The Great Apostille (Part 1): Making rounds of government offices

In my previous post, I suddenly declared that I'd made a move to Spain. I also told you that I'd learned a lot about local formalities and processes, about which I'd post later. So here it is. In a series of posts, starting with this one, I'm going to describe the processes and formalities required to make a move to Spain, from getting those seemingly impossible documents, your Visa, local contracts and NIE appointments.

The motivation to write this series:
With a change in country of residence, comes the requirement of a new Visa. That they're both within the European system is irrelevant, so far as procedure is concerned. While going through the process myself, I found an extremely useful mine of information on the blog of someone who seems to have made the same move sometime ago. And so I find it appropriate to be passing on the good deed, by providing an updated version to his information, which you can find here.

Who can use this material?
We of course parts of it are relevant to anyone making a move to Spain from India, but it would be most useful for those moving for Academic purposes, better yet an advanced academic degree.

In this post;
I write about the dreaded Apostille required for academic documents. This isn't needed to get a Visa, but in all likelihood needed to register at your institution. Better then, to do it before you leave the country?

What is this wretched thing?
Spanish institutions (most) require our (Indian) original public documents to be 'Apostilled' for acceptance in their system. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) provides the essential points on the purpose of this 'sticker'. But to put it succinctly, - Your local police station may give you a letter, saying you have no criminal record, but the other country's government doesn't recognize your local police station. They do, however, recognize your government's external affairs ministry - who gives you the 'apostille' saying that your letter from the police station, is legitimate. This holds for all kinds of public documents, including academic. Now imagine a multi-lateral recognition system between more than a hundred countries - The Apostille Convention.

The following information pertains only to getting Educational Documents, (Degree and Transcripts) Apostilled, by the Ministry of External Affairs, New Delhi. Also they're relevant for institutes which fall under the Jurisdiction of Maharashtra, which is where I went about the process. However, other States will have a similar procedure. I say relevant for Maharashtra, because I'll be providing pin-point locations, departments/sections/buildings, names, phone-numbers and cheat-codes! to get your job done quickly and smoothly.


Step1: Notarization. Get the documents 'notarized'. You need not to go to a magistrate, just a regular notary. If you're close to Andheri, then lookout for them at the Court Lane, close to East station. However, if you're institute falls under Mumbai University (including Xavier's Autonomous), you could do it in Town, outside the High Court, since the next step will take you there anyway.

Cheat. Look for a large red sticker placed on the windscreen of the parked cars outside High Court. If it's sunny you may even spot a large umbrella sticking out of it's window. They're notary officials. If you look like a tourist, which is my favorite term for someone who's clueless, then expect to be ripped off gloriously. If you talk right, you can get done paying about Rs.50/page. Walk up and confidently but respectfully ask for 'Notary of Rs.25' for your educational docs. DO NOT say it's for a Visa or Spain or anything like that. Just that your idiotic boss wants them notarized (change in company policy and he needs to cover his rear end)

What you get: 1 red seal, with his name and notary details embossed, 1 set of postage stamps worth Rs.25, 2 ink stamps proclaiming 'Notary | Government of India' and containing his registration number/expiry date, and 1 ink stamp proclaiming that the document has been 'attested by me', his personal salutation (usually an advocate in the courts) and address.

Step2: Stamp of the University Controller. Since my institute didn't fall under MU, I didn't need to go through this step exactly, but its about the same. I can't provide you details of who to go to exactly, but you need the stamp/signature of the "Controller" or "Controller of Examinations" which basically verifies that the degree/transcripts have been issued by them.

What I can confirm for a fact, is that this will definitely be at the Fort office of the University in South Bombay, and NOT their exam center in Kalina. If they send you there, pester them saying that those people sent you here, and you also know that it takes place here. Period. They'll then ask you to leave your docs and come back in an hour or two. Done.


