Visa Versa.

The first couple times we extended our visas, there was no problem. In April, however, when we asked for a three-month extension, we were told the school could only get us a month, to June 7. We went round and round, explaining that we needed at least a month beyond that. No luck. We were told that we could apply again in two weeks and if we still couldn't get an extension, we could leave the country on a morning flight to Laos, get a new visa at the Vietnamese embassy, then fly back: total cost about $500. Not a good option, though it's apparently what most expats do periodically.

We talked to our landlord, who used to work for the foreign ministry. He thought it was incompetence on the part of the school. If we're working for them, they should be able to get us an extension to cover our period of employment. We talked to the school again. No luck.

In two weeks, we tried again. Now the school said they might be able to get us a year visa, but anything shorter was impossible. It would probably run about $400, cheaper and less disruptive than going to Laos, but still not pretty. We agreed, having run out of options.

Weeks dragged by with no word, and we were getting nervous. Then I was talking to a travel agent and she told me she thought she could get us a one month extension at a reasonable price. Great. Gave her our passports and flight dates and hoped for the best. It took about a week, but we got the extension. Yippee!

Nope. Instead of extending our visa for a month beyond its current expiration--June 10--they had extended it for a month from the date they processed it. Now we have until July 2. Trouble is, our flight out is July 7.

So we asked the travel agent if we could extend again. She said she thought she could get us another week if we gave her a copy of our flight tickets. Perfect!

Nope. On further inquiry, we couldn't apply for the extension for at least two weeks, at which point it would take three or four days to process. Won't work, we told her. We're leaving Hanoi for a trip around Vietnam on the 18th and only returning for a couple days at the end. We need our passports for travel, so we can't leave them. We tried several scenarios, but nothing worked. So the bottom line is this: as soon as we get back to Hanoi of July 5, we'll give her our passports with expired visas and she will try to expedite a one-week extension. Failing that, she will try to get permission to prepay the late exit fine--probably about $50. Otherwise, we'll have to go to the airport, make our excuses, accept our chiding, pay our fines and slink out of the country under a cloud.

We joked that the Vietnamese don't really want us to go, so much so that we have to pay them to let us leave.

P.