As I stand in the allocated area, waiting for the computer to match my features with my passport photo, I have sensed a digital argument taking place within the computer. “She looks NOTHING like her photo…just check out her limp hair, and crusty eyes.. those jowls have certainly dropped since the photo. Nice try love.”

There is a good argument for getting the worst possible photos taken for your passport. After all, the odds of emerging from a long haul flight looking fresh and glamourous, are remote. By going in with a bad photo, you will at least resemble your document, progressing speedily through passport control. To think that anyone is the least bit interested in how crappy your passport photo looks is laughable.

But vanity is a strong incentive….

We have negotiated the online minefield of the “smart” application and assembled the documentation to take with us for completing the process. Steve had a set of quite presentable passport photos ready. He had been very busy at work this week, toiling away in a freezing office, as the air-conditioning has been on the blink. This has necessitated the wearing of thermals and a beanie at work to try to keep warm.

Presenting himself at the counter, he was annoyed to find his pre-prepared photos were too old by a month and a new set were required. It was obviously the clerk’s first day and she proceeded to take a series of photos from stupid angles and wonder aloud why they were not of a suitable standard. After this process had used up 3/4 of his lunch hour, he pointed out, a bit testily, the stunningly obvious fact that the photo must be taken from directly in front of the subject.

So, what we have..

• Passport renewal application $295.00
• Set of passport photos $ 20.00
• 10 years of looking at an irritated guy with flat-beanie-hair except for one wispy strand sticking out at 90 degrees (which I am pretty sure the clerk had a quiet snigger about)…….. Priceless

Don’t be a stranger, I’d love you to like this, or better yet, follow me. No spam, no selling, just pretty great stories from a couple of ordinary travellers.