Step 3: Home department. This notarization has now, to be certified by the Home Department of the State Government, where the documents were issued. The Officers at Mantralaya (where the State Government sits) seem to have become fed up of answering calls regarding 'attestation of educational documents' and have put up a webpage dedicated to this, which you can check here. I'll carry on anyway.

Cheat: REMEMBER, there are many people in the Home Department who 'attest' notarized documents, but there's a different officer deputed for different kinds of documents. For your purpose, head to the "New Administrative Building", which is the one exactly opposite the 'Mantralaya' building. The person in charge during my time, which was about mid 2016, was a certain 'Kharat sir' - always refer to them in that manner, even and especially when asking around. He sits on the 9th Floor of that building.

Section officers, sign such documents by the hundreds every single day. Because most people rely on 'agents' for these processes, they come carrying a huge bundle - and speedily process their docs in batches. Present yourself to his 'aide-de-champ' - everyone has one, so he can verify that you've done the earlier steps correctly, and he will take you to his boss. Earnestly explain that you don't live in the city and need to return home today, and he'll leave his batch to sign your 3-4 pages

What you get: An ink stamp stating that,

The signature of Shir ..... is hereby verified. Section Officer, Home Department, Government of Maharashtra, Mantralaya, Mumbai

This is followed by his signature. The stamp leaves a portion blank, for you to fill in the notary official's name. They don't have the time to do that, but you must remember to.
 

Final Step: Department of Higher and Technical Education 
In the days of jat-moody you could expect to finish this step in a day or two, but with the new person in charge - and his own way of doing things, that's no longer possible. You are now heading to collect the coveted stamp and signature of the Deputy Secretary of the State Higher Education Department - P.M. Takte.


....to be continued in another post...

Neighbourhood Events

Returned home after a nice Saturday morning coffee, to a group of people painting on a street corner. The 'Casa de la Barceloneta' or 'CB 1761' as it's also know, was conducting a speed painting competition. When you move to a new neighborhood (Barceloneta) - or country (Spain), it's always nice to know a little bit more about the place. You're likely to find a lot of useful information. 

I was once commuting by an auto-rickshaw in my home town, when I noticed a foreigner- by her rucksack, walking past us as we waited at the signal. This was a July afternoon, and if you're from India, you know that the rains haven't arrived yet, and it's sweltering hot. Why on earth would someone chose to walk? And India's relatively cheaper than the West, even if you're the 'hitchhiker' tourist, you can afford a rickshaw fare! So I got talking to the auto-driver. He told me that, it's likely that the woman knew more about this place, than either of us. How so? Because they're the kind of people, who will translate every signboard and talk to every passer-by to understand the place better. Why? Because that's how they are, curious. 

Not to be philosophical, but there is definitely some truth to what he said. To know, you have to want to know. And translates to, well, walking around talking to locals. That's how I've kept up in my time here, and I've certainly learned a lot about the city and different processes like registering your residence, and applying for your government identity card. (More about that in another post).

CB1761 is a local community center built to specifically for Barceloneta. These paintings will be up for in exhibition tomorrow onwards, and I'll be going to find out more.

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Annoying Habits

My flatmate has an annoying habit of locking the main door every time he leaves the house. What's so annoying about that I hear you ask? Well he does so even when there are other people at home! As students, we're always running a minute behind the clock. Those precious 30 seconds lost in the morning searching for your keys, when you realize he's locked you in again, can be the difference between catching the bus, and having to hike it.

Well, this happened a few days. And since then, I've found the door open more often than not even when he's not home.

The Power Struggle: European Football and the Caste System

Leicester city have won the English Premier League beating odds of 5000 to 1. Yet while the rest of the world celebrates their victory, there is a serious cause for concern. Newcomers like Leicester and Tottenham have upset the elite clubs by qualifying for the Champions League. By establishing an exclusive European league, the sporting giants aim to cement their power structure - a major blow to the principles of competition. This kind of power grab is not new to the Indian subcontinent, where it continues to operate under the 'Caste System'.   

