Richard & Li

Where did you hear this if I might ask? B) I'll insert my 2 cents here: Li spoke very little English at the time of the interview. We had been practicing the possible questions. But, when the VO realized it would be easier for Li to conduct the interview in Chinese, she did so. Result: PINK

Quality and Standards Assurance for the Energy Industry I hope, as her English improves, she will be able to find similar work here. A nearby university has a program in this area, I would encourage her to get the degree.

It's been a long time since I¡¯ve posted on CFL (or anywhere else). Why? That's another story¡­ Well Robert: I think one of the toughest things I've ever done is walk away from Li after visiting her in China for the first time. I was a bit crazy for a while after that and it was a year before I saw her in person again. So, I won¡¯t hit you with too big a hammer. As I'm sure you are aware, misunderstandings are going to happen. Language is certainly the greatest contributor, adding that to cultural differences and a long forced separation; a great deal of patience is called for from both parties. My wife also refused to allow me to spend money on English schools or an English tutor in China. She recognized that the quality of instruction available in her home town wasn't worth a plum Yuan. However, since she started ESL classes here, she has been a dedicated student and her progress has been amazing. I believe there is a much higher visa success rate among CFL'ers than those who don't have the benefit of drawing upon the knowledge and help of the experienced. CFL certainly contributed (hugely) to our success. If you utilize the resources available here, you are way ahead of the game. Don't worry ¨C rather, study and prepare. If you feel that there is an issue between you and Hui, be honest and talk about it. People are people ¨C being Chinese doesn't change that. If you feel you¡¯ve made a mistake, say so and apologize. You'll learn the occasional mop-slap is not too hard to take. Best wishes, Richard

It was a private party. I bought Li a set of diamond earrings and a bunch of good smelling stuff from Macys. She made me a first class Chinese dinner. The rest will be left to your vivid imagination.

Woo Hoo!!! It's been a long road to travel. We can hardly believe we are actually finished for a couple years. Thanks to all who have helped and supported us.

With us, it's not 'did' but 'will' she change her name. No. Her father was a really good man who died young. I respect his memory and the Chinese tradition of keeping her father's name to much to ask her to change it.

As tradition dictates: In my case, our son would inherit the house in China. That will actually probably happen far before either of us dies of old age. As far as I'm concerned, he can have the house in America too if I kick the bucket. (That will be up to his mother). I have a question on this topic that has not been mentioned. What about my wife's Chinese pension? We are paying it off & I'm thinking about not applying for her U.S. citizenship so that she can retire in China if anything happens to me.

We stayed at Yangs. If you haven't read about it, there are a ton of posts... It's in the same building as the consulate. You really don't want to get too far from the consulate. There is a huge square in front of the railroad station. There are several hotels around the perimeter (as is the consulate's building). I would recommend choosing one of those.

In China, the only soft bed I've slept in is the one I bought for Li's house. I didn't know they had them in hotels.

This sounds like a blue slip. Correct? If so, as Sebastian suggests: Find out what they want and get it to them ASAP.

Here it is. Thanks to David... Kitchen Sink

I agree: That is very interesting. If, by chance, you learn more. Please post.

I agree, I am always glad to get off a plane. I'm a big guy and cattle class is very uncomforable. However, all those flight changes made a 24 hour trip into a 36 hour trip. It was hell. I've never made that mistake again.

Sebastian: I couldn't remember who originally posted it. I was just going by what I thought the avatar was. You and Amanda's are similar. Jin: My wife introduced me to "Crazy English" in China. There's some funny stuff in that. Li was also self taught until she arrived in America and started taking formal classes. There were no good adult programs in her home town. I wanted to hire a tutor for her: A young woman who works at the Bank of China and graduated from a university English program. However, she wouldn't allow me to spend that much money.

I once got a good deal thru a Texas based Chinese travel agency. The downside is that to save a couple hundred bucks, I had 5 flight changes (which made an already grueling trip much more so). Since then, I've coughed up the extra money (not a lot) for the most direct route & shortest travel time.

I get this all the time. Li's birthday and Valentines day fall close together. I bought her a lot of stuff in the last couple weeks. Always the same question: "How much did it cost?" Always the same answer: "I didn't notice, it was for my wife."

Yes, the process has changed. It used to be easy (pre-Olympics). I've only done it the old way.

I found Amanda as having posted it: http://candleforlove.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=35328 Thanks David! Kudos to Amanda!

Here's two more cents from me: Don't send any more money. But, tell them to honor the contract for normal delivery and send it ASAP.

I agree with Randy. Only, this could be worse. You sent them the advertised fee - no flowers and a request for more money. Possibility -> You send the extra money - no flowers and yet another attempt to scam you further. I also agree with David. Walk away.

Excellent suggestion. I am a member of toastmasters. I plan to get Li started eventually. However, I think (for her) it is a bit too soon. Funny - the Chinese Baptist Church back in Houston had two meetings scheduled - one for mandarin speakers, one for cantonese speakers. I challenge you to find something similar in your area. I double dog dare ya... That would be really nice. But, here there are only two Toastmaster chapters. One is business oriented and meets downtown, the other is at the university. Our university has a large international student population and many attend Toastmasters meetings. This will be where I'll encourage Li to go first.

It sounds like you've got it all together! My suggestion is regarding your chat logs. 1) They will need to be dated in order to be considered. 2) Don't send anything you don't want read. 3) You probably will not need to send the entire thing. (Ours were quite voluminous.) Send some from the very beginning, perhaps one per week, and a few just before you're most recent trip to China.

I agree, it's a good and necessary law. I know others here have encountered similar difficulties and have written about it. Hopefully, they will 'chime in' and tell you about their experiences. (You can also try searching for threads.) I'm certain it can be worked out: Others have done it. Best wishes...

I tried to find the original thread and could not. (I'm not good at digging up old CFL stuff.) I wanted to give credit to the original poster. Since I couldn't find it, I'll guess: I think Sebastian posted this. USA Learns It's definitely worth a second post. After showing it to my wife, I've found she uses it nearly every day. It has multiple types of feedback and a very nice user interface.

Li always wants to know the names of food items too. It not only helps in learning those nouns, but in how to phrase questions properly and how questions are answered. Li (& I'm sure your wife too) does much more than that. Her English has improved so much it really amazes me. There's no way I could have went so far, so fast, learning Chinese. No doubt in my mind: She's smarter than me. And, I'm proud of her too.