Border Disputes

[Jester]

Yeah, we're a FOREIGN COUNTRY, perhaps you should have exchanged your monies over before you came here?

Say it with me now: FOREIGN COUNTRY! How is that hard to get?

It is SO disrespectful to try to use currency from your native country when you're traveling.

As others have pointed out, it's not always true. In all my trips to Mexico, for example, we never got pesos, all the prices were in American dollars, the Mexicans seemed to prefer getting our money, all our change was in dollars, and frankly, I don't remember ever even SEEING any signs for pesos, and prices in pesos, or any actual pesos.

Would we have changed our dollars to pesos if that was the preferred currency in the part of Mexico we were going to? Absolutely. It wasn't. We didn't. And everyone was happy.

I recall about 10 years ago, hearing about a guy who lived in michigan, worked in ontario, and had been crossing the border twice a day for about 4 years and wasnt aware he was entering another country. This came to light when he ran into some serious tax and immigration issues. How oblivious can you be?

If the guy is getting paid in American money, and the border crossing is as relaxed as some American-Canadian crossings have been known to be (at least in the pre-9/11 days), I can actually see him not knowing that he was entering a foreign country. It's not like people from Michigan and people from Ontario look or sound all that different from one another.

Unless they are a currency exchange, it's actually illegal to give back another country's currency as change.

I refer you to my comments about Mexico above. We paid in dollars, we got our change in dollars.

Now, if you mean that it would be illegal for them to take Mexican pesos from us and give us our change in American dollars, you may be right. I have no idea. Nor do I know what the applicable laws regarding currency are, in Canada, Mexico, or the U.S.

[Broomjockey]

Now, if you mean that it would be illegal for them to take Mexican pesos from us and give us our change in American dollars, you may be right. I have no idea. Nor do I know what the applicable laws regarding currency are, in Canada, Mexico, or the U.S.

As I read it, he meant in the US it would be illegal for you to pay in pesos, CAD, pounds sterling, whatever, and receive change in kind. Your change would have to be USD. If that is it, and it is so, I imagine it's for tax purposes.

[Andara Bledin]

I don't have a passport. I don't even have a birth certificate.

I've been to Canada twice, once as a kid, and once as an adult a few years ago.

I had more trouble coming back into the US as part of a bus full of US high school kids than I did with the plane trip back more recently. For that, I only needed my regular DL.

However, I know that things have gotten much stricter, so I wouldn't even contemplate a border crossing these days without seeing about getting my passport. I imagine that will be some sort of nightmare, considering the lack of birth certificate.

^-.-^

[Kiwi]

I live about 20km from the US boarder and most places around where I live will take US$ but their exchange rates will fleece anyone who is too lazy to buy Canadian $$ and your change will almost always be in Canadian.

I know that in BC you can get an enchanced drivers licence and you can cross the boarder driving with it but they still recommend you have a passport on you.

(disclaimer, 99.999% of all Americans I have met here have been mucho polite)

Haha we were in a Timmies a few weeks ago, near the boarder and some a-hole was screaming and shouting about how long everything was taking (and they were being quick) and he turns to the guy next to him and bitches about it and the guy says in a loud voice
"Are you an American?" and the a-hole responds that he isnt and asks why? and the guy said "Well your acting like one" and the a-hole shut his mouth got his coffee and shuffled out while everyone in line was laughing.

[Pagan]

These are the usual conversations I have at the Border Patrol check-point @20 miles north of Las Cruces.

I drive up and stop where I'm supposed to, they just wave me through.

-OR-

I drive up and stop.
BP: US citizen?
Me: Yep.
BP: Ok, have a nice day!

Of course, all the NMSU crap all over my car is probably a clue to them, too.

Passport Application = 2 references, guarantor, work history, educational history

Why does the Canadian government need that information for a passport? For a US passport all you need is proof of US citizenship, proof of identity, two pictures, the passport app, and the fee.

Hard part was seriously getting the photo. While most photo shops say they do them, I find out that not everyone can do them PROPERLY. I went to 2 different spots and both sold me pics that couldn't be used for various reasons. Having never gotten passports I didn't know. 2 weeks of this with a 2 year old and the lady at the post office finally told me the best place in town for it and gave me a sheet containing all the points for a proper passport pic.

The best place I've found for passport photos is Walgreens. And they're inexpensive.

It's not like people from Michigan and people from Ontario look or sound all that different from one another.

You're hard put to tell the difference around here, too.

[onkko]

Usual conversations with borderpatroll... What borderpatroll

From Finland-Norway border.



From Finland-Sweden border. Yes that golf field is in two lands.



Well there is some toll stations with borderguards but they havent never stopped me. Border with Russia is totally different then but never been there.