Leicester City F.C., Premier League Champions 2016

In March the Jats of Haryana took the state by storm. Their long standing agitation for OBC (Other Backward Classes) status turned violent and claimed hundreds of lives. The age old  'Caste System' is a power-structure  to ensure people were 'kept in their places'. The Jats formed the middle class of this virtually unshakable system.

However, the Green Revolution, brought power and public influence to the land-owning Jats. Similarly, in the late 20th and 21st centuries, technological and legislative changes pushed the backward castes up the socio-economic ladder. The best example of this is the current Chief Minister of the state, who is the first non-Jat in almost two decades. The recent riots are representative of a desperate effort to maintain, this volatile power structure.

Upper caste Brahmin performing a ceremony

In the world of football, sponsorships are to elite clubs, what land is to the Jats. And Leicester's entry into the Champions League draws a football parallel of untouchability. Historically the clubs that gave the best wages attracted the best talents, in turn emerging at the top of their domestic competitions. Those who best managed their finances, remained at the top of their game, increasing their corporate value, and their worldwide fanbase; creating a cycle of perpetual domination.

An underdog, Leicester City broke this cycle by winning the domestic competition this year. The elite would consider this to be a transgression into the sanctimonious space of the Champions League. With qualification based on merit and performance, other clubs like Tottenham Hotspur, are also forcing their way up the table. The president of Real Madrid, Florentino Perez, hinted at a European competition, that does away with the performance based qualification process. The 'Super League' will be a competition between the elite clubs of Europe, Perez's idea to "guarantee that the best always play against the best", notwithstanding who the best is.

Leicester's success mirrors the socio-economic progress, of the non-Jats of Haryana. They have both overcome incalculable odds through their skill and hard work.

Arguably, professional football is as much a business as it is a sport. Thus sustainability relies equally on business acumen as it does on skill. The 'Super League', with its own rules of entry based on perceived status, will erode the core foundation of football, that of open competition.

Iran Calling

Iran has finally come calling; well atleast metaphorically. I got contacted by a student in Iran who's interested in learning English, so it seems that language exchange portal isn't a complete waste, you just need to put across your offer in some detail and those interested will contact you. Ali is a university student based in Mashhad and is studying history, and wants to improve his English speaking skills so he's more comfortable with the language in holding conversations.

Mashhad, Iran

I was a little apprehensive when he wrote to me initially, since few people actually make an effort to go beyond saying 'I'd like to improve my English'. I repeatedly grilled him saying that he had to 'show' me that he wanted to really learn, not just say it but actually prove it. So we then did a Skype call. He was in his university hostel with his roommates and seemed surprised that we were having the call. You'd have expected that we'd exchange pleasantries and talk about other things first, but I just got down to the purpose of the call, asking him outright to explain 'how' interested he was in improving his skills. Perhaps a bit rushed you might say, but I wanted to put across how seriously I take my teaching and time, I'm a really sweet person!

We've established a modus operandi of Skype two times a week for quarter of an hour. Majority of that time we'll be spending on his learning, while mine relate mostly to written submissions and corrections. I'm not going to start talking fluent Persian, but it's meant as a strong preparatory for when I go to Iran and join a short term program.

On other fronts, I've tried to get in touch with the Iranian Embassies in India and Switzerland through email, but I haven't herd from them; maybe I've sent it to the wrong department so I think I'll have to just pick up the phone - something I learned from writing to the universities in Iran, always always always follow up with a phone call.

The most important and worrying thing for me though, is accommodation and knowing people in Tehran. Housing there is like in any big city, a major hassle and with the right circumstances, an absolute impossibility. This is why it's important to know people who already live there, not only to help you find a place, but to make sure you don't get swindled. 

If you're interested, there's an ongoing discussion among people who are interested to go there to learn the language, including myself. This is the forum link.   

Time to get more coffee!

