Ms Meghan Leahy, a student from California, joined the queue at 6 a.m. and whiled away the time reading a Frank McCourt novel until she was served at about midday. "I came here at noon a couple of weeks ago and there were no tickets left. They pass out tickets and at a certain time they run out so you have to get here early," she said.
Ms Leahy, who is working in a coffee shop on a four-month student work permit, said she was surprised at the processing delays. "I didn't know that I'd have to do this but it's probably pretty common throughout Europe, I'm assuming. I heard the line was a lot worse but it's come down. I had to get up early but it's not that bad if it's just for one day," she said.