The Worst Customs & Immigration

On Thu, 18 Dec 2003 20:02:14 +0800, "JMS" wrote:

I'm interested in hearing where you think the worst/rudest airport customs
personnel are. For me, it's got to be Australian airports.


Orlando

MJ

JMS wrote:
I'm interested in hearing where you think the worst/rudest airport customs
personnel are. For me, it's got to be Australian airports.

Meanest immigration: UK
Nicest immigration: Singapore
Lamest facilities: USA
Slowest lines: Vietnam

miguel
--
Hundreds of travel photos from around the world: http://travel.u.nu/

Miguel Cruz wrote:

JMS wrote:
I'm interested in hearing where you think the worst/rudest airport customs
personnel are. For me, it's got to be Australian airports.

Meanest immigration: UK

Mean, yes; oftentimes. But others are as bad.

Nicest immigration: Singapore

Agreed. We were there just last month and pleased to see that--SARS and
all--they are still polite and smiling and offering sweets {!} to the
people going through.

Lamest facilities: USA

In general. a sure YES. One would think that they'd realise how many
millions of people go through the gates every year. Oh, sorry. They _do_
realise--they just can't be arsed to invest in designing and
implementing a suitable format to cope with the smelly hordes.

[When I was a wee nipper and my grandfather told his Ellis Island
stories, I always inwardly laughed. But now, as an adult, I feel guilty
for mocking him, since my experience of O'Hare over the past 25 years
has included far too many (one is 'too many') occasions of abuse by
officialdom.]

Jurek Martin had a nice article on this very point a few weeks ago
(22-23 November) in that shameful commie rag, the _Financial Times_
(London). I'm not sure if the story is online but, to pique your
interest, one of the sub-heads is this:

'Tales of humiliation at the hands of US immigration officials make a
mockery of American values such as liberty, democracy and the rule of
law'.

Slowest lines: Vietnam

Haven't been there, so I can't say. Slowest lines I ever saw, anywhere,
were in the old barn 'international terminal' at DHA.

cheers,

Henry

Henry wrote:
Miguel Cruz wrote:
Nicest immigration: Singapore

Agreed. We were there just last month and pleased to see that--SARS and
all--they are still polite and smiling and offering sweets {!} to the
people going through.

They've been giving out the sweets for many years now. It's incredibly cheap
for them (little hard candies that cost a fraction of a penny) but it's just
enough to put a smile on your face after 14 hours in a plane and leave you
with a good feeling as you walk out into the airport.

miguel
--
Hundreds of travel photos from around the world: http://travel.u.nu/

China....if you are Chinese.....

That was my experience 30 years ago.

Kenny @ NH

"JMS" wrote in message
...
I'm interested in hearing where you think the worst/rudest airport customs
personnel are. For me, it's got to be Australian airports.

"Miguel Cruz" wrote in message

JMS wrote:
I'm interested in hearing where you think the worst/rudest airport
customs
personnel are. For me, it's got to be Australian airports.

Meanest immigration: UK
Nicest immigration: Singapore
Lamest facilities: USA
Slowest lines: Vietnam

miguel
--
Hundreds of travel photos from around the world: http://travel.u.nu/

As I live in Singapore and travel frequently I can atest to your statement
about Singapore having the nicest immigration and customs. In a couple of
hours my family and I begin our yearly journey to Australia for Christmas.
I am dreading my arrival to confront the meanest customs and immigration
people I have ever encountered.

Quoting "JMS" regarding The Worst Customs & Immigration in
a message dated Thu, 18 Dec 2003 20:02:14 +0800:

I'm interested in hearing where you think the worst/rudest airport customs
personnel are. For me, it's got to be Australian airports.


I arrived at Cairns (CNS) on the CO overnight. The Immigration people were
quite nice. But the customs guys were all sitting and waiting as people
approached the luggage carousel, and one guy picked me right way and
started playing "20 Questions!" Somewhat polite,, but he didn't even wait for
the luggage to start coming out. He went right into it. I had to stop him to go
get my checked bags. To his credit, he let me go without a "Shake and Bake."

But he wasn't the wosrt. The worst was NBO (Nairobi, Kenya). There, even
though there's a "green line," in effect, there isn't, because if you try to go
through it, an armed guard will "direct" you right over to the "red" line,
where again, the customs agent (not in uniform BTW), plays "20 Questions" in an
effort to see how much money they can extort from you in brib..... oops
"refundable deposits" on any thing they can get. Of course, your "deposit" is
no where in site upon your departure. Again, no "Shake and Bake," and no
"deposits" paid, but the guy was an a**hole. Immigration there was again,
quite polite.

Worst Imigration I had was US INS at Pierson, Toronto, CA. pre-clearance.
All other US INS were just average "surliness" with some playing 20 Questions
but in the end, no "Shake and bake." In fact, I miss the old INS people
because Customs is more likely to play "20 Questions" than INS ever was.

Must be that laptop thing.




The only place I have gotten a "Shake and Bake" (and consistantly) is NRT,
Japan. I think it's because I claim to be on vacation for a week, but I'm a
single male, traveling alone with two checked bags, a rollabord, and a laptop.
I think it's the laptop that gets me in trouble. After all, only "Business
people" travel with laptops, right? :-) Usually though, they give up after
going through one of the big checked bags. But they are always polite.



__________________________________

Regards,
Arnold.

(E-mail address altered, to prevent spamming. :-|
Remove all asterisks and the *hates*spam* to get true address.)

Quoting (Miguel Cruz) regarding The Worst Customs &
Immigration in a message dated Thu, 18 Dec 2003 22:51:27 GMT:

Henry wrote:
Miguel Cruz wrote:
Nicest immigration: Singapore

Agreed. We were there just last month and pleased to see that--SARS and
all--they are still polite and smiling and offering sweets {!} to the
people going through.

They've been giving out the sweets for many years now. It's incredibly cheap
for them (little hard candies that cost a fraction of a penny) but it's just
enough to put a smile on your face after 14 hours in a plane and leave you
with a good feeling as you walk out into the airport.

miguel

How are the Customs? Are they sticklers for checking for contraband etc? Not
that I want to bring any, but I do bring my laptop and a few DVDs, and you
don't know what they might consider "objectionable" or not.



__________________________________

Regards,
Arnold.

(E-mail address altered, to prevent spamming. :-|
Remove all asterisks and the *hates*spam* to get true address.)

mag3 wrote:
Quoting (Miguel Cruz):
They've been giving out the sweets for many years now. It's incredibly
cheap for them (little hard candies that cost a fraction of a penny) but
it's just enough to put a smile on your face after 14 hours in a plane
and leave you with a good feeling as you walk out into the airport.

How are the Customs? Are they sticklers for checking for contraband etc?
Not that I want to bring any, but I do bring my laptop and a few DVDs, and
you don't know what they might consider "objectionable" or not.

I've only entered 7 or 8 times, but I've never been searched, despite
frequent scruffiness. YMMV, of course.

miguel
--
Hundreds of travel photos from around the world: http://travel.u.nu/

"Peter L" wrote in message
...
Personally I can only remember being searched at customs one time in the
last 30 years. As to immigration, I have one problem with the Niagara
Falls
entrance into Canada. Otherwise not much.

Then you should try going the other way from Canada to the US over that
crossing with a non-US and non-Canadian passport. You might as well accept
it as a self-imposed incarceration for an hour or two.

Regards, Howard