We have been trying unsuccessfully to get all our relevant paperwork to permanently stay in Firenze for my husband's work. This has been a very trying and frustrating time that has spanned over nearly six months. But finally there may be a light at the end of the tunnel. Watch this space...
Whenever we tell our fellow stranieri (strangers to Italy) that we are in the process of obtaining visa's, they often look at us with a mixture of sympathy and disbelief. The next thing they say is 'hmm don't worry no one ever checks in Italy'. So it is my belief that there are A LOT of people here illegally. Whilst we choose not to stay illegally, I can see why a lot of people do. Italian immigration policy and the bureacracy that comes with it is just so incredibly frustrating. And it's upsetting to know that we are trying to do the right thing but get nowhere whereas I can walk past the Ponte Vecchio at anytime today and see at least twenty men from Africa selling fake Gucci handbags. I'm very sure they do not have a visa (or if they do perhaps it a fake one stamped with a Loius Vuitton logo on it).
Each morning I pray before I start the day to thank God for letting me experience Italian food, smells and adventures in this amazing country. But I also pray that the immigration policies will just get that little bit easier for people like us who legitimately want to live here and contribute, if only for a short time, to the economy and community in Florence. Failing that, by at least allowing us into your bella Italia, we are at least supporting the economy by staying in your apartments, eating your gelati and buying those fabulous Italian shoes.
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1 comment:
i know your pain - ask about the hoops that simone had to jump through for her visa. As for mine, the company just bribed their way through it! good luck, you'll get there in the end.
i thought you were off Gelati!
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