When Cardinal Francis Xavier Nguyen Van Thuan was traveling for his job at the Vatican, he had a Vatican passport. It's considered a bona fide diplomatic passport from the Holy See. Some official authorities think it's funny, both in a humorous and different way. They've never seen one before. But it's just an oddity. However, some places (or I should say people) have never heard of the Vatican and are suspicious.
"Is this a joke?"
"I never heard of the Holy See."
"Where is this Vatican?"
One time, in Malaysia, the Cardinal had to go sit for quite awhile, while the authorities did some research on the Holy See in Vatican City. Finally, they concluded, "I know, the Vatican is a former French colony."*
* story from the book, Testimony of Hope The Spiritual Exercises of John Paul II by Francis Xavier Nguyen Van Thuan
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