cqhk

Congratulations on your marriage. Hope you can get on the fast track through the process. Like the others said, there is a lot of information here, and a lot of nice people. Best wishes,

Congratulations to you both. It sounds like you had all the bases covered. Best wishes for a wonderful future.

Blsqueaky and Papabear, My fiancee spoke directly to Victory Hotel and let them know we were going to be there for an extended period of time. She asked them for a discounted rate. They told her they'd give us 342rmb per night. The rack rate is 380rmb. Is 342rmb comparable to the discounts you two get for being members? We might be staying there for two weeks, because of the new year's airline traffic. We can't make it back to her hometown, too far and it's snowing right now so no traffic going that way. We are planning to go to Shenzhen after she gets her visa to celebrate with her friends there, but we are going to leave all our bags at the Victory. Too many big bags to travel to Shenzhen and back with. I pm'ed you both to get the website. Mahalo

Congratulations papa bear on getting an interview in Feb05. Best wishes.

Just finished reading the thread. It's a sad story. A lot to think about for sure. As other's have mentioned, one thing that came to my mind was the post a few days ago regarding the article on the USCIS website. The first thoughts I had were of the mother and child, and hoping they are receiving some support mentally and physically from that community. Their limited communication skills in english could add to their feeling of isolation. I hope neither one of them feels responsible in any way, especially the little girl. Then I thought about how I'd like to punish that guy. I'm sure when he's convicted and put away, he'll get what's coming to him. Hopefully they keep him with the general population, and don't segregate him. I'm also willing to contribute to the fund when the particulars are settled. It's a catch 22 when something like this happens, people want to change things right away. Then when things are changed people feel their rights are being violated. It's like how 9/11 changed the security tactics at the airport. In the beginning the majority of americans were all for it. Now more and more you hear people bitching and moaning about their rights being violated at the airport screening stations. Or, bitching and moaning about the long lines and the waiting times. If you know it's going to take a while to get through, then show up earlier. A lot of the waiting is caused by idiots arguing with the staff at the screening stations, just take the damn shoes off or drink from the damn water bottle. If you know you're not supposed to have it in your carry-on, then don't bring it on. Anyway, I'm all for helping the mother and daughter with a donation to the fund. Just post the when and where.

Congratulations. Jan05 is looking good for CFL. B) Best wishes.

My fiancee wants to know if an EKG is part of the exam in Guangzhou. She's had them done when she's had physicals before, and was just wondering if they are part of the exam in Guangzhou. I wasn't sure, so I thought I'd ask. Is an EKG part of the exam?

I just read the article in the original post. It looks like it's meant to be a warning to both US citizens and foreign correspondence, that utilize the internet or picture bride services, to beware of those they come into contact with. Pretty much common sense. It also looks like the article is in some way trying to justify the longer waits for both K-1 and K-3 petitions, by saying the additional background checks on the petitioner and the SO are necessary to prevent fraud. When I was in highschool one of my football coaches ordered a picture bride from the P.I. They're still married, happily I might add. She was a shy person, and my coach was a very nice person. He was never married prior, and he is only three years older than his wife. He met her and her family several times in the P.I., before he was granted permission to marry her. He also met other women that he didn't feel were right for him. People talked behind his back, but those of us who played for him knew he was a nice person. As far as going there to have sex, coach was a virgin until his his wife decided it was time for him not to be. Coach's younger brother is one of my good friends, and he's never heard them argue. True love is out there for anyone to find, but of course people should be cautious in their pursuit of happiness. There will always be a stigma associated with mixed international couples, especially those who met via the internet or via match making services. The reason is ignorance. I can see how the article might offend other couples or US spouses. The profile he gave of US males who should be watched was alarming, and probably not called for. It does appear many on CFL fit the age profile and marriage status he gave, and if I was one of them I'd be offended definitely. I will reread it again, and read more of the posts. Right now, after only reading it once, it just appears to be a warning to both sides and some justification of longer wait times. Just my thoughts. I'm in no way an expert, and I still consider myself a newbie on CFL. I also make a lot of spelling and grammar errors. My mistakes are your corrections.