 

In The Face of Adversity

Dear team Barça, 

A scoring spree in a single game may have been luck, but in two it isn't. Welcome back to your true selves. As an ardent follower of the game, and a supporter of the team, nothing makes me happier than to see you play football with enthusiasm and joy. The unanimous uproar in the dugout when Marc Bartra scored against Deportivo, the beaming smile with which Dani Alves joined him in celebration - that's the reason I and millions of others watch and support Barcelona play.

Football Club Barcelona, Mes Que un Club

The recent blip in your otherwise flawless season, was as testing a time for supporters, as it was for the players, but it also showed how much our paramount position in the game is envied. 

Never had I witnessed the celebration of a stumble with such unanimity in our season. Not just from our rivals, but also from supporters of clubs in other leagues; it seemed as if people were patiently waiting for that very moment. That however is the price of our success; that people will say and do just about anything to bring us down. Some are envious of our continued victories, while some resent our celebration of it, and then there are still those who would like to sow the seeds of discord between us.

Combined with circumstances out of our control, this can wear down our winning spirit, resulting in those rare bad days. There were games in the past where our opponents were the best side and we must respect and accept that. But as our last two games showed, we are a much better side and have a lot more to offer. So let's go out there and win the remaining games, and we would still have a spectacular season that will give us as much to celebrate, as it did to learn.

Barcelona vs Real Betis, League Match 36, 30th April, 20.30 CET

Other locations: FC Barcelona Website

Posting at Ungodly Hours

I've been doing the graveyard shift for a while now, and am surprisingly productive, but there's one thing that's making me really cranky, and it's the sight of snow first thing in the morning.

St. Gallen Weather; Looking forward to sunshine after 3 days of snow

For a few days now, every morning, the lawn outside my window has a layer of snow on it, not as much as during peak winters, but enough for you to question if it's really spring time. It riles me up; for god sake its' the end of April! That's St. Gallen for you. Anytime of the year, a few successive days without strong sunlight and temperatures plunge, forcing you to change from the summer shirt collection to woolens and overcoats like a schizophrenic.  

I'm sure some of you think I'm just being uptight, because well, its snow! Who doesn't love snow?! Yes actually we all love snow for a few days, and during the right times, like around Christmas or New Year, but this flippant behavior of the weather, irritates even the non-natives who aren't so finicky about being orderly and punctual. Today morning, (or yesterday?) the snowfall was so heavy, I even saw mini snow-plows, those ugly looking golf cart like vehicles, making rounds up and down the street, their low-pitched motors straining, as if grumbling about having to work at such odd times of the year. Yes we are all unanimous in our dislike for the weather here, old young students employees tourists natives, all of us.

On the brighter side, the weather is predicted to improve over the next few days, which is welcome news, but there's no telling when it may get ugly again. The prediction system is quite reliable, but that's not the problem, its the weather! It's like taking solace in the fact that we can see the storm coming, even though there's nothing we can do about it except open our umbrellas. Pretty darn useful -_______- 


(Next morning update)

Sunshine predicted, sunshine delivered.

University Hill, St. Gallen; See that patch of white on the bottom left corner? That's snow that still hasn't melted. Now picture the entire field pristine white, that was the state for 3 days.

Coffee Keeps Your Spirits Up

As I'd suspected, looking for a language partner online isn't easy or at the very least is a snail paced process, exchanging several pleasantries over the span of many days, establishing trust and a working schedule and adhering to it. All this only if/after you first find someone willing and interested, which itself takes a long time; and with only two months before I board my flight, this isn't a feasible process. This realization came very heavily upon me and I'd started to brood. Setbacks before step one can really put one off. So I decided to get a coffee, at a famous establishment tucked away in one of the by-lanes of the city.

