Richard & Li

I also get that excited about going to China (every time). Ask her to take you to a Hot Pot and a Korean BBQ (two of my favorite types of restaurant). Enjoy...

big loser ,huh? i know 39years old man jobless is not good,but what i really care about is if we can get along very well,find some1 really loves u from bottom of his heart is more improtant,also i didnt mean that money is nothing,i want to be with him even we dont have lots of money,i can do some work or something like that,but the situation is he cant give me confidence right now,so if he keep doing this to me,i will say bye bye. Maybe not a loser. Times are hard for many good people. However, starting over again at middle age is not the time to consider bringing a woman from a foreign country to America to begin a marriage. Love is blind. But, the old saying "love conquers all" is false. In a situation where you would be so far from your family and the support you've had all of your life, practical matters must carry more weight.

Just last week I was looking for air tickets for our son to visit China. I called Korean Air to make sure he could change planes in Seoul without a Korean transit visa. They assured me he could. (Not leaving the secured area is a given.) However, my wife was still nervous about it. So, I spent a little more and got him United Airlines flights directly to & from Beijing.

It's been a while for me. So, consider this a question rather than a statement: Haven't the Chinese gone to just one type of tourist visa since the Olympics?

Gift giving is complex. The last time I went to China gifts constituted about 75% of my luggage. I don't know if I got it right, but the family was very nice (as always) and certainly gave me credit for trying (if I got it wrong). Now, I rely on my wife to handle gift giving. No questions asked: Whatever she says, goes. My guess is there were more issues between these two women. The incident you speak of might have just been the 'straw that broke the camel's back'.

My wife said that it's not something a person with manners would say publicly. But, I don't really sense any hostility from you. So, I'll assume you were also attempting levity. Certainly, my sense of humor is not always appreciated: But, that's never stopped me.

Funny stuff! One of the first I encountered was trying to say I have a beard and actually saying there is a monkey on my face.

Some facts you've stated make me inclined to urge caution: He is 39, jobless, and can't afford an air ticket. How could he possibly provide for you in America? Living a good lifestyle here is relatively expensive. If he was in his early 20's and not yet financially independent, it wouldn't be such a concern. IMHO

Nope, a person will not be allowed to board an international flight without showing passport, it will be needed before leaving the USA. As others said, you may look into splitting the itinerary so that the domestic leg is not tied to the international leg, but this would require re-checking baggage. Or simply mail the passport to the traveler by a secure method. I'm sure it depends on the airline. But... I'm used to a secondary queue within the secure area of the international terminal to check for passports and visas (by the airline) prior to boarding an international flight. The first check (to get on a domestic leg) is the TSA (rather than the airline) and they accept things like a driver's license. I've never been asked for my passport and visa prior to boarding a domestic flight, regardless of the itinerary.

Exactly!

From our experience, he could use another form of identification for getting through security on the domestic leg. The passport should not be required until he boards the international flight. As others have said: Check with the airline to find out exactly what is needed.

The repercussions of this are snowballing... Now, she wants to quit ESL. This led her to think, since she won't be going to school, she can make more money than she gets working a few hours in the evenings. She wants to quit an ideal job (my opinion - her hours at work fit perfectly into our schedule, the job is easy, and she must speak English there) and take a job working 12 hours a day, 6 days a week, with other Chinese women (no English spoken there). So, I think she would eventually forget most of what she's learned about English. BTW: We don't need the extra money: There is no reason for her to work at all, except that she wants to. Additionally, for the probable loss of her progress in English and the amount of time she would be away from home: I don't want the extra money. Talk to this teacher? Other husbands I know and some of the students have tried to talk to her and the program administrators; unsuccessfully. I think this teacher is more interested in demonstrating how smart she is than in providing quality instruction. I'm going to try and get my wife enrolled at a different school. Right now, I could post in the "I would love to kick the Living SH*T out of ..." thread.

Very well written and informative! Congratulations!!!

My wife came home today and showed me an in-class reading assignment taken from Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. In case you haven't read it: This was written about 200 years ago. The English is very antiquated and sentences are structured quite differently than we are used to in modern English. She was, expectedly, quite confused and frustrated that she could not understand the text well enough to answer questions about it. (I had to read it three times before I could answer the questions.) The only thing that came into my mind was: WHAT was the teacher thinking??? Her students are trying to become conversant - not trying to get a degree in English Lit. Next they will probably be learning Shakespeare, when what they really need is to speak well enough to function in everyday life.

I don't know if the Yang's are still in good favour here. But, they helped Li & her son get the medical exam. -Much appreciated.

Dimensional Fund Advisors, Dynamic Financial Analysis, Deterministic Finite Automata, Dairy Farmers of America, Detrended Fluctuation Analysis, Department of Family Assistance, Death From Abroad Edit: Oops, had one of yours listed.

I would make 3-4 hours a minimum. The 'lines' (herds) can be very large in China. Domestic flights seem to be delayed frequently there too (from my experience).

Up until now, I've also used Western Union. A friend of mine discovered that Bank of America and (I think) The Agricultural Bank of China have partnered and accounts can be accessed directly in either America or China without paying transfer fees. Haven't tried this yet myself. But, it seems to be a very good solution.

That is one of the truest statements I've ever read. Eventually, they figure out that acting like a jerk gets them nothing. As opposed to being sweet, when they get almost anything they want. (Except for during PMS when all rationality escapes them.)

She's probably right. I bought an air conditioner for our residence in China. It is a typical unit with the condensing unit mounted on the outside wall. This required some heavy labor and some precarious work (we have a 'condo' in a high rise): It was done the same day I purchased the unit. It seems like running a duct through a room and then to outside would be fairly easy. Maybe the contractors are afraid of the building inspectors. (Dunno, just conjecture.)

We usually go through Chicago O'Hare. Everything Mike said is right. The people there have always been courteous and efficient: Never any problems for us.

That's almost what we use. Add some finely chopped fresh garlic and you've got it!

I guess if I were living there, I'd miss American food occasionally and want to get some gut-bombs. However, I can't fathom visiting China and not taking advantage of being in a world of the culinary delights at every opportunity. B)

My wife likes pizza. But, it was an acquired taste. Most Chinese are not used to eating cheese. American bakery products are usually either too salty or too sweet. One thing my wife liked the first time and still requests regularly is BBQ (both meat and vegetables). Can you get duck eggs? If so, hard boil a few (regular hard boiled eggs are an adequate substitute). And, of course, freshly cooked rice. Want a simpler suggestion? My wife likes pork. Probably bacon (low sodium) and eggs (with rice) would be a hit.