[sylvier]

I can almost understand the confusion on this. I flew up to Seattle last month, and the lady sitting next to me was taking a train from there to Vancouver. According to her, you only needed a passport if you were flying. If you were traveling on the surface (boat, car, train), you only needed an extended driver's license (or something. I forget exactly what she called it). This was why she was taking a train instead of another flight, since she hadn't had time to get a passport. That was a surprise to me, since I'd always figured you needed a passport if you were going into a foreign country, regardless of how you were getting there.
Still, if he didn't have the presence of mind to bring a passport, he probably didn't have an extended driver's license, either. Which raises the question, how did he get there in the first place?

No, tis true, we have some weird passport things going on. If we're going to cross the 49th parallel by ground, we only need an enhanced driver's license. The enhanced DL costs a lot less than a real passport and you can get it a lot faster - one week instead of two months. But, if we want to travel by air, we need the real deal.

[Fufu487]

Why are people so freakin stupid when it comes to foreign currency? I had a couple ask me if the ATM could depense EUROS!! really?? your in CANADA! do you think we just keep our machines stocked with foreign currency?? (actually some machines depense US$$). But seriously...no!

[CrazedClerkthe2nd]

I remember one time crossing by bus into the U.S. we had to go into this multi room DHS building to get processed by the customs agents. There were security cameras, fingerprinting machines and all kinds of other high tech stuff around and guard all over the place.

Coming back into Canada it was two guys in a portable building (think like a portable classroom like they have at schools) working on laptops and drinking Tim Horton's.

Those two guys had us cleared in no time!

[Soetkin]

Yay for the european Schengen agreement which eliminated border controls between participating countries.

Last holiday to France, I got lost on the highway trying to find my turn-off and crossed the border about 4 times in 20 minutes driving around in circles.
No checks, no people just old empty booths.

[Jetfire]

From Finland-Sweden border. Yes that golf field is in two lands.

Canada and the US have a golf course that straddles the border. Well not quite. The Aroostook Valley Country Club has "Eighteen holes of golf with a pro shop in the USA and the course and club house in Canada.". There's a big hubbub going on now because the access road goes in Canada, but only exits in the states (or something like that). The locals and the Canadians don't care about it, but USBorderPatrol is having a fit trying to figure out how to "secure" it.

(Well that border, and the town in Vermont/Quebec that straddles the border; the town library has the border go right through it.)

[Pagan]

Usual conversations with borderpatroll... What borderpatroll

From Finland-Norway border.

From Finland-Sweden border. Yes that golf field is in two lands.

Canada and the US have a golf course that straddles the border. Well not quite.

You've gotta admit though, those border crossings are a little different than El Paso/Ciudad Juarez and Columbus, NM/Palomas, MX.

[Jetfire]

Yeah, the Canada/US border is a LOT different than the US/Mexico border... but the US Gov is determined to treat them identically, which is pissing off everyone who lives on both sides of the northern border. (Can't say anything about the southern one).

[Jester]

Why does the Canadian government need that information for a passport? For a US passport all you need is proof of US citizenship, proof of identity, two pictures, the passport app, and the fee.

Different countries. Different rules. That's the way it works.

(Well that border, and the town in Vermont/Quebec that straddles the border; the town library has the border go right through it.)

Is the town in Quebec or Vermont? I mean, seriously, it has to be in one of them, right? And while the library may physically be in both, is it listed as one or the other? I can see a library or other building being part of two countries, but a town? I mean, who do the citizens pay their taxes to? Does it vary depending on which side of the country border you are on, even if you are in the same town?

Yeah, the Canada/US border is a LOT different than the US/Mexico border... but the US Gov is determined to treat them identically, which is pissing off everyone who lives on both sides of the northern border.

To be perfectly fair to the U.S. government and Homeland Security, there have been several cases of terrorists trying to gain access to the U.S. via Canada. Just saying.

[CrazedClerkthe2nd]

Is the town in Quebec or Vermont? I mean, seriously, it has to be in one of them, right? And while the library may physically be in both, is it listed as one or the other? I can see a library or other building being part of two countries, but a town? I mean, who do the citizens pay their taxes to? Does it vary depending on which side of the country border you are on, even if you are in the same town?

To be perfectly fair to the U.S. government and Homeland Security, there have been several cases of terrorists trying to gain access to the U.S. via Canada. Just saying.

It is possible the town existed in some form before the national borders were drawn and so when Canada became a nation in 1867, it ended up straddling the border.

Also on the second comment, don't think for a moment the terrorists wouldn't try to get in through mexico either. With the right clothing and hair style, a middle easterner could pass for a latino rather easily I would think.