oh! what enlightened practices! anyone who has ever tried to apply for a us visa will know why i'm so thoroughly besotted with the australians. the australian visa is electronically processed and stored, so you don't need an actual visa stamp, each one is valid for multiple entries over twelve months and each stay can be for up to 90 days. and it costs only A$20 which is, for the people back in the states, about US$12. and the lovely thing is that you can do all of this from home! oh the darlings!