Robert S. Posted February 20, 2003 Report Share Posted February 20, 2003 Mr Simkin did not believe it would be good management for the headquarters of the State Department to try to tell the consulate in Guangzhou what manner to use to send out these pickup notices. I had questioned him about the EMS versus regular mail method. He said that it would be a case of improper micromanagement if Washington attempted the closer supervision I had suggested. But he added that he had just gotten an update from GZ stating that they have sent out a lot of notices and that some people have already gotten theirs and in his words "in a few days there are going to be a lot of happy people" when their notices arrive. He said from the outside it is hard to tell but that in fact GZ is working very hard to process these notices. I believe the mail system in China will be able to handle these letters just fine and I would rather trust even the kid who handles Ana's fiance's mail rather than the lousy US Postal Service (which is not even a part of the government any more). When I told my wife about how we are concerned about the Chinese postal service she told me "no worry" and told me if a postal worker did something wrong he or she would be in "very big trouble." Get the idea? Link to comment
vince Posted February 20, 2003 Report Share Posted February 20, 2003 Hi, Robert, Did you guys by any chance talked about the volume of the recent clearances? thx! Link to comment
Guest woaipw Posted February 20, 2003 Report Share Posted February 20, 2003 I faxed Simpkin yesterday asking the same question. No response yet. Faxed same to Adams, with no reply. Link to comment
Charlotte Posted February 20, 2003 Report Share Posted February 20, 2003 One thing I have to add to this postal service in China is that if it is not more, it is certainly as reliable as it is in the US. Chinese take postal service very seriously. My 13 years of correspondence between China and here never got lost. Although they did not have the kind of privacy as most Americans enjoy here, in my opinion, whether it is regular or EMS, it is more of a matter of time than dependability. For those who live in a relatively nice size city, you should not worry too much. If your fiancee lives in a rural area, you may need to contact GZ to confirm the mailing, just in case. Link to comment
Guest agl88 Posted February 20, 2003 Report Share Posted February 20, 2003 I agree that using regular mail to send out notice is not the big problem. You can always call GZ to ask the notice. The big problem is the PENDING clearance. Link to comment
Ana Posted February 21, 2003 Report Share Posted February 21, 2003 one of the issues with 'checking with the consulate" to see if they have mailed your notice already, is that it is impossible to get through as of late. have people been able to? i cant understand it. my husband has been calling incessantly for 2 weeks now. Link to comment
Joseph-1 Posted February 21, 2003 Report Share Posted February 21, 2003 Now, on January 30 I sent my tax return by certified mail. I trusted that it would arrive and Id get my little card confirming delivery. Its been 3 weeksplus and no card. When the postmaster tried to trace the letter her system said invalid number. The Chinese cant do much worse that $5 to send a letter and it gets lost. Link to comment
Mick Posted February 21, 2003 Report Share Posted February 21, 2003 One thing I have to add to this postal service in China is that if it is not more, it is certainly as reliable as it is in the US. Chinese take postal service very seriously. My 13 years of correspondence between China and here never got lost. Although they did not have the kind of privacy as most Americans enjoy here, in my opinion, whether it is regular or EMS, it is more of a matter of time than dependability. For those who live in a relatively nice size city, you should not worry too much. If your fiancee lives in a rural area, you may need to contact GZ to confirm the mailing, just in case.I agree Charlotte that postal service in both China and US are in many ways equal, equally bad. I can say without reservation that in the five years I have lived here, I have had more mailed lost or undelivered than delivered. I can understand that maybe here in Shantou as it is only a medium sized city. But Hefei, where I lived for a year, was the Provencial Capital! Sorry, but based on my personal experience, regular mail is wrought with difficulties over here. And in doesn't seem to matter much whether the address is in English or Chinese, both seem to get lost with equal frequency, at least in my case. Link to comment
Charlotte Posted February 21, 2003 Report Share Posted February 21, 2003 one of the issues with 'checking with the consulate" to see if they have mailed your notice already, is that it is impossible to get through as of late. have people been able to? i cant understand it. my husband has been calling incessantly for 2 weeks now.The girls on 001 did get through -- all they did is keeping trying until through. I often see them posting about talking to GZ info line.... Link to comment
Guest agl88 Posted February 21, 2003 Report Share Posted February 21, 2003 But at the same time, some keep calling for months but never go through. It is mystery. Link to comment
Mick Posted February 21, 2003 Report Share Posted February 21, 2003 But at the same time, some keep calling for months but never go through. It is mystery.In the past fifteen months I have never once been able to get through to anyone at GZ. This is one of the issues Owen and I complained loudly about when we met with Richard Adams. He said he would explore the possibilities of changing the system. But I wouldn't expect any change for at least three months as he had just signed the check paying for the current service the day we were there (Feb. 10). He pays by the quarter, in other words, three months at a time. Link to comment
AZwolfman Posted February 21, 2003 Report Share Posted February 21, 2003 After over 6 months of this nonsense, any mail is fine, just as long as you assure me that my "check (visa) is in the mail." Link to comment
Alyse Posted February 21, 2003 Report Share Posted February 21, 2003 To my understanding, people will get regualar mail or EMS depends on what kind of envelope they left address on their interview day. If I am not wrong, the earlier days, people only left address on regualr envelope, but I myself, interviewed last month, was able to left my address on an EMS envelope. So, we can expect what kind of notice mail come to us later. hehe, just my thought. Link to comment
JonInDenver Posted February 21, 2003 Report Share Posted February 21, 2003 the news i was given today, is that GZ had planned to have ALL visas printed by close of business Friday. GZ has confirmed receipt of my case, but does not state that they have printed or issued the visa. i don't know if they make a note in the system when the letter is sent. no one at DOS seems to know when in the process the letter is printed and sent out... before the visa is printed? when the visa is printed? or after the visa is printed? who knows? like last week, the week before, and the one prior - i'm told "i think many people will have very good news next week." as of today, "next week" has been in the works for TWENTY months. Link to comment
Mick Posted February 21, 2003 Report Share Posted February 21, 2003 the news i was given today, is that GZ had planned to have ALL visas printed by close of business Friday. GZ has confirmed receipt of my case, but does not state that they have printed or issued the visa. i don't know if they make a note in the system when the letter is sent. no one at DOS seems to know when in the process the letter is printed and sent out... before the visa is printed? when the visa is printed? or after the visa is printed? who knows? like last week, the week before, and the one prior - i'm told "i think many people will have very good news next week." as of today, "next week" has been in the works for TWENTY months.Jon: Glad to hear that GZ has confirmed receipt of your case. I really think the end is in sight for you and your lovely lady. BTW: Thanks for the PM. I will try to make the call tonight China time. Link to comment
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