I finally got my passport (US) about a year ago. Made me feel special…especially after reading that the US passport is tied (with the UK) as being one of the most powerful passports in the world, being able to visit 147 countries with just that alone (not needing a visa or other documentation). I don’t have a cite other than a video for that, but I did visit Indonesia last year and just needed a passport (and nothing else) and it allowed me a month or two’s stay without needing anything else.
It was like, arrive at airport, show the passport, get released into the city/country.
I have one, but I only use it when I’m travelling to the States (last time was in 2008 for my grandmother’s funeral). Otherwise I travel with my Israeli passport.
I’m from the UK and have had a passport for over 40 years (recently renewed and it only took 6 days. )
I gather that about 70% of the UK have a passport as opposed to less than half of Americans.
Of course the USA is huge and there’s a lot of interesting stuff to see and do within it.
My mother was a UK citizen, my younger brother is a dual UK and Australian citizen, and my second oldest son is a dual Australian and UK citizen. I’m not a UK citizen, however, although I understand that by filling in the right form, paying a fee and attending a citizenship ceremony, I could become one. I was a US permanent resident for 9 years, so I could have become a US citizen (before I renounced my green card when I returned to Australia). So I just have an Australian passport, which gets me where I want to go.
Yeah, I’m on my fifth US passport (two diplomatic, one official, and two tourist). The diplo passport was great, as I could sail through customs without any hassle, and occasionally would be given a first class upgrade.
I’ve had one since I went to the UK as a student in 1986, renewed every 10 ten years. I go back to the UK and/or Ireland about once a year now, so it gets used fairly regularly.
Got one. I’ve had it more often than not for various reasons. I’ve also got one from Georgia (Republic) stashed aside for emergencies. Long story and a big extended family.
With me (UK citizen) it’s “have one (UK), but it needs renewing”. Mine expired about two years ago: my circumstances are such that it seems unlikely that I’ll be able to afford to travel abroad again; and passport-renewal isn’t cheap.
I’ve seen comments from Brits who tend toward a conservative view of things, that they regret the change from the one-time quite large and impressive UK passport – within black stiff covers, emblazoned in gold with the national emblems – in favour of what they see as the present-day mingy-looking little standardised-with-European-Union booklet, with soft flexible maroon cover. They lament the days when the old impressive black-cover job implied, “Mess with a British citizen, subject of His / Her Majesty, at your peril”. I admit to, myself, not losing much sleep over this issue.
US citizen, US passport. My feeling about the American passport is not how powerful it makes me feel, but more “why do I need this nonsense to travel to Canada or Mexico” (we didn’t need passports for these countries until 2009)? And since I have a strong fear of flying, these are the only two countries I’d realistically going to travel to.
I’ve had a US passport since I was 5 years old. Prior to that, my brothers and I were on a family passport that had a group picture of mom and my brothers.
UK Passport. I’ve used it to travel to over forty countries with no issues. Sometimes a Visa has been necessary in advance (Vietnam, India) sometimes just a buy-at-the-border Visa (Tanzania, Zambia, Cambodia) suffices. And, of course, travel within the EU is a snap.
If you were from a third world country, you would probably not need to ask that question.
See, eg, this guy’s experience (the most eye-opening bit, for me, being the comments at the bottom from the guy’s fellow-countrymen, with a common opinion of ‘Duh. You’re Pakistani. Of *course *they don’t want you’, and similar)
Yes being here in China I feel especially guilty…my UK passport lets me go to lots of places, even here in SE Asia, that many Chinese find difficult / expensive to visit.
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