Helllllooooo allllll. Well, we had to reschedule our flight again. My lawyer emailed checking on the status, and they stated on August 2nd that they received it and would be processing it soon. I waited until literally the last day but had not heard in time for our August the 9th flight....fingers crossed that we get the Visa before our next flight on August 23rd. The third time is the charm, right? I have so much to tell you all about the debocle? Debacle; that was our Air Bnb booking and the wonderful airline drama, but I am afraid to jinx it by making a stink before we are there.

Needless to say (a funny phrase since you always say something after it), the airline that will remain unnamed has been impossible to get a hold of, so I turned to the imp that is the internet and saw numerous people had their bank do a chargeback. I contacted my bank and am currently in the process of getting a refund and booked with a new airline. The money has not been refunded yet to my bank, but I have to get lucky at some point, right? Now I know bumping it only 2 weeks is probably risky, but at this point, we have been homeless since June 11th and are starting to lose our minds!! Fortunately, the pet people have been super understanding, and our new airline American Airlines has no change fees; woo hoo!

Also, I made a tough decision that I am utterly devastated about but ultimately think will be the best for my dog, Pendelton. I know people will likely lose their minds, but I really didn't want to do the selfish thing because of how I feel and do what would make him the happiest, so please no hate mail. I also talked to everyone I know and read every article I could, and they all told me the same thing. I can't write it twice, so if you want to know, check out the post I will put in the Pet Visa Saga.

Enough of my bitching; here is the QR Code info.

Back to the QR Code. So the European Union created a Visa where you input either proof of vaccine, a negative test, or proof of recovery, and receive a QR code to be scanned. This has been adopted by Spain and many other countries as a quick way to get through the process. You can access the form through the Spain Travel Health website listed here https://www.spth.gob.es/?fbclid=IwAR1apxCne2sE9ygGuQ8iyn_dOWDHgvGZzcxg-mUZe36TSFBY6Q_OCXOYAww

Spain and many other countries require that you fill out this form, and it will provide a QR code that will be scanned before entering Spain by boat or air. You can start filling out the form at any time, but they will not allow you to finish it and receive the code until no earlier than 2 days before your flight. Once you go on the website, you will have the option of picking either ferry or plane. This will then bring you to a page to either fill out an Individual FCS form or a Group/family form. Here you can also access saved forms, completed forms, and explanations of the forms and what is needed and why.

Once you choose (we chose family), it's pretty straightforward. Since we have yet to make a flight work, I have not completed it fully, so I can't tell you exactly how the QR code works. I have heard that you should use the website directly and not the app, as people have been having difficulty accessing the code from the app. You can either print it out, or they can scan your phone (my luck with everything is bad, so I will likely print out multiple copies for losing ones and when my phone decides not to work). Children who are minors and ineligible for vaccination will still need this form filled out by their guardians.

Important Information!!!!!!!

A few notes, taken directly from the website:

REMEMBER: If you come from a country/are area considered of risk, you must bring with you one of the certifying certificates/documents listed below:

EU Digital COVID Certificate issued by a member state of the European Union. It may contain one or more of the following supporting documents of a person:

• has been vaccinated against COVID-19, with full vaccination schedule, at least 14 days before arrival in Spain.

• A diagnostic test (sample collection) has been performed within 72 hours before arrival in Spain for NAAT (nucleic acid amplification tests, e.g. RT-PCR, RT-LAMP, TMA) / 48 hours for RAT (rapid antigen test), the result of which has been negative.

• Has recovered from COVID-19, after the disease has passed, provided that more than 11 days have elapsed since the first positive NAAT test was performed and shall be valid for up to 180 days thereafter.

NON-EU CERTIFICATE, THIRD COUNTRIES: any of the supporting documents listed above, but issued by non-EU countries, in a format readable by airport health control staff.

Children under 12 years of age are not required to present these certificates or supporting documents.

Stay Tuned

So there you have it!. Team trolls, I did not make the rules, and I did not create the mandates, so save the drama for your mama, and keep your vaccine comments to yourself, please, and thank you! I hope to have news "soon" that our Visa has been approved and begin chronicling the trip and likely what went wrong, haha. Don't worry if I still haven't heard anything; I'll find something to bitch about or share with you all to keep you on the hook!

I promise that there will be all kinds of fun things to talk about and show once we are approved! Believe me, I know I'm becoming that show where the couple should have ended up together like 5 seasons ago and now it's just becoming a mess, and you're like enough already. With that note, I'm off to eat my weight in Mexican food and margaritas before I say goodbye to them and move to Spain. If you didn't know, one thing about Southern California is we are all about our Mexican Food; it truly is a relationship and will likely be one of the main things I will miss. In my future free time in Spain, I am planning to master my favorite dishes and maybe even do a little cooking ala Tiffany! As always, thank you for the love and subscribe, share, etc.