IllinoisDave

Michael, If I am correct, I have heard and viewed somewhere that at some point in the final visa process our SO's are provided with a form that they will sign showing intent to marry after entry to the U.S. prior to 90 days of date of entry and they do not need a hand written or typed "Letter of Intent." I may be corrected here shortly, but I do recall this and viewing the form recently. Clayton Yes Clayton, I think it's part of the P4 packet.

I'll type out a letter of "Evolution" and an updated letter of intent to marry. No notarizations. It seems like these are only asked for at overcome, and then rarely. If we get blue, I may hand-write the evolution letter if a valid relationship is the issue. I don't recall hearing any instances of the beneficiary being asked to write a letter of evolution so I don't think we will. Maybe for overcome.

Hi Clayton. I'm kinda in the same boat. I don't really have any specific questions to ask right so I'm glad you asked this. One thing I'm curious about has to do with the number of trips we made to see our SOs. When we filed, I had only been once. Then I went back a couple months after filing and will go again for the interview. I'd be curious to know if the trips made after filing are enough to sway the case if the number of trips was a red flag to begin with. I'd also be curious to know what the VOs have specifically been told is the policy about the language used in the interview. There's been some discussion about some VOs being a little less than accommodating when it comes to the interviewee being able to use English or Mandarin, or being able to use both if they don't understand a question. Just a couple that I've been thinking of asking about. Good luck and enjoy your trip.

Steve. Glad you made it ok even if your luggage was a little tardy. I'm sure Aiwen will pass with flying pink colors. Best of luck to both of you!

I'm hesitant to wade into this because comparatively I know little about this issue as it pertains to China itself. But I think I do remember in some past threads the fairly strong implication that people have been forced to join the Party to qualify for certain jobs. I know no one is suggesting that they were literally "forced" physically, rather "forced" or "required" out of necessity. Certainly they didn't have to take the job, but they should be able to take such a job without repercussions when it comes to the visa process. When words like "forced" are used, it conjures up the notion of "Big Bad Commie China" forcing it's citizens to join "The Party" to make a living. In this sense I can see where it could be a sensitive subject for Lance or any of us with an affinity for the China we've come to know and love. Maybe it is being a little sensitive to bring it up. But with all the China-bashing going on in this country today (not necessarily here at Candle), I don't think we can really blame a member here for wishing to steer the discourse in a more China-friendly direction, even if we are just talking about the semantics of words. Just my two cents.

Yeah Rog. Enjoy buddy.

There are many wise opinions in this thread. I agree with many of them and many of them make sense even though some take opposing views. And I think that's the most important thing that can be taken from the diverse opinions here, the fact that there ARE so many different views. I mentioned going with your heart,head and gut earlier. That's what I did. My SO never asked for anything and still hasn't. But after four months of emails and daily phone calls and then 10 days together in China, I made the decision to leave my extra debit card with her to use as she saw fit. I hadn't planned to do that and she sure didn't expect it. I did it because I felt I had come to know her well enough that she wouldn't take advantage of the situation, and she hasn't. It just felt right to me based on OUR relationship. Everyone's free to make blanket statements like "Just do it" or "Dump her". But only each of us, based on what our heads,hearts and guts tell us can really make a determination about whether it's the right thing to do for our particular situation. Things could always change and what feels right now may not feel right a month from now. If you think,based on what you feel and know about your relationship, that it's the right thing, then by all means do it. If that feeling goes away you can always re-assess later. If it doesn't feel right, that doesn't mean you have to "dump" her. Just talk it over with her and let her know why your not comfortable doing it now. Only you know your SO and only you can make a decision based on that knowledge. Best of luck either way.

Yes, nice thoughtful post. Welcome to CFL.

Thanks ILS. I thought for sure after you got your P3 sent back in before getting the packet and I didn't that you'd be ahead of us. And then when you posted your interview date, I mis-read it as Sept. 24! I panicked a little thinking that we might not get much notice. So I called DOS right away figuring I might be a week or so behind you. Then I found out our date and went back and saw that yours was Oct.,not Sept. I was a little relieved that ours was early Oct., which was still about 3 weeks sooner than I expected. But I'm not complaining. So far it looks like you guys will have more company in late Oct. than we will in the early part. I'll tell my SO to soften up the VOs for everybody else. Best of luck. Unless I have trouble getting logged in from China, I'll be sure and post as much info as possible in case it's of some use for everyone else. Best of luck!

