ID Card Fiasco

So, to live in Kosovo, you are required to possess what we foreigners call an "ID Card". Sounds simple enough, huh? Well...just read on!

So, last fall when I first arrived in Kosovo, I went down to Prishtina, the capital, and applied for one- easy enough. They said it would be ready in 2 weeks and to come back then...which we did (keep in mind Prishtina is almost 2 hours away from where I live, on a very bad road!). They weren't ready...nor were they ready every other time we returned for the next 9 months (they kept telling us each time that it would be "just 2 weeks more"). Finally our cards arrived! They expired in 3 months!!!

So, 3 weeks before my card expired I headed back to Prishtina to renew my card- no biggie, you'd think! Well, it turns out that the problem which delayed the cards 9 months was going to prevent this from working. You see, the UN had moved out of Kosovo and Eulex- the European Union's form of police- had moved in. A change in powers always results in difficulties for people just like me who think things should "just go smoothly"!

So, I went to the police station (you can read the previous post about driving to Prishtina...) SIX times before my paperwork was accepted. I won't bore you with all the details, but that is a lot of traveling, being frustrated, sometimes wanting to bite someone's head off but not knowing enough Albanian to, and work! Finally on the last time...it worked! And you wouldn't even believe that the same people who had been so rude to us before were all smiles and jokes this time- man, you just never know what you are going to get!

So, hopefully my ID card will be awaiting my arrival back in Kosovo in December...but then again, you just never know in Kosovo!