Nice - got my new passport yesterday. I just sent in the online form along with my old passport to Gatineau, QC and had the new one in my hands in less than 2 weeks! This is so much better than standing in line. The last time I had to renew, I left it too late and had to go to the passport office. What a zoo. Being 3rd in line at the post office in the back of Turtle Creek is way better than being number 572 in a skeevy government office.

Special bonus: I like my new photo better than the old one and they even returned my old passport. Those stamps and visas remind me of so many great trips.

While searching for a photo of a Canadian passport, I found out that Canada will be introducing a higher security, electronic passport valid for 10 years, starting in 2011. This makes so much sense, especially since Canadians are required to present a passport to enter the U.S. when arriving by air or sea and, although it's not strictly enforced, proof of identity and citizenship when entering by land. Currently, that means if you don't have a passport, you have to use a driver's license combined with an original birth certificate. Taking this into consideration, the Canadian federal government is developing an alternative secure travel document for short-term travel to the U.S.. Ottawa will spend $6-million over two years to support enhanced provincial drivers' licenses that will also list the driver's citizenship.

Having this new passport makes me want to try it out. Gah. Not good. I can see the airport from my office window and Flaco says the Bali Trip is ON...