Visiting Vietnam

Vietnam had been on my bucket list for such a long time and I was excited to go with some friends. 

The visa application was online and more straightforward than I imagined it would be. Between the application and the visa being granted, it all happened in a week.

Getting There

As with travelling, a few things did go wrong and I remember saying this was one of my worst trips (the travel part) recently. I don’t remember when last I went on a trip that was this stressful! 

I arrived at the airport and was told that I could not be checked in as the airport I was meant to transit through required me to go through immigration, so I needed a transit visa. I’m not sure how we missed this when the ticket was booked, but I got rerouted on one leg and bought another ticket on the spot, and all this was happening before 6am. I was originally to leave at 6am and arrive at 11:30am, including the lay over, but the trip ended up taking the whole day. I got to my destination around 9pm.

Visiting Singapore

Quick facts:

- Singapore is an island country in Southeast Asia. 

- It is a city state and does not have states and cities like other countries. The country is a well-planned urban area.

- The country has an estimated population of 5,917,600 people.

- The official languages are Malay, Chinese, English and Tamil. The population is a mix of people originating from China, Malaysia, India and others. 

- Their currency is Singaporean Dollars (SGD).

- Singaporeans kind of sound like Nigerians when they speak English, hahaha

Visa requirements

i) Valid Passport with minimum of 6 months validity from the date of entry

ii) Photocopy of passport

ii) Previous passports (if any)

iv) One recent passport size colour photo with white background (taken within the last 3 months)

v) Completed Visa Application form (Form14A)

vi) Sponsor Letter of Introduction (LOI) from Singapore (V39A)

vii) Proof of employment letter with salary & leave entitlement, employment letter approving annual leave

viii) Pay slips or bank statements

ix) Hotel Booking

x) Copy of round trip air ticket booking/itinerary 

xi) $22 visa fee

Visiting Laos

Laos had been high on my bucket list for years so when I had the chance, I just had to visit. I visited in February 2024.

Quick facts

-         -          Officially the Loa People’s Democratic Republic, the only landlocked country in South East Asia, it is bordered by 5 countries (Myanmar, China, Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand).

-        -          It’s capital and largest city is Vientiane and the people speak Lao.

-        -          They have an estimated population of 7.8 million people.

-          -          The local currency is called Lao kip

Visa Process

I wrote to the Lao embassy in Yangon where I live, to make enquiries and was told as a Nigerian passport holder, I needed the following:

-          -  Letter of introduction from where I work

-          - Proof of funds (pay slips/ bank statements)

-         -  Visa fee of $35

-         -  Hotel reservation

-          - Flight booking

-         -  2 passport photographs

-         -  Copy of passport data page

-         -  Passport with at least 6 months validity

As no visa application had been treated for a Nigerian at that Embassy before, I was told that my application would be sent to their Ministry of Foreign Affairs for approval. The lady seemed worried and asked if we had an office in their country, so they could apply for me. I told her I was in no hurry and would wait for the approval. The approval only took 2 weeks!