Visa Schmeesa

So our 90 Tourist Visa will end on Monday. We went to the Auslaenderamt (Foreigner Office) today to see what our options were. Since we're studying German and I'm working as an apprentice, we were hoping they would grant me some sort of a student visa to keep us here legally. If that wasn't an option I figured they would be able to grant us an extension on the 90 day visa until January 12th (when we fly back to the states). If THAT wasn't an option, we would have to leave the Schengen zone for a few days, and then come back to receive a fresh 90 day visa. Translation: a last minute and potentially really expensive trip to Croatia or Turkey.

When we entered the EU on September 8th, through Zurich, we never received stamps in our passports. We went in to Zurich for the day because of the long layover. The customs officer just glanced at our passports, and waved us on through to the Swiss paradise. That afternoon we flew to Berlin, which is essentially a "domestic" flight from Switzerland and nobody even looked at our passport in Berlin.

So, back to today. When we went to the Auslaenderamt they were somewhat befuddled that we had no stamps and of course could not verify how long we had been in the country. We were up front about everything. I started my apprenticeship on September 24. They said that "officially" my apprenticeship started one month later and that we could stay in the country on the same visa until Janunary 12th. I'm not sure how my apprenticeship starting a month later makes us any more legal, but I'm not asking any questions. We all laughed it off with the two ladies working in this office.

For all the rules, procedures, and bureaucracy stereotypes that get thrown on to Germany and Germans, it sure was smooth today. Though a winter special flight to Istanbul would have been OK, I'm more than happy to stay put.