Jeff&Qingyun

Yes, this has already been discussed. Normally I do not need a baggage cart, so I never paid attention to them, in the US. In China they are plentiful and free. I was very shocked this last trip home when I had to pay $5 to use a cart for all of about 100 yards, if that. Just long enough to take my bags from the carousel, though customs and drop the bags off at the transfer conveyor shortly after customs. I had a large suitcase for my wife and her laptop along with my normal suitcase, carry-on bag and laptop. You should have seen me trying to get on to the shuttle bus at the Shanghai Airport, fortunately a young Chinese man was kind enough to give me a hand with the one suitcase and even waited for me to grab a baggage cart at the other terminal. Thanks Jeff

Thanks for your replies. I did not realize that China Eastern was a substandard airline. One of the main reasons I booked this flight, was so my wife would not have to worry about the luggage until she got to New York, where I will meet them and can help with the luggage. She did call the airline and they told her she would have to retrieve the luggage and go through international security. Now I know, I should have booked them on Asiana or Air China. Thanks again guys! Jeff

Hi Guys, Has anyone on here flown from a city in China with a connecting flight in Shanghai PVG to New York JFK using China Eastern Airlines? I have flown in the past, on Air China, from Dalian DLC to Beijing PEK to New York JFK. I check my luggage in Dalian and retrieve it in New York. My wife and son are scheduled to fly China Eastern from Dalian to Shanghai to New York. Someone told her she will have to retrieve her luggage in Shanghai and go through international security to get on the second China Eastern flight. Anyone have any information on this? She is planning on bringing 4 large suitcases, a carry-on, and a 7 year old. Thanks, Jeff

Yes, we did pickup the visas at the post office. The interview was Tuesday morning and they told her they would be ready for pickup on Friday. On Wednesday afternoon I checked the EMS numbers on their website with no results. I checked several times on Thursday, at 5:30 it showed no results, but at 7:30PM they were at the post office. We went on Friday morning at 9:00AM to pickup, which I believe is when they open for business. By the way the post office is not in the consulate building, it is on Huaxu lu near Tianhe Dong lu. the KTV building is at the corner. From the consulate you would head toward Tianhe Bei lu (the road in front of Citic Bank), turn left on Tianhe Bei lu and go to the second major intersection and turn right on Tianhe Dong lu. I do not remember just how far down the street the KTV building is, but I know there is a bus stop right there. We took bus number 136 from the Times Square Plaza. Turn right on Huaxu lu and it is, I think, the 3rd building on the left, maybe 100 yards. Good luck, Jeff

Thanks, you know what they say," hide sight is 20/20 " I would do things a little different if we had to do it all over again. Jeff

Sorry to keep you guys hangin' but I have had very limited computer access. Qingyun had a very easy 2 to 3 minute interview with a pink slip as a result! I'll post more when I get a chance. I even have detailed metro directions to the Medical exam on Shamian Island, where evidently, is still the only place that gives vaccinations. Jeff

Hi, I have not been on here in a while, but we will be in Guangzhou on September 3rd for a September 7th interview. Last year, I met several nice guys waiting for their wife's or fiancee's interview and at ACH. Hopefully, this time we will have better luck. Jeff

If you are applying for the petitions at the same time, you only pay one AOS fee and submit one I-864. I just did this a few weeks ago, CR-1 & CR-2 filed together. Now the IV fee is different, you will pay $400 for each applicant. The online fee collection site will advise you at the time of payment. Good luck! Jeff

Hi Steve, I filed 2) I-130 petitions ( CR-1 & CR-2 ) also. The CSC approval (NOA-2) date was February 24, 2010 and the NVC Affidavit of Support (AOS) invoice date is March 3, 2010. So far things have been moving at a reasonable pace for us. I hope your luck is as good as our's. Yes, after the NVC finishes, your petitions will go to Guangzhou, all fiance and spousal visa applicants are interveiwed in Guangzhou. Jeff

Hey tsap seui, I filed two I-130 petitions (CR-1 & CR-2) through the CSC. The NOA1 receipt date was December 7, 2009 and the NOA2 notice date was February 24, 2010. I'm sure times vary but this gives you an idea of how long the USCIS process is currently running. Good luck to you and the mrs. Jeff

Yes, You can take the train to terminal 5 and look around ( not really much to see ) but you will not be able to go past the TSA security check point. Jeff

Hi griz, I just came back on Asiana and American last night. I only had 1 checked bag and 2 carry-on, there were no fees. I read on the web site before I left that you are allowed 2 checked bags and 2 carry-on items at no charge on international flights. I had checked because when I made the reservation it had a alert pop-up saying that 1 of the 2 airlines I was using was charging a baggage fee. I recommend calling the airline you plan on using just to be sure. The people I have talked to in the past have always been helpful. I hope this helps. Jeff

This is the one I prefer http://us.mdbg.net/chindict/chindict.php?page=translate Good luck with your letter. Jeff

I have been using TEL3 advantage since the begining of April. I like the ease of dialing, the online printable phone records and the price. What I don't like is the quality of the connection, there is almost always a delay and an echo. Some times it takes 5 or 6 tries to get connected. So far it is the cheapest phone service to China that offers printable phone records I have found. I am still looking if anyone knows of a better way. Thanks Jeff

