http://www.barcelona-metropolitan.com/blogs/diary-of-an-adoption/index.rss We’ve all seen them, whether at the park, school or playground: 826 foreign children were adopted in Catalunya in 2008, nearly a quarter of the overall Spanish total. Making the initial decision to adopt is difficult, but what comes next is a financial, emotional and bureaucratic minefield. As a foreign resident, the journey is doubly difficult, as linguistic and cultural skills are put to the test and an extra level of government (your own) is added to the procedure. But it is possible. In this special series, Meredith Gales, a Barcelona-based single woman who is in the process of adopting a child from West Africa, writes each Monday about the experience, where to go to get started, the difference between going through an agency and going it alone and the importance of being pesada. en-en 2009 Creative Media Group SL. All Rights Reserved. Tue, 09 Mar 2010 10:56:04 GMT Certificado de idoneidad) process for adoption is a series of one-to-one interviews with the social workers and psychologists of your appointed ICIF (Institución Colaboradora para la Integración Familiar). The first one takes place immediately after the end of your introductory session, which is carried out in a group setting with other adoption applicants. ]]> http://www.barcelona-metropolitan.com/blogs/diary-of-an-adoption/off-to-a-shaky-start/index.html http://www.barcelona-metropolitan.com/blogs/diary-of-an-adoption/off-to-a-shaky-start/index.html Tue, 09 Mar 2010 10:56:04 GMT THE holy grail of any adoption paper chase is the homestudy, or Certificado de idoneidad (CI). Out of the handful of ICIFs (Institución Colaboradora para la Integración Familiar) in Barcelona registered to award you one, I was allocated an ICIF uptown. After paying my fee, I received a call from their receptionist telling me of my start date. ]]> http://www.barcelona-metropolitan.com/blogs/diary-of-an-adoption/the-odd-one-out/index.html http://www.barcelona-metropolitan.com/blogs/diary-of-an-adoption/the-odd-one-out/index.html Mon, 01 Mar 2010 11:35:46 GMT Sol.licitud d’ adopicó international) accepted by ICCA after (in my case) a long and frustrating wait, the next step in any adoption journey is obtaining your Certificado de idoneidad. In English this is simply known as a homestudy. ]]> http://www.barcelona-metropolitan.com/blogs/diary-of-an-adoption/are-you-suitable/index.html http://www.barcelona-metropolitan.com/blogs/diary-of-an-adoption/are-you-suitable/index.html Mon, 22 Feb 2010 09:57:28 GMT Sol.licitud d’ adopicó international to ICAA I was told to wait about four weeks for news that I could start the process for my all-important Certificado de idoneidad ("Your what?!!" I hear you say—more on that one in the next post). After eight I was still waiting. I rang. I was identified immediately as "that woman who wants to adopt from Afrique" (the name I have given my West African country). I was put through to their legal section. I was told they weren’t sure they could accept my application; that, as far as they knew, an adoption had never been carried out with Afrique and I may have to change my nominated country. They were worried about the legality of such an adoption, that there were no ‘guarantees’. To top it off, the Spanish embassy in Afrique had advised them against it, quoting corruption, trafficking and an antiquated legal system. ]]> http://www.barcelona-metropolitan.com/blogs/diary-of-an-adoption/heartbroken/index.html http://www.barcelona-metropolitan.com/blogs/diary-of-an-adoption/heartbroken/index.html Mon, 15 Feb 2010 07:00:00 GMT via libre or protocolo público. ]]> http://www.barcelona-metropolitan.com/blogs/diary-of-an-adoption/the-first-step-on-the-ladder/index.html http://www.barcelona-metropolitan.com/blogs/diary-of-an-adoption/the-first-step-on-the-ladder/index.html Mon, 08 Feb 2010 09:50:07 GMT my last post, there are two roads you can take here. One, is to choose a country that has ratified the Hague convention and the other is choosing one that hasn’t. ]]> http://www.barcelona-metropolitan.com/blogs/diary-of-an-adoption/adoption-agencies-in-catalunya/index.html http://www.barcelona-metropolitan.com/blogs/diary-of-an-adoption/adoption-agencies-in-catalunya/index.html Mon, 01 Feb 2010 09:58:37 GMT ICAA’s website? Well apart from being the countries that the official adoption agencies in Catalunya work with (called ECAIs—more on them in the next post), all these countries have ratified the Hague Convention on International Adoption. ]]> http://www.barcelona-metropolitan.com/blogs/diary-of-an-adoption/to-hague-or-not-to-hague-that-is-the-question/index.html http://www.barcelona-metropolitan.com/blogs/diary-of-an-adoption/to-hague-or-not-to-hague-that-is-the-question/index.html Mon, 25 Jan 2010 09:49:26 GMT website. ]]> http://www.barcelona-metropolitan.com/blogs/diary-of-an-adoption/the-rules-and-regulations/index.html http://www.barcelona-metropolitan.com/blogs/diary-of-an-adoption/the-rules-and-regulations/index.html Mon, 18 Jan 2010 10:11:41 GMT http://www.barcelona-metropolitan.com/blogs/diary-of-an-adoption/when-will-she-arrive/index.html http://www.barcelona-metropolitan.com/blogs/diary-of-an-adoption/when-will-she-arrive/index.html Mon, 11 Jan 2010 10:47:16 GMT