NickF
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Posts posted by NickF
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Considering the short timeframe, I'd consider taking the HK light rail train from the HK airport to Shenzhen, then catching a train to GUZ. By the time you factor in a possible late flight, collecting luggage, clearing Customs, and getting to the departure gate 50 minutes isn't doable.
The train ride to Shenzhen should take about 45-60 minutes, and wneh you arrive in Shenzhen you basically walk across the plaza to the train station. If you can time it right you can take the high-speed train to Guangzhou. On that train it takes about an hour, and you don't end up having to take the 45 minute bus or taxi ride into town from the airport.
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Congratulations!
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Tomorrow is our big day for interview. I will do a full write up when we finish up.
Do most people write a new or updated EOR for the interview? or does all evidence need to be collected by the fiance (different from petition submission)?
-We have evidence of continued relationship but also all the info from the petition, including the letter.
Just wondering if I need to pull a late night and finish writing a new one...
Also, I found many cases of people flying to US POE from Hong Kong. Has anyone taken a train from Guangzhou to Hong Kong?
US¡¡Citizens are okay. Chinese citizens are allowed visa waiver for transitting Hong Kong, but no word of actually where/how a waiver is received.
Also some varying stories online about limited 24 hours in the confines of the airport vs. train/taxi in Hong Kong to the airport?
Hopefully booking tickets this week!
Took the train from Guangzhou to Shenzhen last New Year. We rode the high speed train, and the trip takes about an hour that way. The train arrives at the ShenZhen transportation center, and you can walk about 100 feet, go through the immigration checkpoint to Hong Kong, and then take the Hong Kong light rail system from there to the airport. it's actually pretty painless, and not too expensive.
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We're using the economy play. With tax we're paying about $28 a month. It's been great so far, and it gives ChunMei a local Chinese phone number they can call and it rings here in Colorado.
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There was one in TX that would do the I-693 through the mail, give them a call and see if still doing this, I believe $15 or $20.
Dr. L. E. Arnold
4534 Westgate Boulevard, Suite 106
Austin, TX 78745
Tel: (512) 444-3131
Fax: (512) 447-4699
We're scheduled to see my family doctor tomorrow. I found out coincidentally that he's a registered civil surgeon. He wants to do a physical too, but his nurse said he would be willing to discuss it. At any rate the bottom line cost from him is $350 including vaccinations and labwork, and since he'll be her doctor too, at least he'll have a full medical history for his files for when she goes to him for other medical issues in the future. I can live with that.
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Interesting reading, but not very useful unless we want to fly from Denver to Houston or Chicago. So far I've called 14 different Denver-area civil surgeons and every one will only do a complete physical with x-rays and labtests. We have the x-ray from her Guangzhou exam, and none of the doctors are even willing to look at it.
One physicians office receptionist even came right out and said that no one in the Denver area will waive the complete physical. And I've been quoted prices from $800 to a new high of $1300, lab tests and vaccinations not included.
What a racket!
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We're working on getting ChunMei's 2 year green card and getting to send in the initial paperwork. One of the requirements is the I-693 vaccination record supplement.
When ChunMei turned in her medical exam papers before her interview, they didn't give them back to her, saying that she wouldn't need them when she got here. Now we're tyring to complete the vaccination supplement. I've spend the morning calling local registered civil surgeons to get this done. Every one of them has told me that even though the regulations say that K-1 recipient does not need a complete physical if the had one overseas within the past year, they won't do the vaccination supplement unless they also give her another physical, complete with all of the blood work and exam that she just had. I've been quoted prices between $800 and $1000, plus the cost of the labwork and any vaccinations.
Anybody else run across this? And if so, got any cheaper solutions?
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I turned on English subtitles for ChunMei, and she finds it helpful. Her written English skills are much better than her spoken skills (due, I think, to the fact that her English classes in Nanning were taught by non-native English speakers.) She uses it mostly to correct her pronunciation of English words because she can both see and hear the words as they are being spoken..
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Gotta say something posative about some US government workers. We applied for ChunMei's SSN last Tuesday afternoon, They said it would probably take a week to ten days,and the card showed up in the mail last Saturday.
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Thanks much for the help.
As I get older I get stupider, I think.
Among other things the Visajourney instructions said to send copies of both sides of the I-94, and there isn't anything on the other side.I'm easily confused, and often distracted by shiny objects.
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Dan, I'm 63 and ChunMei is 48. We look at any time together as quality time, no matter how much or how little. Accept what you get, and enjoy it to the fullest.
Best of luck.
