Tramitar

Hardly acustomed to being in the noisy surrounding of the city once again after my last stay in la Selva, I had to learn a new Spanish word. These last two days I learned the signification of the spanish word ´tramitar´ or ´hacer tramites´, which is used for the process or action (and very much non-action...) of applying for any permission, government benefits, fundings etc.

Aim: Staying legally in Mexico untill the beginning of July. I was up for trying it the irregular way, but left the thought after several horror stories from ´ervaringsdeskundigen´ (experts by experience) about high fines including unofficial costs (corruption) and threats of not being able to leave the country.

Answers to my question on how to reach my aim:
Pagina de Web de Embajade Mexicana en Holanda: Tourists will be given a visa for three months, which can be extended with three extra months. If wanting to stay longer, one has to consult the authorities.
Officina Nacional de Migracion in Cuatemoc when going to Guatemala in Decembre: ¨You will see so when your first visa expires. Since it is still valid at the moment, we will not take it from you and you return to Mexico with the same.¨
Officina Nacional de Migracion in Comitan, beginning of January: ¨You can apply for an extension untill the end of April. Then you have two options. To leave the country and return. When this is by plane, you will be allowed another three months. If by terestial transport, only 1 month, with a lot of luck 2 months, but we doubt it... The other option is to apply for a FM3, that will cost you 190 euro irrespective of staying 2 days or one year longer.¨
Officina Nacional de Migracion in San Cristobal, one day before my visa expires: ¨Oh no, we are not giving you anymore than 1 month extra from today on.¨ ¨But I am going to work as a volunteer¨. ¨Ok, than you have to apply for a FM3, for which you first have to bring me a letter of the organisation you are planning to work with. Only afterwards will I give you the list of requiries and only if you can bring me all of these requiries tomorrow - which I doubt - you do not have to pay twice.¨ ¨Can you give me the list now, so that I can make sure to be on time¨. ¨No, no, no, I first want to see the letter.¨
GRRRRRRRRRR.... I know no-one likes this kind of paper work, but I guess I am especially allergic to the authoritarian, bureacratic manners of sending from ´cupboard to wall and back again´ as we would say in Dutch. I find it so stupid, I have difficulty staying polite myself and start mixing up my Spanish in my frustracion... Point is, the same people are going to judge your application, so I´d better stay friends with them.

So I went running around all day, to obtain the letter from Fundacion Leon XII and arrange other papers. Together with Alma the volunteer coordinator we then tried to think of all the possible copies they could ask for. We decided that I would go to Tuxtla Gutierez (1 hour from San Cristobal) to ´tramitar´ the next day, as San Cristobal is notorious for its slow procedures (takes up to a year ´el tramite´ for the FM3) and inpolite handling of migrants.

Next day, I have made copies of every single document I can think of and have prepared mentally for a long day of waiting and above all staying polite. Before entering the office in Tuxtla, I think of taking off my Zapatista t-shirt (well, I doubt it got any better with only my tirantes/hempje revealing my unshaved armpits but ok, one only tries it best). And I put on what I hope is a very polite and friendly smile, determined to stay there. I enter the room of the Licenciado (mind the titles here in Mexico!!) Miguel Angel Roldan Davila, not sitting down untill he tells me so and after shaking hands. I state clearly my case and hope to impress him by handing over all the documents at once.
Officina Nacional de Migracion Tuxtla Gutierez: ¨Mmmm, yes, so you will only work in this organisation for three months. We normally do not give out FM3 for that. Besides your visa expired yesterday. Mmmm¨
¨Yes, but yesterday they told me it would be no problem to come today and besides (showing him the stamps) I have left the country in the meanwhile... ¨
¨Well let me check¨ (he leaves the room)
On return: ¨So how do you pronounce your name? Well, Jenneke, why do you not just stay on a tourist visa for three months more. Then you go to the frontier leave the country for 5 minutes and come back for another three months? Because of your Dutch nationality you will not have any problem. I will talk to my collegues in Cuatemoc, that they stop letting people go out of the country without taking back their visa and giving new ones on entering.¨
Pfieeeeeuwwww... after another three hours of going to the bank to pay for the visa (the waiting lines are always enormous here in the banks, especially on the days the state benefits arrive) and waiting for my stamps, I went out being a legal tourist again!
So it seems I am at save. The only bitter taste, are the Salvadorians that were ´tramitando´ with me and had much less luck...

Tomorrow I will change my plane ticket and Tuesday I will start my work in the Foundation Leon XII, making composts, learning how to keep mushrooms and work with chicken in the Centre and later with the people of the communities here in Los Altos de Chiapas. This means changing from Tseltal to Tsotsil, but they are a bit similar.
My favourite word in Tseltal, is Mayuc, which means ´No hay´ (There aint) and ´Nada´ (Nothing) and is used a lot.
Binti ya apas? What´s up? Mayuc!!!
Just found out I just have to change one letter to make it into Tsotsil
Mayuc = Muyuc