The Black Man and his Visa

3. Visa process at the Chinese consulate in Douala in Cameroon

19 3 3 Visa process at the Chinese consulate in Douala in Cameroon y friend and I travelled to the Chinese consulate in Douala to see if we could get visas to travel to China. It was not easy. We were two confused and frustrated souls, yet we were ready to board a plane and go abroad. Among almost all the youths in Cameroon, the most spoken word is “abroad.” My uncle, brother, sister, relative, uncle’s friend or brother’s friend is in this or that country. They will help me go abroad. That is it. They do not know what this or that person is doing abroad but only that he will help me go abroad. They mention these relatives are in Europe, America and Canada. They never mention African countries, for it might be a curse to leave from an African country and enter another African country. The European countries like France, Italy, Spain, England, and Germany are on the list. America and Canada are very famous on the list. America is the most famous. Relatives leave these countries and come home in the dry season, between November and March, for weddings and celebrations. If they came in the rainy season, from March to October, the heavy rains would hinder all the grandiose outdoor activities. Their presence in town is a period the locals never forget. When those relatives are around, money flows around like leaves of trees. In short, the air is different. The visiting relatives pump and spread money around. In America and Europe there are trees where money is M 20 harvested, but unfortunately our soils are too barren for that kind of tree. What a curse! We Africans are not lucky. For these people from America and Europe, coins do not exist, even old bank notes do not exist, and everything in the name of money is bright new bank notes. We see these people almost like beings from other worlds, like super humans. Most of them wear black suits and black hats, but some of them still dress normal. Even if they dress normal, just with a T-shirt and a pair of trousers and tennis shoes, news still goes around and everyone still knows them. When they are around, word spreads like wildfire. Everywhere they pass, fingers point at them and people say, “He is from America.” These people drive very big cars and carry an air of importance. Most of them do not sleep in the houses they stayed in before they went abroad. They sleep in big hotels and return in the morning for festivities. If you are a lucky young girl, one of these great men may soon extend a hand to you and say, “I would like you to be my wife.” We who were living in the country saw how these brothers and sisters from faraway lands came home and acted. We wanted to be like them. Their lives were wonderful lives that we all envied. We wanted their kind of living. My friend and I loved this kind of good life too. We wanted to go to America and Europe too, but because we didn’t know how to go about that, we humbly accepted the offer of Mr. Thomson to help us travel to China. For my friend and me, this was a must-grab opportunity. Mr. Thomson, who had left just a year ago, before my very eyes, was asking me to come and meet him there in China. Somebody who had lived in the same house with me and ate in the same bowl with me was asking me to come and meet him. Even the hurricane Sandy could not have stopped me 21 from going to China. Nothing could change my course. By 2004, China was already on the list for Africans aiming to go abroad. With the doors of Europe and America closed on me, the door of China was widely opened and I had to walk through it. With all my determination, I decided to travel to Douala for my visa to travel to China. I did not have the transport to go to Douala. I needed about 15 000 FCFA ($30) for the trip. It had already been a year since my mother started to lose her sight. She had a cataract in her eye, and I had to take her to the hospital to get...