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It figures. I couldn't be there for ChunMei's interview (wanted to keep my job) and she waited a week and didn't get her visa. She finally went back to Nanning, then 4 days later was notified that it had been delivered, so she had to go back to Guangzhou to get it. Twelve hour train ride each way.
So now they deliver to Nanning. In the end I'm happier we didn't need to wait until now to get her here, though.
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is it stapled in her passport?
Yep, should be stapled in passport, this card should say departure record and show the 90 day time period.
Is that the I-94? I was looking for something like they give out on the airplane, or like theone I found in Wikipedia. And where the hell do I send the I-485 paperwork? Looking at the USCIS website is like wandering around in a mirror maze.
I figure instructions are there, but I sure as hell can't figure them out. But then I'm having trouble firguring out the instructions at Visajourney, too. Old age must have set in.
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Starting the I-485 process, and we need copies of both sides of her I-94 form. ChunMei insists that they never gave it back to her when we came through Immigration in LA. Now what?
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I officially have a Chinese wife. ChunMei and I were married last Saturday.
Small ceremony at my church. She wanted a church wedding, and I wanted to make her happy. We had friends over afterward for snacks, drinks, and wedding cake.
Then we took a three day honeymoon and I showed her a little of Colorado. She said it was a wonderful wedding and party. She was worried about talking to my friends at first because of her English, but afterward she said she was fine, and enjoyed talking to everyone.
She was very nervous before the ceremoney because of her English and speaking the vows, but she had no problems, and was a beautiful bride.
I'm happier than I've ever been, and she says the same.
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I knew about it because ChunMei told me on the 6th. About an hour before our wedding.
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My experience with Tennessee branches of government agencies, like Social Security, Veterans Adminstration, etc. is that they don't have a clue about much of anything. When we first tried to get Li's Social Security Card, they asked if she had a green card. We explained that Adjustment of Status had been applied for, showed them the letter, documentation, etc. Their response after reading the material was:
"We can't give her a Social Security Card."
"Why not?"
"She is here illegally."
"How can you say that?"
"She doesn't have a green card."
"Of course not. The letters we just had you read explains that."
"There are two types of immigrants," she said. "Legal immigrants and illegal immigrants. Legal immigrants have a green card."
"I think you are mistaken."
"Does she have a green card?"
"No."
"Then she is illegal."
We drove back across the border to the Social Security office in Huntsville, Alabama. No problems at all. Applied for the card and out the door in less than an hour.
In my work for the newspaper over the years, I had the occasion to interview more than a few agency supervisors for various departments in Tennessee and my experience was pretty much the same: they didn't have a clue, especially if it involved immigration issues.
ChunMei were married here in Colorado last Saturday. Yesterday we went to the local SSA office to get a Social Security card for her. After that we were going to the Castle Rock court house to register our marriage license.
At the Social Security office we completed the application for using her married name. When the clerk looked at her passport and the K-1 visa she said ChunMei would need to apply for the card using the family name on her visa, then come back and change it after she got her green card because the system would reject it with the new last name.
Then she said she might be able to submit it if we only had the marriage license with us. Which we did.
She filled out the computer form with the application from our marriage certificate and it sailed right through. No problems. Some government employees are both competent and helpful. -
We got the Pink !!! LOL hurrah !!! I am happier ana pig inshit!
Sorry I hadn't posted earlier. Been cebrilatin wit my son.
I'll give ya'll the details as they filter in. She said it was an easy 2 minute interview but I think it lasted more anaht. She only remembered one question when I talked witter. "Have you ever been to the U.S.?" LOL
Full report to come.
Dang, can't tell ya'll how happy I am right now.
Thanks one and all for ya'll's guidance.
Great! I'm really happy for you. It sounds like your process wasn't that painful. Ours was fairly quick and easy, and I was feeling guilty about the problems others hear have been writing about.
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Dan touched on the subject of home sickness - it is coming to a wife near you. Having a way to contact family back home, new friends here and keeping busy will ease the degree. Local Chinese churches are a good place to meet other transplants if you have one in your area. They tend to serve more as social clubs than anything else. Personally, I prefer Buddhist temples.
Whatever you do, enjoy the construction process of building a new life for you and your wife.
Homesickness has been an issue, but it's better now. The first 2 weeks she was here she ran up a $650 long distance phone bill calling her friends and family.
Then we got an ITalkBB VOIP account where she can call as much as she wants for $25 a month. And also gives her a local China phone number so her friends and familuy can call her when they want. She really misses her son, but we're seeing if we can get him into a college here in Denver after he graduates from college in Nanning next year. He doesn't want to live in the US, but a year of foreign study makes it easier to get a good job in China these days.
One nice thing about the church we went to yesterday is that members come from all over the city, so she can meet people from all over.
