficult to arrange and I no longer had access to the kind taxi driver who had assisted me so far. I made my lunch appointment, juggled various other issues, and decided to drop into the Myanmar embassy on my way to the airport, in case there was any chance I could sort a Myanmar visa before I left.
The difference in this embassy was easy to notice from the driveway. I had to buzz at the front gate to be allowed onto the premises and then when I arrived at the embassy, I was told that it would take 4 months to get a visa to Myanmar from Canberra. I tried to plead my case for lenience and asked if there was any other way I could get the visa for Myanmar, but they were adamant it would not happen for this trip.
I tried to argue another direction and asked if I might be able to arrange it while I was already on my trip, say, from Singapore. The immediate response was that it would not work at all trying from Singapore, but it might work if I were to attempt to get the visa from Bangkok and that it might take as little as a day to arrange through this mechanism. I was amazed, but will try it when I get there to see if I can continue into Myanmar.
Finally back at the airport, my non-flexible ticket meant I had to sit in the terminal for 3 hours before my flight was delayed for another hour. Delayed another 20 minutes in the air while we waited for a slot in the landing pattern, I relished getting onto the BMW to drive back home.
Things are starting to come together and if I don't manage to get the visas or entry permits required, I have enough time on my visas to make a good exploration of most of South-East Asia. Now I need to make it happen in practical terms.
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