Passport Stuff

Passports are your lifeline into and out of a country, the magical little book that opens the doorway to foreign lands. However, applying or re-applying for one may not seem so magical as you search for that obnoxious government paperwork that has twenty different letters and numbers. This section will hopefully serve as a guide on passports through our experience. All official information can be found at the U.S. Department of State's Website.

*As of June 1st, 2009 U.S. travelers will be required to provide a passport for Canada, Mexico, Bermuda and the countries of the Caribbean by land or sea. If arriving back in the U.S. before June 1st you may still use a birth certificate and drivers license. *


Adding Pages:
Considering we will be visiting 20+ countries we thought it wise to get extra pages added to our passport. Don't want to be locked up in a foreign prison with squatty potties and insect roommates; ok dramatic, yes, but you get the idea. So we printed and filled out the appropriate forms and mailed them off with our passports for no fee. We got them back a couple of weeks later with 23 additional visa pages. Tada!

Some countries, like South Africa, require at least two completely blank pages per entry so always check the country's entry and exit requirements. Most countries also require that you have at least 6 months left on your passport.

Passport Photos:
If applying for a passport you are required to send in two appropriately sized pics. You could go to your local corner store and fork out $8 a pop or you could do it yourself with proper guidelines and a little extra work. We already have our passports but needed extra pictures for visa applications. Here is how the State Department requires photos be taken. They also give tips on lighting setup, composition checklist, and photo quality.

After taking the pictures, we cropped them in Photoshop (2x2 inches) and measured out the appropriate ratio for our head size. Then we created a 4x6 card and placed 6 pictures on each, still in Photoshop. Once everything was right we went to Walmart and printed out five 4x6 pictures, giving us 30 visa pics each for only $2.40! Then all you have to do then is cut the 2x2 pictures out.

While Traveling:
Its a good idea to make 2 photocopies of your passport identification page, along with other important documents you are traveling with. Leave one of them with family or friends, and keep the second with you separate from the originals.

If your passport is lost or stolen while abroad, you should contact the local police and the closest U.S. Embassy. Once reported the consulate can usually provide a replacement within 24 hours. "To contact the Office of Overseas Citizens Services in the U.S. call 1-888-407-4747 (during business hours) or 202-647-5225 (after hours). Contact information for U.S. embassies, consulates, and consular agencies overseas may be found at http://www.state.gov/countries."