Kaffeehaus, St. Gallen

Now when I say 'famous' I'm sure you imagine the place teeming with people and loud chatter, with the staff zipping about the place balancing steaming hot coffee and croissants in their hands, the cashier fervently working the cash register; that's not the case. You see, with Switzerland you have to take everything into proportion. Most large capital cities around the world, like New York, London, Sao Paolo, Berlin, or Mumbai,  have populations anywhere between 5 to 15 million. The population of Switzerland is about 8 million. Yes, the entire country, and St. Gallen is among the smaller 'cities'. So at a famous coffee house, you'd expect to find very few vacant tables at any time of the day. (The Swiss are very particular about proportion and efficiency with everything, but which is a story for another post.)

Anyway, I wasn't much of a coffee drinker before moving to this country. In fact I couldn't even understand the concept of 'hot coffee' (understandably since I come from India), and my friends thought of my idea of 'cold coffee' as some chocolate drink for toddlers. (Not to mention the fact that they think we can't discern the subtleties of different flavors since everything we eat is fire hot :/ ) I got my first real experience with coffee during exam time as my Italian friends are coffee aficionados. Those long hours during the night were really taxing and my body usually needs something to fight off sleep in those situations. Enter, the Espresso. My first reaction, was like someone drinking beer for the first time. And because I have a sweet tooth, it tasted even worse. But I have to tell you, it works like a pill; atleast the first few times I had it I felt like I'd woken up after a nice nap! :D Eventually they came up with the right mix of milk and sugar, to make exactly right and enjoyable for me.

The coffees at Kaffeehaus are the absolute definition of perfection. My friend told me the owner actually 'listens' to the machine (with his ear on it) to gauge if the milk is frothing through the beans correctly. And these beans are never sourced locally, or even bought locally wherever they may be from (labels are for people who read labels, he 'reads' the smell of the coffee); his coffee is personally brought from handpicked locations in Italy, Brazil and Columbia (Yes he visited the farm, and pays a confidant to bring them to him) That's an aficionado for you. But Kaffeehaus is much more than just about coffee; it brings with it all the culture and customs of old european coffee houses, like space to play an instrument, a wall piano in this case (you can often find someone playing), encouraging lively discussion (without chattering) or the custom of anonymously sponsoring an espresso at the counter, a kindly gesture that originated in the south of Italy, where people would come up to ask, C’è un Sospeso? (Is there a 'suspended' coffee)

Yes, the hot, frothy Cappuccino was a delightful treat in the morning, and really pulled up my spirits. I now have to think of another way to go about the process. Another website/forum may work but it's a hit or miss, and I can't afford to miss anymore, so I'll be spending sometime thinking and exploring rather than pursuing any one method. Also I apologize for the one sole picture, given my love for the place, but since they're back from their vacation, I'll be making frequent visits, and will sure put up some more along this article. Until next time, Tschuss!  

The Long Road to Tehran

It is said in many cultures that the way you spend the first day of the new year, sets the tone for the rest of your year. This is true of Persian culture as well, and therefore in the same vein, I'd like to start my blog on a positive note, with a goal in mind, and a route to plan and execute!

Tehran, Iran; Picture from Mina Yamini, a photographer who traveled and lived in Iran

A long time ago, I'd made plans to visit Iran, through a university level student exchange program, but which didn't work out (some administrative issues); and not in the least because of a lack of effort. I had started planing my stay there, place to live, rents, and made extensive progress (or atleast that's how I see it) on learning the language. Now I can understand if you just brush off this statement; I too would be bored to hear someone say the phrase 'learning a language', because it sounds like a part-time hobby! But I actually went about it methodically, with proper material, making different sections in my exercise book for nouns, verbs, adjectives, and prepositions; drawing columns for the words in Persian, and their meanings in English. Yes, I did it, and yes by myself.

Because Persian (or Farsi) has a script different from the Latin alphabet used by many European languages, this may seem a super set back, but I found a way around this too. I started by learning the Alefba (alphabets) in the original script, trying to remember them, and carried on for the rest in the Latin script, like how an English speaker would read German (which is in the Latin script), but with the correct enunciation. Yes, I found the right way to say the words in Persian, through an online source, which was a real gold mine of learning material. As I went about it, over the span of maybe two months, I had more than 200 words, neatly written out in my book, and soon began to stitch them together into sentences, eventually addressing advanced grammar like tenses, interrogative sentences, assertions and imperatives.

