They all breezed through immigration at Rome, just showing the photo pages on their passports. One of my first experiences as a citizen literally from the ‘third’ world was during a trip to Italy from Ireland with my American classmates.

I had no idea about all the excruciating paperwork that was needed. Those privileged enough to be born in the West who can just get up and go to any country of their choice, whenever, will never understand that there is no such thing as spontaneous travel for us.įirst, we cannot just buy a one-way ticket to anywhere, a return ticket is another requirement, and overstaying can mean being deported immediately or banned from the country.Ī person just picking up a passport, rushing to the airport in a cab, buying a ticket over the counter, breezing past security check, and hopping into a plane just before the flight attendant closes the hatch – that only happens in movies.īefore I travelled internationally on my own, I thought everyone had to go through the same process, so I did not mind the extra work. What they do not know is that every visa on my passport has meant hours of paperwork filled with anxiety: my bank statement, proof of college or work, letters of invitation, hotel bookings, medical records, fee payment receipt from bank, and then the interview round. They flip through the pages and say, “Your passport looks like so much fun!” Every time one of my foreign friends sees my Nepali passport, they are fascinated by the number of visas I have in it.

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