Tramite (pronounced tram-eee-tay) is a Spanish word for standing in line between the hours of 9 and 2 for hours and hours until you have every piece of paper needed to make your stay in Chile legal stamped, sent, and folded into an origami crane. Okay, I jest, but only a little. In timeline fashion, for your entertainment: Here is my story.
May 2013:
My Visa was going to expire the end of August and I knew I would need to start the process of renewing that bad boy early. Remember that pile of paper work from an earlier post? Yeah, I had to do that again. This included going to the Chilean Registro Civil (basically the same heaven on earth as the DMV) at least one time. I went 4 times to 4 different Registro Civils throughout the city before I had it all taken care of.
Visit One:
Me: "I need my background check, marriage certificate, and birth certificate of my husband."
Them:"Here you go"
Me: (later) "This is the marriage certificate of my inlaws" (oops... totally my fault for not checking. Also totally random that you can take home a copy of anyone's documents).
Visit Two:
Me: "I need my marriage certificate"
Them:"Yeah, that isn't here."
Me: "Yes it is, the consulate sent it last year (that's how I got my first Visa).
Them: "Oh, you have to go to the other Registro Civil downtown."
Visit Three:
Me: "I need my marriage certificate"
Them: "Yeah, thats not here in the computer. You need to go to this other building and bring back the number so we can find it in that room of filing cabinets."
Me:"Ok. Is it close?"
Them: "Yeah, al lado"
walks 15 blocks
Me: "I need this number for my marriage certificate"
Woman: "Ok. Wait just a minute." Turns on computer that begins to load Windows 1995. Hits space bar repeatedly in an impatient manner. Writes down a number. Gets out a giant notebook, turns through pages, writes down new number on a scrap of paper.
Me:"Thanks"
walks 15 blocks
Me: "Here is the number for my marriage certificate"
Them: goes to search through filing cabinets. returns with something in hand. "Here it is! You can come back in 2 weeks to get your copy."
Visit Four: (3 weeks later, because who are we kidding). System shutdown problem. Three hours later...
Me: "I need my marriage certificate".
Them: "Here you go"
YAY!!
End of June 2013:
I gathered everything else, including a notarized letter that said "I swear I make money." Mailed everything on July 1st right before I went to Texas.
July 29th 2013:
Checked online. They had finally recieved everything in the Extranjeria. It also said that I would recieve in the mail a letter that said "en tramite" meaning that I could travel out of country or do whatever else without worry. It forgot to mention that the postal service was now on what would be a month-long strike. They were camped out under a bridge chanting for better wages, keeping themselves warm with fires that I jokingly said were made with our undelivered mail.
Last day of August:
The internet told me that my Visa was ready and that I would receive something else in the mail. (I still hadn't recieved the other thing. I think they were still protesting.)
Beginning of September:
I waited in a line at the Extranjeria that wrapped around the buliding, went up (and back down) six flights of stairs JUST to get a number to go wait in another line. This little experience was from 8:30-1:15. They glued my Visa in my passport--- that part took 3.5 minutes. Then I had to go wait in another line at International Police to register the thing. Then I had to go to the Registro Civil to get a new Chilean ID card, except, they were now on strike. Yes. The Chilean DMV was on strike. FOR A LONG ASS TIME.
Sometime in the middle of October, the Registro Civil stopped being on strike, but not before over 300,000ish ID cards in the city of Santiago alone had expired. Once it was open, there were literally people spending the night on the steps of this place in order to get a number to hopefully get served the next day. (The thing is, you use your ID number for everything. If it is expired or you are a recent emigrant and don't have one, you can't get a job, open a bank account, rent an apartment... nothing).
Eventually they decided that since they hadn't worked for 6 weeks that they would open on Saturdays for the month of October. One Saturday, the big one was open only for foreigners. Sarah (the new gringa at my school) and I braved what would end up being a 5.5 hour line to get our pictures taken. 3 weeks later, we went to pick up our brand new ID cards (a short 2 hour line), and after only 6 months, I had accomplished my tramites and earned my doctorate in standing in lines.
Tramites. The REAL reason for the abundance of Chilean wines.
