*Damn you, Canada. Just when I was starting to like you too... >:/*
So, there's not too much new here. I moved into an apartment with 2 friends of mine about a month ago, it's been pretty cool ever since. We're still waiting to move into the house, but I guess I'm not rushing too much anymore, since I FINALLY got all my finances in order. *From July up to Sept., I have just been suffering from lack of monies :(*
Anyways, this post is not about what's going on now. It's about something that happened back in June. *Yes, I know... it's really outdated, but around the time this happened, I was getting ready to move my stuff down here to CA, so it kind of slipped my mind.... over and over again XDD*
SO! I will break this story into two parts. What happened when me and my bro went up there and what happened when my mom and I went up there.
Story 1When I was half way done with moving my stuff down to the CA, I headed back up to WA for a little break and to grab the remainder of stuff I had. During my stay, my brother and I went to Canada for one of my cousin's wedding. I kind of wanted/ kind of didn't want to go, but my bro was a part of the ceremony and it had been a while since I had seen our cousins, so I figure it would be nice to see them again before I leave for a while. Compared to the trip to CA, driving to Canada was sooooooooo easy. 4 hours? BAH!! I'll drive to Canada every weekend XDD *No, not really* Anyways, we get to the border; standard procedure: they ask you a bunch of questions (ege. Why are you coming into the country?/ How long?/ Are you bringing anything?/ etc.) We decide to go ahead and play along, but somewhere in the middle of the questions, things started to get a little odd...
At one point, the guard asked us 3 times where we were going and twice about the reason. We didn't find it suspicious. If anything, we started laughing. I mean, really now. If you're going to ask the same thing 3 times, expect to be mocked. We did say we were bringing in cake for the wedding, but if that's the reason, then they must have something against cake. I don't know if it flew well with the guard or not *I think he might have had sand in his vadge b/c he sent 2 others before us for inspection*, but the next thing we know is that we're being asked for inspection. We went inside the new-ish Border Patrol building and, I have to admit, it looked very nice. The "guards" in the building were very strict, almost never smiling, wearing bullet-proof vests, and carrying guns. While intimidating to some, I thought it was hella funny. I mean, will there really be someone that desperate to get into Canada that the guards suffer the risk of getting shot or having to shoot someone? Seriously now.... XD
Anyways, with the inspections done, one of the guards wanted to interview each of us *basically ask us both 3 questions*, which basically centered around the main question: "Have you ever been arrested?" Kind of offensive. but whatever. It didn't take too long, so we just brushed it off like it was nothing and proceeded to the wedding.
On a fun note, when we left the country, with stuff we shouldn't have, it only took us 20 seconds, when we were at the American border.
Congrats, America. You get a star sticker. XD
Story 2Ok. So, the next time I went up to Canada was with my mom and her sister. My aunt lives in Canada and came down to visit us in the WA and some relatives in CA. *The first time I went to move my stuff to CA was with her and it wasn't too bad actually; I got to meet some of my relatives and hang out with them* Moving on, we got to the border, went through the whole questions process, and moved on. No inspection. I guess when you're in a car with Asian moms, nothing is suspicious, as opposed to a car with two 20 year olds with cake. XDD
We were only in Canada for 3 or 4 hours before we headed back. When we got to the American border this time though...
We were asked the same questions as last time, but this time, were asked to be inspected. Also, the guard put a sticker on my car that said NCIC on it. At the time, I had no idea what it meant, but I had a feeling that I would have an interesting story to tell when I got back.
We walk into the American Border Patrol office and it was not as impressive as Canada's. In fact, it was the exact same building that we went to the first time we ever went to Canada, back when I was in the 2nd grade. o_O
We stand in line, they ask us to take a seat and we just wait. My mom actually thought the situation was kind of funny, so we just talked about why we might be in there. I joked that it could be from when we brought stuff back that we weren't supposed to and so forth. Like Canada, these guys were pretty strict too. However, I didn't see any bullet proof vests, on anyone. What's up with that? I thought we were a pretty paranoid country, but I may actually have to retract that statement *gasp*
Anyways, we were finally called up and were asked a few questions. Actually,
I was asked all the questions. One of which pertained to something my mom had yet to learn....
I'm standing at the counter, the guard has my passport in hand and his eyes are shifting between me and his screen. He calls another guard over and they discuss something privately real quick. He comes back and asks me a few more questions, then asks, "Do you have a tattoo?" At this point, I start to panic. I start to wonder if she knows or not, but of course, she says "I don't think he does" -__________-
Damn.
I let out a small sigh and lift up my left sleeve, revealing my 2 year old tattoo.
Then, I hear laughter. She asks me when I got it. "Did you get it on Oki?" "
Yeah" I lied, wanting the moment to end.
I thought for sure I would get an ear full on the way home, but surprisingly enough, she was ok with it. It was almost like she expected something like this. I guess that's a good thing right?
Anyways, we were asked to sit down again and we started talking about what might be going on. She jokingly hinted that I kind of looked like a criminal, so that could be why. I humored her for a little while, before I was asked into the back room of the station. Now I was starting to get a little concerned. They took my fingerprints and a quick snapshot of me. At one point, there was actually a huddle of officers at the door while I was being processed. They'd look, then look away, and at one point, one of them actually pointed at me and said, "Is that the guy?" to another colleague. :/ After that was done, I was sent back into the waiting room and explained what had happened. She let out a light laugh and said I shouldn't worry. After all, I hadn't done anwything illegal in Canada.... yet. XD
After a few mins, we were called up to the desk again and explained the situation. Apparently, I matched the description of a criminal that had stabbed someone just a few hours ago. However, with no picture of the culprit, all they had was a witness account and description. I initially thought, "Wow.... this is JUST like what happened on my first trip to Japan" XD What really got me was what he said when we got up to the counter for the last time. It went a little something like this: "I have some good news and bad news. The good news is, you're not a criminal. You just match the description of one"
....
I guess that's still somewhat of a positive thing, right? hahahaha
After we left the border, I explained how the situation was similar to what happened in Japan to my mom and she was surprised to hear that story hahaha
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So, why post this story now? Well, I've been meaning to, but I just didn't bother. I was reminded the other day to do it, so here it is. Hope you guys enjoyed it!
Until Next Time
