You’d think with all the traveling we do I’d get used to crossing borders but in truth each time we near that little cluster of offices my heart sinks, my hands are clammy and my anxiety rises. Now if that doesn’t say guilty I don’t know what does. Will on the other hand is as cool as a cucumber until waves of my anxious energy cause ripples in his calm exterior. I don’t know what it is about border control officers, I sometimes wonder if they get paid more not to smile or if their wages get docked if they show real human emotion other than annoyance.
Even though 90% (if not more) of the time we cross from one country to another, passing through border control is quick and easy, but for me, it’s the knowing what they can do. If they chose to they could make it very difficult -and at times they have- but for the most part we are just an inconvenience in their day (or so it feels).
Albania and Kosovo Border crossing
We have had a couple of jarring instances at border control whilst crossing borders that seems to cement my creeping fear of interacting with them. I do understand that it’s nothing personal, they are just doing their jobs and we have absolutely nothing to hide but that doesn’t subside the panic I feel as our home is being ransacked.
Coming through border control from Kosovo to Albania was one of our first instances of a difficult crossing. We passed through the initial office just fine but the officer there clearly decided we were guilty of something and flagged us to the border police. We were taken with the van to another building where we asked many questions on where we were going, what we were doing etc. One of the officers were intent on finding something in the van as he rummaged through every draw cupboard and pocket. Even flicking through our UNO cards – still unsure what expected to find in there other than a criminal pick up four. With nothing to hide we waited on the sidelines until he got bored and let us go. If you have ever had your home picked through with a fine tooth combe by officials you’ll understand how we felt.
Serbia and Romania Border crossing
We had a similar scenario when crossing from Serbia into Romania. Having by this point been in out of Serbia several times through Romania, Bulgaria and Bosnia we were expecting an easy crossing. This is where we are reminded to always expect the the unexpected!
Though the officer we were dealing with was amiable he told us that his superior is really cracking down and he had to do a full search of the van. Really?? There he is flicking through my art book, leafing through pages of mediocracy- humiliating, filing through our herbs and spices and sending any medications he could find back to the office to be checked.
With a smile smacked on my face pretending everything is fine I watch on trying to not look guilty- because I’m not! Finding my passion flower herbal remedy tablets (for anxiety – how ironic), with a knowing smile to his colleague he sent them in to his superior as I believe to have been a small act of defiance. Again having found nothing we were sent on our way.
So that’s why every time we near crossing borders my anxiety bubbles up, despite the countless easy crossings we’ve had. Still though, I throw on a big friendly smile and remind myself I’m not just trying to not act guilty, I am in fact not guilty of anything at all. Borders may be a fabricated construct but they are still very real.
Don’t forget to follow us on
Leave a Reply