Children of God
We walked in the police station, and my escort immediately began talking to the man behind the desk like he knew him personally. They shook hands and snapped their fingers when they released, a common symbol of friendship here in many west African countries. By the way they were talking, I realized that they were expecting us, and so the guy at the desk just waved us through. We walked past the line of people and directly into the visa office. Again, my escort used his many connections, calm speech, and confident assurance to walk me through every aspect of the visa process. What I was expecting to be a huge hassle ended up being an in-and-out affair of less than 30 minutes. But trust me, it would have been an ordeal if I hadn’t had that man to get me through it. By the end of the process, the visa officer let down his serious, business self and lightened the mood by joking a little bit. “I’m giving you a visa for one year,” the officer said, “so you have to stay lo...