Now that we've located the first resource (the church) we'll have all sorts of options. We do a fair amount of shopping at the alameda/Federal Blvd stores, but's a major trip for us to make that drive. And Aurora's almost Kansas from where we live.
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ChunMei seems to be settling in nicely here. She's been a little lonely when I'm at work, but was filling her time by exploring our neighborhood on foot, and doing house cleaning. Last week we decided to walk down the street and watch the Highlands Ranch 4th of July parade. She wanted to get a full experience for her first US holiday.
During the walk down there she expressed her disappointment that there are "no Chinese people in Highlands Ranch." I told her not to worry; that there must be some.
While watching the parade a man came up to us and started talking to ChunMei in fluent Mandarin. Boy, was she surprised, because he wasn't even Asian. A could of minutes we were joined by his Chinese wife and their 6 year old daughter. Turns out he is originally from Germany, but lived and worked in China for 10 years, where he met and married his wife. And they live in the apartment complex across the street from us.
ChunMei and his wife got together for the afternoon last Friday, and yesterday we attended a service and BBQ picnic at a church about a mile from our home. About 90% of the congregation is Chinese! Services are conducted in Chinese and English. ChunMei met a bunch of new people and had a couple of new friends, and she's very very happy now. And if she's happy I'm happy.
It makes me feel much better that she will have friends apart from my friends, and I think it will help her adjust to US life. Especially with friends who live a 5 minute walk from us.
We've scheduled our wedding for 6 August, but it looks like we're going to sending invitations by email since there's so little lead time.
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Hey, Nick. Glad to hear things are going OK. About that food thing,,,,that can change. The old tai tai was kind of like that at first, too. She seemed to get along with most things I tried her on, but as time wore on, she got to where she won't hardly eat anything Western. And she still cooks her lettuce.
Just a little advice - let her go at her own pace and she'll do fine.
Yep, plan on having a plate of some type of lettuce on your table every night that's been cooked in oil.
Learn to love it too. 
Am I the only one who seems to like it better that way? Haha
Actually, I'm getting used to it. And she does the same with celery. I'll admit, she's discovered catsup and puts it on almost everything she eats, but if that's her thing and she likes it...
The alternating cooking chores seems to be working out. She's learning what American (Italian, Mexican, Thai, Japanese) foods she likes and doesn't like, and I learning the same about Chinese.And, man, can she cook dumplings! -
Well, ChunMei's seems to be settling in OK. A few rouigh spots here and there, but overall she's finding that she likes the US, and really likes Colorado.
She misses her son a lot, and it turns out that now that she's here, he misses her a lot, too. Fortunately we got italkBB working, so she can call him and her friends and family whenever she wants.
She also talks daily to her friend Yonghong, who lives in Minnisota. Yonghong's been here for almost two years, and still can't adapt to western food. On the other hand ChunMei's found she likes about 85% of the food she's tried. We've worked things out so that we alternate cooking; one night Chinese, one night American. We cook for each other.
She started her intermediate ESL class last Thursday, and it's the first time she's been on her own with other people, and I wasn'tr there. Says she is fine. I hope so.
During the day she's been exploring our neighborhood on foot, and wants to begin riding the bus. Problem is, she doesn't know where she would go yet. But we're working on that.
We're talking aboput next year when her son graduates from college, maybe he can come here and study for a year at a college here. Makes it much better for him to find a job in China these days.
Interestingly, ChunMei likes American Wal mart's much better than the Chinese ones. Not sure why.
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Great!!!
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Randy, I flew to Nanning through Guangzhou. Had about 3 hour layover there. No problem because I'm familiar with the airport. Had breakfast, found a seat and read for a while. then caught my flight to Nanning.
It was the return trip through Beijing that was the journey through hell. Missed our LA/Denver flight by a day, the airplane broke, and had to fly standby. We got home 36 hours later than planned.
How Was Your Mooncake Day?
in Culture & Language Discussion
Posted · Edited by NickF (see edit history)
ChunMei was a little sad because she misses her family now, especially her son Hai. But she talked to everyone on the phone, or on Yahoo, so that helped. Of course the 14 hour time difference made it a little confusing, but everything worked out in the end.
We bought mooncakes at the asian supermarket, and yesterday she made dumplings. Shared them with Gteg and Sue, our neighbors next door. She's becoming friends with Sue, which makes me happy. We've begun walking with them in the evenings after dinner, and ChunMei and Sue are beginning to get together during the day, too.
And she got the notice in the mail that her I-485 AOS application has been received, and she has an appointment for biometrics on the 29th, so that made her very happy. Me, too.
So all in all it was a nice day.