8 taxi rides=1 temporary pilot license

Thanks for your prayers! I got the application process completed for my temporary license today. I will pick up the temporary license next week on our way back to Palawan. This license will allow me to fly with Garry or solo so I can start practicing on the airstrips. After 10 hours I will have a check-ride so I can start carrying passengers. That's the short version.

The longer version is that I left this morning at 6:15 to get to the Embassy for my last bit of paperwork. Then I went to the Air Transportation Offices (there are two, one for testing the other for administration and they are a 10 minute taxi ride apart). First to testing since that was the first one the taxi driver saw and he didn't want to keep looking for the other. They told me how to get to admin. Once I got there I had my U.S. medical certificate validated, and Garry arrived to introduce me to the people who we needed to work with. The next step was to have my application reviewed. I then needed a signature to take a test on Civil Air Regulations but that person had gone to lunch. Since I had to wait for him I went to testing to find out if I could take the test today since they usually only give it on Thursday. They were very helpful and said I could, but I needed to go back to admin. to get the right signature.

So back we went. It was still lunch time but we ran in to two maintenance inspectors who had visited our Arizona headquarters in 2003 so we could do repairs on wings/flight controls/etc. and send them over here. They remembered Garry and we spent some time with them. They will be the ones I will work with to get my mechanic license here so it was great to build a relationship there. After lunch we got the signature and returned to testing. I took the 50 quesiton test and passed then we took the result back to admin. In between all those steps were several stops at the cashier window to pay for the various papers (medical, test, license). My last taxi ride of the day was back to the guest house at about 4:00.

At the end I felt a bit like a ping-pong ball but was very glad that all the people we met were very helpful and professional. I am glad God provided the time to spend with people along the way and am very excited to have taken a big step toward FLYING!

Thanks again for remembering us in your prayers, tomorrow we travel to our training seminar and to get the parts from our hangar.