I live in Nigeria, and every time I drive by the embassies in town, there’s always so many people, so much activity and streams of anxious visa applicants hoping to leave the country. Only during weekends and public holidays are there no crowds. We’ve always believed the grass is greener overseas, so we do all we can to cross the bridge – till we discover the truth.
Even at airports, you can tell who’s making that trip for the first time. Their luggage is always over the allowable limits (which they must spend hours repacking) or they’ve got loose items as carry-ons.
You can also tell who’s going for a visit, who’s going for business and who’s got plans never to return home. Those who are going for a visit look usually calm and composed. They are either reading a book on their Kindle or playing a game while waiting for the flight. Those who are on business trips are busy on their laptops plotting graphs or reviewing presentation slides while waiting for the boarding announcements.
And the last group? You can find those making the trip of a lifetime pacing up and down the terminal. They are loud on their phones, telling every Tom, Dick and Harry about their trip. They spend their time in and out of duty-free shops with no plan to buy anything.
Do you hope to join the last group and one day move overseas? If so, here are six questions to ask yourself before you apply for that visa.