Melvin, It's nice of you to share the phone number with the group, but the last time someone posted a contact's email it overloaded her email and she stopped communicating with people. Stuff like that contact info, if it is private, shouldn't be posted in a public forum. It really should be kept confidential, and only given to others with the contact's permission. I understand you want to help others, but at the same time it could be closing the door of a helpful contact. When our petition was lost, I met another petitioner on another site. We both had sent letters requesting assistance to our Congress person, Reps, and Senators, with no help. He was doing some research and was given the email address of an employee of DOS who was interested in helping people in dire need struggling with the process. He gave me the email address with specific instructions not to post it or give it away unless others had exhausted the other means of help. Mrs. C is a very nice person, and with her help our petition was found and the process was started to put it back on track. I know she must have helped a lot of people. Unfortunately, someone posted her email in a public forum. So many people kept emailing her, she finally had to stop emailing people and a valuable contact was lost. Anyway, I'm glad you did get your file back on track. I do appreciate your willingness to share such an important contact with everyone here.

Glad your Congress person was so helpful to you, because not all Congress persons, Senators, or Reps are as helpful or as quick to assist. They all have aides that work with immigration issues, and each aide is assigned specific immigrations issues, i.e. I-129 F. Sometimes they are just too busy, depending on where you live and how much immigration is an issue. Anyway, glad to hear you are back on track. Good luck.

Congratulations. Hope you have a wonderful ceremony with her family.

Congratulations. Thanks to both of you for the details.

Congratulations

Thanks everyone for the helpful advice and clarification. I'm not self employed, but indeed meet the 125% requirement. I use a local County Credit Union, not one of the major banks. I was worried about it, but I feel a lot better now.

Congratulations. Looks like January has been good so far, hopefully it continues for the rest of the year.

It sounds like it's time for a heart to heart discussion with your wife. Tough decision to make, but I'm sure the two of you can decide what to do together. I've got no advice other than talk to your wife about it and let her know how you're burned out on that city. I don't know your pain, but I guess it's similar to some of the white and the black kids that grow up in Hawaii, especially the ones who are part of military families. It sucks living in paradise and not being able to enjoy it. Hope things get better soon. Keep your head up. I'm sure your wife knows how much you love her to endure the time there. Best wishes.

I just got back from the Credit Union. I went to the information desk and explained to the person that I needed a statement from a bank employee stating 1. date account opened, 2. total deposits for the past year, 3. current balance of all accounts. She told me that they only go back 90 days. I thought she misunderstood what I was asking for, so I showed her the instruction page of the I-134. She then told me that they don't write such statements because of legal reasons. lol, I almost started laughing at her. I said, "This is something the government is asking me for, and I need to send them what they ask for." She then got may account number and produced a form letter that they use for a request similar to mine. When she showed me the print out, I laughed and said, "No this won't do, it doesn't have my total deposits for the past year (it did have my current balance and they date account opened). Is there a manager here to assist me." She asked me to wait while she went and got the manager. I explained the same thing to the manager. She told me that she is familiar with the I-134, because others have requested the same information. She stated that she couldn't grant my request to have a statement prepared, but she could have my monthly statements printed up for the past year. She assured me that they were acceptable. What could I say, I told her to go for it. I got the print outs and left. I have my last pay stub for the year of 2004, which clearly states my gross income. I already received copies from the IRS of my last three tax returns. Should that be enough for the VO? I'm in the process of writing a cover letter to attach to the I-134, so when my fiancee hands it to the VO they will understand why I didn't get the statement from the bank.

I didn't miss much while I was in China with my fiancee. I enjoyed being with her and her family. The food was great. At times we just had meals at the little holes in the wall on the streets, and I thought it was cool. I missed the convenience of an american style commode, when I'm outside the hotel and duty calls. I also missed being able to drive. The taxis were convenient and didn't cost much, but I missed being able to jump in my own vehicle and driving around just to drive and look around. I hope my fiancee doesn't miss too much of China when she gets here.