Thanks to all. I appreciate the good wishes. It seems like there's so much to do and so little time to do it in. But I've been waiting for that to be the case for a long time now so no complaining here. For those of you still waiting for P3s or P4s and interview dates, good luck and hang in there. It'll come. I'll definately keep everyone posted once I get to China and Christine has her interview. I'm hoping I can post pink results but we're preparing as much as we can for blue as well. I don't leave until Oct. 4th so I'll be around to add my two cents as usual. There is no way I would be in this position right now if it weren't for Candle and all the great people here. Thanks again to all.

My Wife received her P4 today also. It was mailed 9/6/07. She lives in Chongqing. 7 days. Interview date 10/24/07 Congrats! That's great news. Your wife must be very happy to finally receive the docs. I know my SO was. Now it's on to the inteview. Best of luck.

That's great! Nice to hear everythings going well for all of you. Continued happiness.

Congratulations!! Hope your son gets here soon.

For those of you waiting for your P4 and wondering how long it takes I can give you our experience. I just got off the phone with my very excited SO who told me that the P4 came today. It was sent on the 7th. She lives in Shenzhen which as everyone knows is not far from GUZ. I don't know if this was a factor or not. So that's six days from GUZ to Shenzhen. Your mileage may vary. Have a good night all.

Ours was received on the 26th of August and DOS told me yesterday they have everything and we are just waiting on an interview date. I'm sure you and i will have an interview date soon. IllinoisDave needs to have some buddies there!!! Yes. I could definately use some company.

Unless we know exactly what the factors were that caused Rob and his brother to have so much difficulty adjusting, it seems difficult to judge the extent to which they were cultural. Could some of them have been logistical? Practical? Political? Personal? Just wondering.

Oh man have you opened up a can-o-worms. B) Sit back and enjoy the ride. I plan to. I'll stop being a smart-ass long enough to offer my very personal opinion. I think it can't hurt. Good luck.

You'd be surprised to know that lead is present as a metalic component in a large number of consumer goods. That in itself is hardly a safety issue. The issue that has mattel and other toy manufacturers in a bind is lead in parts and pieces that may be ingested by children. Things such as paint, small accessories and the likes usually wind up in the mouths of children. Barbie's entire head, for example, would be difficult to ingest and were it made of lead there would be no issue. I happen to know Barbie's head consists entirely of air.

That would scare the crap out of me! And I have to say I wouldn't be too happy about it, especially if I didn't know where she was. I guess I have alot more to prepare for than I thought. Every woman is different; every relationship is different. Sometimes it depends on who has the power in the relationship; other times it just depends on how your relationship develops. But it never hurts to hear what are some of the other possibilities out there, so that if you two do have problems, you don't feel isolated...or like you are the only one going through it. That's the beauty of Candle for Love, eh? So true.

Thanks to all the responses. It sounds like we'll just have to hope for two days but plan on ? days.

I just heard a report on the radio on the way to work that said that Mattel is taking some more responsibility and will hold their Chinese suppliers feet to the fire a little more and will also do more of their own independent testing. They will also not accept any products containing lead that are meant for children. This brings me to the most surprising thing about the story that I wasn't aware of. Apparently it is presently NOT illegal to sell toys containing lead in the US,only ones with lead paint. I'm flabbergasted by that. I just assumed that it was illegal period. No wonder so many products have slipped through the cracks.

CONGRATULATIONS ON THE PINK!!

Congrats Daniel. Our interview is Oct. 11th. I called DOS last week on the 7th and found that out but forgot to ask when the P4 was sent. So I called back yesterday and was told that the P4 just happened to be sent the same day I called, the 7th. Since my SO hadn't gotten it yet and was a little nervous, I asked the nice lady when we should be asking for another copy. She said give it at least 3 weeks. If we don't get it by then my SO can call or Fax GUZ and request another copy. I have no idea why it should take 3 weeks but that's what she said. She sounded like that was pretty much SOP so I didn't question further. Best of luck on the interview.

Thanks....I booked the China ticket for me thru Travel Depot in Monteray Park, CA.....rogininca turned me on to them.....ask for Henry....best price anywhere for China Southern tickets...Aiwen booked her one-way ticket from an agent on the 4th floor of the Consulate in GUZ.....they had the best price, and we don't have to actually pay for it until we have the visa in-hand, Sept 20. Domestic flights all free, thanks to accumulated frequent flyer miles.... Steve Thanks Steve. Good luck my friend.

I went to Office Depot and Staples and used their color copier. Then a local notary will compare original to color copy and notarize the copies for me. Good idea.