I have got to agree with HKG on this one, not only is it an added expense, that in most cases was not the fault of the petitioner and beneficiary, but what about not knowing what the reason for the denial was in the first place. I felt very confident when my fiancee went for her interview, heck, I front loaded a lot things in our petition, including many emails. In our case the VO told my fiancee that the emails we submitted were not legitimate, which is BS, but all she received is a standard form letter that says we have a non-bonafide relationship. When we go to refile, our evidence remains the same as it was the first time, including our emails, so how can I have any faith that she won't be denied a second time? They should have to disclose the reason or reasons why a denial was given. I personally think they deny some visas to accumulate cash for the consulate. Now if they allowed you to refile without having to pay the fees a second time, I don't think they would deny so many, because they would have to do twice the work for the same fees. This is why I think the Service Centers should review the denials in a reasonable time frame and either tell you why you were denied or resubmit your petition to the consulate with recommendation to award a visa. Jeff

By what I read, a K visa is not eligible for electronic processing, but maybe someday. Jeff It is available for K visa just a slightly different procedure .. not totally paperless... Please Note: The NVC electronic processing project for K visa (fianc¨¦e/spouse non-immigrant visa), has different procedures. For these cases, although the petitions are loaded electronically, the U.S. Consulate in Guangzhou still contacts visa beneficiaries to provide more documents prior to interview scheduling. If you are a K visa applicant and you have opted in for electronic processing, you will still have to wait for paper Instructions via mail from the Consulate. It helps if you read the whole page, doesn't it? Jeff

By what I read, a K visa is not eligible for electronic processing, but maybe someday. Jeff

Hi, The first 2 or 3 lines from the left are for the 7:15AM appointments the next 2 or 3 toward the right are for 7:30AM appointments. If you have a 7:30AM appointment I would get in the 4th line from the left (looking at the front of the building), you'll be good there. Good luck! Jeff

Hi, One of the few things I enjoyed while we were in Guangzhou was the hotel we stayed at the last 2 days. It is called the CAN BEYOND BUSSINESS HOTEL, 160 Tianhezhijie Tianhebei Road, ( South of Times Square ) Tianhe District, Guangzhou, telephone: (86-20) 3891 3222. English at the front desk is limited so have your wife or fiancee call or make reservations on line (I saw it on eLong.com originally). They do accept American Visa or Mastercards. It is located about 100 yards off the main road in the alley between the Bostan Hotel and Times Square. It was a quick 8 RMB taxi ride to the U.S. Consulate, although I did walk there and back 2 or 3 times (about 20 minutes each way). We stayed in a Deluxe Business Double room, which was a large 40 square meters in size. It was clean, had 2 queen size beds (you can get a king size bed if you like), a large probably 4ft by 8ft shower, air conditioning that worked flawless, a refrigerator, and a computer in the room. All of this for 298 RMB per night which included 2 breakfast coupons per day. The breakfast was not to my liking but my fiancee and her son liked it. If you walk out to the main road and turn left. Walk past the stinky river to the corner, there is a hotel with a restaurant on the top floor (3rd I believe). It is located right at the corner and has 2 large concrete lions guarding the steps at the entrance. The food was very good, reasonably priced and it was one of the few places I could get a fork or read a menu. I do recommend this hotel and I recommend you steer clear of the Peng An Hotel located near the East Train Station. Good luck! Jeff

I am so sorry to hear this for you guys. I'm not sure I understand however. When you printed these emails, did you print the entire page, including the "header?" The header contains: From: To: Date: Time of Day, ...and so on Did that appear on these copies? Yes, on the actual email it did have the header. When we would use yahoo email, I printed the letter I received from Qingyun and behide it would be the mechanical translation. I think this is what the VO is questioning, because the translation page would just have the date at the top and nothing at the bottom. Thanks, Jeff

Thanks for the offer, but we decided to leave tomorrow. I am glad you had better luck than us. I would stay and go to ACH on Monday, but it is Memorial Day and GUZ is closed. I have a flight back to the US on Thursday and have to be back to work the following week. So basicly we're screwed. I can't wait around until June 1st for a slim chance at a reasonable answer. I couldn't even get that at the ACH I did go to. Thanks, Jeff

Hi guys, Qingyun had her interview this morning. She was nervous, but felt everything was OK. As the interview progressed the VO asked to see our emails. She said his demeanor changed and pointed at the bottom of the pages where the date when I copied it is located. He told her the emails were not legitimate, gave her a white denial slip and sent her on her way. There is no explanation written, just the standard nonbonafide relationship form letter. As you can imagine, Qingyun is an emotional mess. Now I have another reason to hate Guangzhou! Jeff

Hi guys, We have a disagreement over whether the passport style photos are are suppose to be attached to the DS-156 or not. I could swear, I remember reading that the people taking the documents attaches them, but I can't find it. Qingyun is showing me a letter dated 2003 that says you should attach the photos by stapling, glueing or taping. Help us out here! Thanks! Jeff

This is the first contact with a computer, since I got to China. Compared with the other parts of China I have been, Guangzhou is at the bottom of my list. We arrived Sunday afternoon, it was hot and extremely humid. It rained on us in the evening, when we were still about 5 minutes walk from the hotel. Qingyun had an umbrella, but it didn't make much difference. It has rained part of the day, every day we've been here, it is raining now. No, it is pouring now! I have met a few nice guys here, but so far no one from this site. Tomorrow is our big day and Qingyun and I thank you for your support. I feel we are totally prepared, but I'll bet I'm not the first to say that and not get a pink slip! We have to pick up the medical packets this afternoon, get some last minute pictures developed and calm Qingyun's nerves, then we will be set. Thanks again! Jeff and Qingyun

Congratulations!!! See, no sweat!!!