Now the fun begins as we take our final steps toward leaving Colombia and Daniel receiving his U.S. citizenship.
The day began early since our first meeting was at 8:30 a.m. at the Passport office. We dressed Daniel in some of his best clothes and brushed his hair for his photos. He looked great.
We hailed a taxi and met with Lucia's assistant Andres who helped us navigate the Passport office. Daniel did a great job posing for his Colombian passport photo. We had the option of either getting an emergency passport which would be ready within a day but be good for seven months, or wait an extra day and get a passport that is good for 10 years. We know we'll be coming back to visit so it made sense to go ahead and get the 10-year passport.
Once we finished with the Colombian passport, we dove into a small store a couple doors down from the passport office and took Daniel's photos for his U.S. visa.
During this time, Lucia and Andres were contacting the U.S. Embassy doctor to see if we could meet with him today instead of waiting until we received the Colombian passport. Luckily we were able to schedule a meeting for 3:00 p.m.
The process continues to move quickly.
After taking Daniel's photos for his U.S. visa we had a few hours free before our next meeting. We took a short taxi ride to La Hacienda Mall, a high-end mall that was built to look like a small farm. We did mostly window shopping, but found some great boots for Claudia.
After lunch, we took a walk around Usaquen town. It's similar to Belle Meade in Nashville in the sense that its part of Bogota but has its own mayor and other city operations. The town is high-end with elegant restaurants, clothing stores and artifacts wrapping around the town square and church.
We arrived at Casa Lanthana at 1:40. It was great to re-introduce Daniel to the staff who had taken such great care of him during our first week. The staff were so happy to see him. Another great sign of Daniel's attachment to us was when he preferred for me rather than the staff hold him.
Andres showed up at 2:30 and we headed off to the doctor's office. The doctor was tall and had a low gravely voice that reminded me of Herman Munster from the Adam's Family. He was very friendly and would throw out hints about parenthood with a twinkle in his eye.
We were very comfortable talking with the doctor. To our surprise, he lived in the United States for about five years working at a hospital in Louisana and at St. Jude's Hospital in Memphis.
Daniel was a little nervous when the doctor took a look at him. The doctor let Daniel hold a few of his instruments and play with toys.
Most importantly, the doctor signed off on the documents necessary for the U.S. Embassy to provide us with Daniel's visa. We're confirmed to visit the U.S. Embassy on Friday at 8:30 a.m. Everything is falling into place quickly. It's hard to believe we are almost finished!
During the evening, we had a brief meeting with Claudia's uncle Alberto. We're taking advantage of the Colombian holiday this weekend and planning a trip to Villa de Leyva, located about three hours from Bogota. It's one of my favorite places to go.
God Bless,
Brian, Claudia and Daniel
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