I remember the first time I met some of my fiancee's friends. They learned to speak english like Britons. They said my english sounded funny, and they even questioned some of the words I used as being incorrect. lol, it's funny to think about now. They questioned my pronounciation of words, and later when I wasn't around would tell my fiancee that my english was wrong. I had to explain to my fiancee that they must have learned english from a briton or an australian. My dad was in the military, so when I was a little boy we lived in different regions of the US until he retired and we moved back home to Hawaii. When we were growing up, we were taught to speak what people in Hawaii call "proper english". When we lived in California, people spoke like how we were taught. When we moved to Virginia people spoke differently, with a bit of an accent. lol, took some time getting used to, especially the slang words. When my dad retired and we moved back home to Hawaii, lol people had to get used to the way we spoke english, and we had to adjust to the way people spoke english in Hawaii. Eventually my siblings and I started to speak english the way people on our island do, except when we were at home. Must be an interesting / amusing show to watch / listen to.

I like to fly direct when possible. Delta always seemed to have the best direct fares whenever I travel to China. CSA is their partner. The service has always been great on all the CSA flights I've been on. The passengers have been good. EVA is the best airlines I've flown with for the price. Whenever I fly with EVA I like to fly in their evergreen section. The price isn't too bad. The seats are older style recliners with a lot of room, and the best perk is the extra storage bin at the front of the section. One trip I carried on a big duffle bag, a back pack, and a guitar. The gate attendents don't say anything once they see the evergreen section ticket. They've also got great food, if you like asian food. Even when I had to sit in economy they had great service. I've never used them to fly to mainland China, but I've used them to fly to other countries, usually with a stop over in Taipei. The lay over in Taipei isn't too bad. And, we've finally got the ticket cleared up. My fiancee was finally able to get the one way ticket from CSA. Still not sure why they wouldn't let her buy it the first time.

Congratulations

I'm at the Chinese Consulate visa office in Los Angeles getting my visa. It's not crowded at all. I thought with New Year coming that more people would be here. The last time I was here, there were three times as many people. I've been here for almost five hours now. Thank goodness there is a wireless connection here. I don't know who's it is, but thanks to them for leaving it open. They still do same day service for an extra $30. The base fee is now $50. They don't take mail ins, but they still allow visa services to walk in applications for customers. The drive here was three hours due in part to the rain impaired drivers here. But I'm glad I got here, and I'm glad they still do same day service. My visa should be ready soon. Having my computer made the wait easier. Didn't know you could use computers here, until someone else whipped one out and started using it. My fiancee will be happy to know that I spent the first hour and a half writing her a handwritten letter. I don't trust putting my passport in the mail, with less than three weeks before I travel. Plus with the same day service available, luckily, it seems to be cheaper than a visa service. Visa should be ready now. Gotta run, and try not to get stuck in the rush hour traffic. It's still wet outside, so I guess it's going to be another three hour drive.

I wanted to fly direct both ways, so that limited our options. The one way from CAN to LAX, if purchased in GuZ is much cheaper than the one way if purchased here. The roundtrip purchased in GuZ is similar to the price of a one way purchased here. Travelling so close to New Year really limited our dates of travel. Plus I want to sit together. lol, lady at CSA told her there will be lots of seats the day we return to US. I'm taking six weeks off from work for this. I'm not complaining. It's all good come next month.

Congratulations! Awesome news. Hopefully the approval posts come rolling in from all the interviews this Month. Can't wait to add a positive post next month before New Years.

My fiancee just told me that the people are China Southern Airlines are not letting her buy a one way ticket. They seem to think once she gets to POE she will be denied entry if she doesn't have a roundtrip ticket. She spoke to a department head and let him know she was getting a fiancee visa. He told her to ask the Customs office. When she called a Customs Official they told her it was up to the airlines. I've already bought my ticket, and China Southern Airlines is the Airlines I'm flying to and from. lol, I don't know why I wrote this. I'll just get the roundtrip ticket it's only a few hundred rmb more. Problem solved.