{"id":1411,"date":"2012-08-12T17:40:47","date_gmt":"2012-08-12T21:40:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/boardingarea.com\/blogs\/verygoodpoints\/?p=1411"},"modified":"2013-04-23T13:36:24","modified_gmt":"2013-04-23T17:36:24","slug":"where-ive-been-and-where-im-going","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/first2board.com\/verygoodpoints\/2012\/08\/12\/where-ive-been-and-where-im-going\/","title":{"rendered":"Where I’ve been and where I’m going"},"content":{"rendered":"

Last month I had to get a new passport because mine was set to expire 5 February 2013. \u00a0Now, typically getting a new passport isn’t such a big deal. \u00a0Fill out some forms, mail off your old passport and a few weeks (or more) later you have a new passport. Or, you could visit a passport center and get a new one if you’re in a rush and a have access to a passport center.<\/p>\n

When you travel internationally for business as much as I do, mailing off for a renewal passport isn’t really an option. There’s no passport center where I live (sure, there are passport agencies, but they’re no quicker than the good old mail.) \u00a0So I had to figure out how to renew.<\/p>\n

I happened to be in New York and was lucky to get an appointment at the NY Passport Center. \u00a0Easy enough, or so I thought. \u00a0I got my passport, signed it and got ready for my next trip. \u00a0 Fast forward 2 weeks and I’m packing up for my trip to Hong Kong.<\/p>\n

I went through security in Charleston and used my passport as ID. No problem. \u00a0I went through LA security, no problem. \u00a0It wasn’t until I got to Hong Kong that there was a little snag. \u00a0The birthday in my passport didn’t match the birthday I wrote on my customs form – and the agent in Hong Kong noticed. \u00a0I laughed and played it off saying, “oh, I’m not used to writing the date in the DD\/MM\/YY format. In the US we write our birth month first. And smiled” \u00a0He looked for a few minutes and then waived me on. \u00a0Phew! That was close.<\/p>\n

So how the heck did my birthday get printed wrong on my Passport and why didn’t I check it! \u00a0The truth is, I’m very used to using the DD\/MM\/YY format since I work with international offices only. \u00a0 I guess I’m so used to writing that way, that I filled out my forms wrong when I got the passport. \u00a0 Now, the bigger question is how did the woman at the passport center miss that? \u00a0She noticed, and questioned, why I was only using my middle initial on my new passport and not my full middle name. \u00a0She noticed that detail, but not the birthday? \u00a0Okay, in fairness, I didn’t even look at my birthday on the passport and she must not have either.<\/p>\n

I knew I had to get it fixed, and was worried that if it was wrong when I re-entered the US that the Global Entry Kiosks would reject it. \u00a0So, I did the only thing I could do – I made an appointment at the US Consulate in Hong Kong. \u00a0I filled out some more forms, explained the situation and paid another fee . Three days later, I had a new passport waiting for me at the Consulate. \u00a0This time, the woman at the Consulate checked every single piece of data. I asked if that was standard and she said it was, but that sometimes people don’t pay close attention since they see so many. \u00a0Uh, that’s not comforting.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Getting a new passport mid-trip was a bit complex. \u00a0The Consulate explained that since my entry stamp was in the old passport – which they cancelled and returned to me – I’d have to show both the old, and the new passport at any borders. \u00a0That really threw off some agents at the Macau border! \u00a0I got a lot more questions than I ever have before. \u00a0But, I’m very happy to have a corrected new passport in hand.<\/p>\n

So with a new passport in hand, I’m taking a look back at where I’ve been and where I’m going – call it a bucket list retrospective.<\/p>\n

Where I’ve been:<\/p>\n