June 13

So my adventures in getting my birth certificate & police report for residency in CR...

Started at Peel Police Headquarters, awesome!
Less than 20 minutes $45 and we are done.
Then head for Montreal to offices of Etat Civil du Quebec for birth certificate, fill in application $60 and will be ready in 2-3 business days. Great head up north to visit mom for a couple of days while I wait for a phone call that it's ready...
Get the call head for Montreal to pick it up and then shoot to Ottawa, meet up with Rick (Gwen's husband) so I don't get lost and head for External Affairs Canada to get both documents authenticated.
On a tight timeline as this office only open 10:30am-12 noon & 2pm-3pm!
Make it by 2pm, oops office has moved to a different building down the road, no problem...
Get to the office, take a number not bad like 6th in line...goes by super quick for only 2 people working there, less than 5 minutes and it's my turn! (I now know that is because no one including me had the paperwork required...)
So I am told I must get my police report notarized by a notary public or a commissioner of oaths.
Wow where to go?
So the girl suggest an area with a lot of office towers that has law offices, off we go well 3rd building we find law offices on several floors...up we go to like the 5th floor, "are you a client?" "Sorry we don't do that here"...try such and such office up on 7th floor...and so it goes on a few times...
At the last place they suggest we go to city hall as there is a commissioner of Oaths there...and it's free!
Off we go...ask information desk where is this commissioner and we are at the right counter..."Sorry we cannot notarize we are not that kind of a commissioner..." Do you know of a notary public around? I am not from here...no recommending someone for you would be a conflict of interest...ask the girl at the info booth if she has a phone book we could borrow, no but I will look up a number for you on the internet...ok can you look up a notary public close to here for me...oh no! conflict of interest...blah blah...
Go across the street to the Bell building...bonus a pay phone! with a phone book...Rick finds one near by Foreign affairs where we were 2 hours ago!
Off we go and there Nigerian dude notary public...$50 and we are good...now too late for Foreign Affairs office so home and back tomorrow...
Next day we arrive starts with lot full...no parking...we end up over the bridge parking on the street and walking back in the rain...get in and 6th in line, no problem will be fast...
The girl takes the two documents puts a stamp and a signature and hands them back to me in 30 seconds pretty sure she didn't even read them...didn't ask for ID or nothing...nice authentication!!
Off to Costa Rica Embassy for the last step...takes a few to find the place on Sparks St. as it is a pedestrian street...
Find it and the girl says sure we can do this for you but it will be $80 USD and you need to do a bank transfer to our account as we do not take the cash here...this surprises Rick but I tell him no worries this is normal for CR! We have to do "transferencias" all the time...
Off to BMO Bank 10 minutes all good, will be ready tomorrow...
I get a call in the am and then head to Embassy to pick it up...all good!
Off to TO to visit friends and family!
Heading home to CR on Friday morning, so ready to head back to warmer climate and the beach!!!