Waiting time

[Gus]

OK... Just got our NVC Guangzhou appointment date for 13 September! Wow, what do I need to know now, what should Lihong expect (aside from the vague NVC website info/FAQ's) pages that I have read and re-read a thousand times. Any advice for our travel to USA? Words of wisdom from you experienced husbands? Any thoughts from your beautiful brides that I can share with Lihong? Please chime in with LOTS of comments, I need all the encouragement and wisdom you ladies and gents can muster.

Thanks, thanks, thanks in advance and for all the helpful advice (and all the jokes and humor).

Another step closer.

Gus

[JohnB]

Gus.. I do not know if anything has changed since my Jing's interview Dec2011 (your "..any advise
for our travel to the USA", I take that as you will be in Guangzhou also. Enjoy the moment!) Jing's
interview went well, but she returned home & received her visa about 8 weeks later. I do not know if
anything has changed since then.
On her arrival to the states, Jing suffered home sickness. This does happen! You had better have the
time to be with her for this! A few days after Jing's arrival, I took her to a Chinese association in
Spokane, Wa. That was good for her.. a few hundred Chinese on a Sunday morning get- together. This
worked well for awhile, but it went to shit within a couple of weeks. A few hard core Christian zealots
had a problem with Confucians. The local Chinese restaurants were a put off.. not Chinese enough. Turns
out that our favorite go- to restaurant was Japanese for their Sashimi.
Anyway, I wish you and Lihong all the best!

[Gus]

Good morning John,

Thanks for the great words of advice. Sadly business will not allow me to accompany Lihong to Guangzhou. According to USCIS website it usually takes between 3-10 days for the actual visa to arrive, so that is good to know (although very frustrating) that it could be up to 8 weeks, before we can travel together from Liuzhou to CT.

I have been looking for Chinese support groups/activities in my local area to help ease Lihong into life in the USA. I am glad it can be useful, sorry to hear it can also be pushy and over bearing by some. We are only 2 hours from NYC China town, so I thought that might be a good trip. I also hear that a neighboring town has an excellent Chinese/Asian market, so that may also be helpful.

This board has been a wonderful resource for me. Do the wives have a similar board, where they can chat, ask questions/advice, complain about Western husbands and getting used to life in a different country?

Thanks for the reply, and I look forward to others chiming in when they have the time.


Be well,

Gus

[kenny]

Only 2 hours from China Town would be a good thing to travel to once in a while. We have talked about going on a trip there but syill havent gotten it done.

My wife enjoys going to asian market but it is about an hour and a half away so we dont get there often. The one thing Linda has enjoyed is getting her driver license and having a little independence. That took a while too! Like John said spend as much time with her as you can to help get settled in.

[Gus]

Kenny,

Thanks for the excellent info. Our local Asian market is only 25-30 minutes away. We also have a very small Asian market in town, so who knows. China town, yes we actually land at JFK, and I was wondering if we should take a trip and visit Chinatown before we head to CT, or if I should wait until loneliness sets in, and then go to visit Chinatown.

Drivers license... oh oh LOL. Another woman driver (sorry if that is too sexist, I couldn't resist)

[Gus]

Keep the tips coming guys.... I so enjoy reading all the posts, and words of advice.

[JohnB]

Gus,
almost the magical moment!
if I were you, think Lihongs travel plan. it is a long flight and probably a couple transfers. probably jet lag. exhaustion. whatever the unrealized if realized. a long Lihong day.
also, Lihongs immigration time is an unknown factor. on my Jing's arrival, I had to wait another 3 hours for her to complete the immigration.

I was thinking maybe you should consider Lihong's flight plan that allows her to arrive earlier in the day. also, if I were you, I would stay in a hotel near the airport. spend some time in N.Y. for Lihong to decompress and recover. 

just a couple things for you to consider.

[Gus]

John,

Thank you for the advice. Lihong and I will be flying into JFK together. It WILL be a long trip, 20hours plus whatever happens at customs/immigration. There is only one flight option for us (that makes sense) arrives around 3:00 in the afternoon, so maybe a hotel is a good idea.

I so appreciate this board, and your replies.

Thanks,

Gus

[Gus]

Lihong was approved yesterday at her visa interview! FINALLY after months of paperwork, waiting, more paperwork, more waiting, now all we have to do is wait foir the visa and passport to be delivered to Lihong. Then I can make our travel arrangements and begin phase 2 of our journey. How long did all of you have to wait for the visa to be delivered? I have read online anywhere from 3 days to 8 weeks! Lay some time line comments on me gents... tell me your stories about wait times for the big day.

Thank you so much for this site, forum, advice and humor.

Best,

Gus

[kenny]

Not sure I remember how long but it was more than 3 days but not near as long as 8 weeks.

Linda's interview was the end of March, had to get more info took another month and her and Ziwei arrived here in late June.

I think she took a little time to see family to say goodbye after she got visa but it wasnt long at all.

[Gus]

Thanks Kenny... Still no word from Lihong on her visa/passport being delivered. We just keep playing the waiting game.

[JohnB]

I think she took a little time to see family to say goodbye after she got visa but it wasnt long at all.

come to think about it, Jing's visa did not take as long as 8 weeks. sort of like Kenny said..'she took time to say goodbye'. there was no way Jing was to leave her family in China just a few weeks prior to Chinese New Year.
this was almost 7 years ago.
as I recall, it is just a simple review of the documentation Lihong brought with her. the visa will then be mailed to Lihong to her Chinese address.

[Gus]

Thanks John,

I am going to travel to Liuzhou to bring Lihong back to the states with me, so I was wondering if there is a time frame I should be looking at. We will spend time w/Lihongs family in Liuzhou before flying to Connecticut. Just trying to figure if it will be September, October, November or later.... LOL

[Gus]

Well Lihong got her visa notification today that it is ready to be delivered. I am off to Liuzhou tomorrow at midnight. We will spend a week together in Liuzhou visiting family, preparing to re-locate, and with Lihong packing, saying goodbyes etc. We return to CT USA a week from Friday. Wish us luck, and once again thank you to all for the advice, and encouragement. This forum has been an enormous help, as have all the members.

Here's to good health, good fortune, and happy mid autumn festival to all.

Gus

[JohnB]

hey Gus, good news from you!
the easy part is done.. 哈哈哈
when you get stateside, be ready for whatever. 
it will be a whole new ballpark for Lihong.
wish you all the best!