Passport expiring

I’ve lived in the UK so long that I already have to renew my passport from her for the third time. And every time the possibilities are different.

The first time there were still many consulates in the UK. I went to a small Welsh town to sort things out. It was all very pleasant. 

The second time, budgets had been cut, and the consulates had closed. There was only one UK option: London. But you could also do it in Schiphol. Back then I still flew. So that’s what I did. It was a bit nerve-racking: you could only book an appointment for applying for the passport; not for picking it up. You would have to hope you could get such an appointment, which you could book after the application, before you were due to fly back. Not ideal! But at least it worked out. 

In 2025 it expires again. And now outsourcing has taken over. There are a few cities in the UK where you can now renew your passport with a commercial company, and Birmingham is one of them. And that’s not nearly as far away as London. And what might come in handy is that it’s not overly far from Shrewsbury. 

I have an appointment! There didn’t seem to be many slots available so I went for one. It’s in January, even though my passport doesn’t expire until late May. Oh well! At least I’ll get it over with…