A brush with the homeland

So we needed to get some official documents notarized. No big deal, but the only US Notary in the neighborhood is at the consulate in Osaka.

The US consulate today was quite an experience. We had to empty our pockets of anything that had any relationship to electronics. No cell phone, no pedometer, no electronic dictionary, no earphones... The Japanese security guards were 110% on the job.

Once we were stripped off all the electronic devices we didn't know we were carrying, we went up to get our documents signed. We had scheduled an appointment the previous week and we had some time, so we got our documents in order to make things as fast and easy as possible. We only needed two documents notarized. We took them out and got in line.

There was a couple that had arrived ahead of us and were engaged in a very long and earnest conversation with the consulate receptionist about how they just wanted to get married and they had been sent here by someone else and they lived hours away and they didn't know what to do next, etc.

As we waited we kept reaching for our cell phones before remembering they had been taken away. Left with no alternative, we had nothing to do but eavesdrop.

According to Russell, part of the problem was that the information the girl was giving in English did not match the information the guy was giving in Japanese. The receptionist finally kindly asked them to talk to each other first and then come back with their plan. In the meantime another receptionist came and talked with us.

We gave our paperwork. It mostly went fine. The woman notarizing our documents was very nice and clad in a bright red trench coat not at all unlike Carmen SanDiego. The experience, was, however, not without a few snags.

Problem #1: We were suppose to fill out a form that asked for the notary's contact information, the signer's names and the ID they had shown to confirm themselves to the notary.

Apparently the US consulate doesn't DO that.

Not signed.

Problem #2: We had been instructed to attach a rider to the document being notarized, but the rider counted as an additional document in the consulate's eyes and gave no indication that it required notarizing.

Not attachable. No sir.

Problem #3: I had double checked whether they would need witnesses before the documents were sent, because we would have to bring our own. (Clearly stated all over the consulate's website). Since we were told on Friday afternoon that we needed to get said documents notarized by Tuesday, we knew that we would need to book some friends fast if we needed witnesses. The woman preparing the documents assured me that the notary counted as the witness and we didn't need anyone else.

But of course, two witnesses were needed.

Cue the young couple who haven't agreed on the country in which they plan to get married.

Will you solemnly swear that the documents before you are, to the best of your knowledge truthful and untampered with? Even though we haven't told you what the documents are for, who we are or what we're doing? You will?

Its good to be in love.

Russell and I high-tailed it back to our smart phones and out into the suddenly nippy end-of-autumn air.

Update:

The documents reached their destination. The result? We didn't sign with our middle initial - so the whole packet has to be redone.

*%*$*#@#&

Back we go on Monday.