the great Chinese Visa Getting Debarcle

How organised is the Chinese visa application service?!

First, you download your application form. Then you book your appointment online to hand in your application, then you hand it in, 4 days later you go and pick it up. Easy, right?

Well, yesterday I;
1. filled in the application form
2. booked appointment for 1-1.30
3. got to Chinese embassy by 12.40 (so far so good)
4. Realised Chinese embassy closed at 12 (how could that be when my appointment was for 1?)
5. Banged on the door to embassy and waited like an idiot for 10 mins or so
6. finally had the security guard (while letting out the Chinese embassy workers) point out to me that the appointment is the other side of town
7. hopped in taxi & raced over there so as not to miss deadline
8. got told by nice lady at desk that my appointment was for tomorrow at 1.00
9. looked dismayed
10. nice lady let me in anyway. (Thank you, nice lady)

I hope I don't have these problems when I go to pick it up on Thursday!

TRAVEL UPDATE:
So far we've booked London-Brussels-Cologne-Copenhagen-Oslo-Bergen-Kirkenes-Murmansk-St Petersberg-Moscow-Ekaterinberg-Ulaanbator-Beijing.