Customs & Immigration Ramblings
So I was standing in line at Customs at the airport and the Taiwanese guy in front of me started bitching at the immigration officers that they should have opened more desks.
First off, he was already through customs.
Secondly, there were about three people in line for each desk. That is far, far better than anything you see in many other countries.
And, seriously, is it ever a good idea to pick a fight with customs and immigration in any country?
First off, he was already through customs.
Secondly, there were about three people in line for each desk. That is far, far better than anything you see in many other countries.
And, seriously, is it ever a good idea to pick a fight with customs and immigration in any country?
I can only guess that maybe he was a Citizen who was using our Foreigner line because it was shorter (usually the other way around) and they took issue with this, and he felt they should have had more Citizen lines.
Personally, I don't know why they have separate lines. Any ideas why they do that?
They should not have separate lines for each desk - instead they should use a single line that feeds into a bank of desks. This is how most banks now operate because it means customers no longer have to worry about "choosing the slow line."
My tip for clearing Hong Kong customs upon arrival used to be to avoid being in line behind the Nigerians, Pakistanis, or Filipinos, as they took forever to clear customs. Now I don't have to worry about feeling quasi-racist since there are no slower or faster lines anymore - just one big line. For departure, they still have single lines, but since you're leaving their Godforsaken polluted little ex-colony they don't care so much.
China now has feedback buttons at the immigration window, at least at Sha To Jiao. You can push Green, Yellow, or Red buttons depending on how satisfied you are. Watch out if you dare to push Red, they put a bullet through your brain and charge your family.
Saddest customs story ever that does not involve Frenchie:
I'm in line at Macao immigration, behind a family of Filipinos (all women and children.) Customs has those little bowls of candy out in front of the counters to show they care. One of the Filipino kids gets a piece of candy as they are being processed, and a Macao customs officer actually comes out and removes the candy bowl from our line. What a piece of shit.
Personally, I don't know why they have separate lines. Any ideas why they do that?
They should not have separate lines for each desk - instead they should use a single line that feeds into a bank of desks. This is how most banks now operate because it means customers no longer have to worry about "choosing the slow line."
My tip for clearing Hong Kong customs upon arrival used to be to avoid being in line behind the Nigerians, Pakistanis, or Filipinos, as they took forever to clear customs. Now I don't have to worry about feeling quasi-racist since there are no slower or faster lines anymore - just one big line. For departure, they still have single lines, but since you're leaving their Godforsaken polluted little ex-colony they don't care so much.
China now has feedback buttons at the immigration window, at least at Sha To Jiao. You can push Green, Yellow, or Red buttons depending on how satisfied you are. Watch out if you dare to push Red, they put a bullet through your brain and charge your family.
Saddest customs story ever that does not involve Frenchie:
I'm in line at Macao immigration, behind a family of Filipinos (all women and children.) Customs has those little bowls of candy out in front of the counters to show they care. One of the Filipino kids gets a piece of candy as they are being processed, and a Macao customs officer actually comes out and removes the candy bowl from our line. What a piece of shit.
No comments:
Post a Comment