All this in 2 months, I hear you say? Yes, in two months; our generation really doesn't appreciate the impact of diligence and persistence. We call it 'hard-work' but it's not really hard work; if I think about it, I can't recall anything that was 'hard'. It was fun work if you ask me, and when you start to feel the progress, you get a real kick out of it. The first time I felt the progress is when I started making calls to the Universities in Iran, and would effortlessly introduce myself and ask my questions. Ofcourse I'd had to prepare them beforehand but there was still a sense of accomplishment when the lady on the other line didn't initially realize that I wasn't an Iranian!

In this process, the one thing that really helped was a website for people interested in language exchange. Now I'm not much of a fan of technology and I feel it has severe limitations when it comes as a learning aid, but I realized that those are actually because of us, the users. We don't really understand how to fully exploit it to our advantage. This language exchange is basically like any other social network with people setting up profiles, and searching users with filters, for others they'd like to talk to, and start a conversation. Realistically, it is impossible to make any meaningful strides in learning a language by merely texting each other, and it gets awfully boring if done line by line; so instead I started to send exercises. To learn speaking full sentences, I'd come up with phrases in English, then write down the translation in Persian, scan it, (because I prefer pen and paper) and send it to my partner online, who would correct it with her feedback.

This didn't always work because 1) you'd need to know someone with that adequate level of English to make the corrections and explain it, and 2) you'd need someone just as motivated who'd be willing to help consistently and with timeliness. Finding someone with a mix of both these traits is near impossible, and if you throw in the fact that majority of men are 'out and about' on the social internet, to strike a 'friendship' with women, there's almost no trust left for people to actually go out of their way to help you. (Somewhere you may wonder why I only tried to have this exchange with women, but I'm hoping you've understood reading that last line).

So now I re-start that long road to Tehran! I've just dusted off my old Persian exercise book, and rejoined that language exchange website, but I'm doubtful of any positive response soon; we'll just have to wait and see. Alongside this, I'm refreshing my photoshop skills (used to be a graphic designer), since I plan to do some part-time teaching here at the University, and save up money for the upcoming trip. In the next post, expect to see either travel plans/itineraries for Iran, or something about the shuffle and juggle of life in Switzerland.

Bedrood!

The What and The Why

Facebook is becoming a synonym for 'internet', articles are being replaced by 'list-icles', and original writing is being marginalized by content production. The internet, is now just a massive garbage dump and before you realize it, you're spending hours doing nothing, switching between tabs in seconds, and scrolling further and further down your news feed, trying to find something even remotely stimulating. It's the absolute equivalent of vegetating in front of your TV. I've caught myself on more than one occasion scrolling down the 'timeline' on my phone, only to realize how tiny the slider on the side has become - as a measure of how far I've scrolled. It's almost like you sleeping with your mouth half open, while slowly drooling.

Therefore I'm going back to the old ways and old days when blogs were popular, and we could connect with a few other original and interesting bloggers (who'd write more than 140 characters), and form a sort of network of interesting things to share, and read. As much as I'm aware of the fact that we can't go back to crawling, after learning to walk, I'm going to try. I'm positive also because I feel where we've found ourselves today isn't necessarily a step forward. It has it's usefulness, so long as its restricted for those specific uses, but which is a story for another post. This covers the 'why'.

What about the 'What' ? So far it's nothing specific, and more about escaping the relentless mind numbing chatter. But it would be mostly what I think about or encounter in my life. As a student. But non-academic. It should get more focused as time goes by. Just like the process of starting to read; you pick books randomly at first, and with time notice that you tend to pick a certain kind, more than others.

Cheers