Forum	Title	Content	Member	Sex	Country	Date/Time
K-3 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	NOA2 waiting times	QUOTE (Zen Den @ Aug 25 2009, 02:58 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> QUOTE (Mark&Gladys @ Aug 24 2009, 05:01 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Hi All, My wife and I were married in the Philippines in January and started the process in March for secure her visa. We received our NOA2 on July 21. How long does it usually take to be contacted by the US Embassy in Manila to arrange the medical check and interview. I just want to make sure I am not missing something. Mark hi there. if you married already you shouldn't have done a K1 but a K3/Cr1. hope you just made a mistake in your status. what form did you submit? I-129f or I-130? anyway, since you already received a NOA2 in July, you should've received info (email or snail mail for your wife) that she can already set for an interview appy and medical and apply for a visa. if not, call NVC asap good luck and god bless! Thanks for the advice! I did call the NVC and our I130 petition was received last week. So we should receive our packet this week and our case should go to Manila very soon as well I assume. Now should we contact the embassy and arrange the interview/med check or do we need to wait? I would appreciate any advice. Mark and Gladys	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2009-08-25 16:27:00
K-3 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	NOA2 waiting times	Hi All, My wife and I were married in the Philippines in January and started the process in March for secure her visa. We received our NOA2 on July 21. How long does it usually take to be contacted by the US Embassy in Manila to arrange the medical check and interview. I just want to make sure I am not missing something. Mark	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2009-08-24 16:01:00
Philippines	Filipino Friends in the USA	Thank you very much! That is a great idea. We will certainly try that! QUOTE (MikeeLucyForever @ Aug 28 2009, 04:42 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Hi Mark and Gladys, I am also from cebu and I just got here in the US this June. I have so many good Filipino friends already and I am very thankful for them because it made me feel more at home. Just like you, before I came here my husband searched for organizations or groups of filipino-american to which i can join later on but to no avail. But what he did was, he look for filipino stores online, we went there and that was where I found my first filipino friend after that we attended a Filipino-American Feast here in Cleveland which he also found online. I am sure a lot of filipinos are there in Maryland. Search for activities and Filipino stores online. QUOTE (Mark&Gladys @ Aug 28 2009, 06:26 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Hi All, We are new to the visajourney forum, but would like to meet new friends and join the discussion. My wife is from Cebu and will be here (hopefully) in the next few months. We will be residing in Beltsville Maryland and I was looking for a filipino association that we could join and that would provide Gladys some connection and new friends. However, most of the association web sites I find are broken links or have not been updated for months or even years. So does anyone know of an active Filipino-American association or other social networking opportunities? Thanks. Mark & Gladys Thank you for the advice. She does have a Friendster account so she will know what to do. QUOTE (mossycouple @ Aug 28 2009, 06:41 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> When I arrived here in the US, all of my friends lived in the other states, so we just call each other. Then I found one in FRIENDSTER.COM if you look Maryland location there she will find some filipinas for sure she can recognize one. What i did, I befriended as many as I can and waited for anyone to message me and that's how I have friends close by. They're the ones who introduce me to Filipino Association in our area. Im sure your girl knows that site im talking about. Goodlcuk!	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2009-08-28 22:42:00
Philippines	Filipino Friends in the USA	Hi All, We are new to the visajourney forum, but would like to meet new friends and join the discussion. My wife is from Cebu and will be here (hopefully) in the next few months. We will be residing in Beltsville Maryland and I was looking for a filipino association that we could join and that would provide Gladys some connection and new friends. However, most of the association web sites I find are broken links or have not been updated for months or even years. So does anyone know of an active Filipino-American association or other social networking opportunities? Thanks. Mark & Gladys	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2009-08-28 17:26:00
Philippines	Flights to Cebu	QUOTE (XR600SM @ Aug 29 2009, 07:17 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> QUOTE (lykatodd @ Aug 29 2009, 07:03 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> QUOTE (Mark&Gladys @ Aug 29 2009, 05:29 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> What are the best options on airfare to Cebu from the USA? I need to fly from the midwest. Any ideas? Thanks. I am flying to Phils. this coming Sept. 5 and when i check the airfare from Florida to Cebu ( rountrip) it cost me $ 1700 so I tried to change my itinerary from Florida to Manila and it cost me only $ 936. so i just let my sister book me a flight from manila to cebu and it cost only 1,500 pesos so I save a lot . I used www.expedia.com I've flown Korean Air twice. Online they will give you a price like that......$1700-1800. Through my travel agent I can get it for $1100-1200. Worth the extra over flying into Manila for me and losing a day each way. Thanks everyone. I did try asap.com and found a round trip ticket for $1215. Nothing else was even close.	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2009-08-29 20:26:00
Philippines	Flights to Cebu	What are the best options on airfare to Cebu from the USA? I need to fly from the midwest. Any ideas? Thanks.	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2009-08-29 16:29:00
Philippines	Paid AOS Fee Today	Hi All: Received our NVC packet today with the AOS Invoice and Choice of Agent Form DS-3032. Paid the fee and will have the form back to the NVC tomorrow. What's next? What should we be doing now and what does the timeline look like for us going forward. Thanks for your help! Mark and Gladys	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2009-08-31 18:24:00
Philippines	Your Filipino Wife/Fiancée	QUOTE (Arbind.Ariadne @ Aug 21 2009, 02:56 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> You must have asked yourself once what if she might just use you to obtain a GC or get you to send her $$$ but you still gave it a shot. What's with her after all that you've become so fond of her and the process of bringing her to the States stirs excitement, frustration, and anticipation? FAE I met MANY women online that simply wanted money. But you very quickly learn who is sincere and who is not. Those are lessons that remain with you. But I trust my wife absolutely even with the problems I had with many of the others online. And I agree with the others in the forum. If you dont trust her there can never be real love and the relationship is doomed. Don't even consider marriage without complete trust and respect - in spite of the love you might feel and the physical attraction.	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2009-08-28 17:37:00
Philippines	Visa Approved!!	QUOTE (Mark&Gladys @ Dec 2 2009, 09:45 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> We made it! Glady's visa was approved today! She will be back in my arms for Christmas!! What a relief and what a great feeling. Best wishes and Happy Holidays to all of you still waiting. Keep your faith and God Speed! Mark and Gladys Mae Gladys lives in Talisay City and received her visa today! It only took 2 days to arrive!! I am on my way to accompany her to the USA on the 9th! But, I wish I had scheduled my trip sooner! All of you keep the faith! Your dreams will come true also. Happy Holidays and Best Wishes!	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2009-12-04 23:54:00
Philippines	Visa Approved!!	QUOTE (Ann Marie and Leo @ Dec 2 2009, 11:02 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> CONGRATULATIONS, we also got ours today, a nice feeling to hear the CO lady say the same words to us, and then then tell my Ann welcome to the US Excellent! A very good day for several new families in Manila! QUOTE (DaleandPat @ Dec 3 2009, 02:11 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> QUOTE (Mark&Gladys @ Dec 2 2009, 08:45 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> We made it! Glady's visa was approved today! She will be back in my arms for Christmas!! What a relief and what a great feeling. Best wishes and Happy Holidays to all of you still waiting. Keep your faith and God Speed! Mark and Gladys Mae Congrats. Wow just in time to make airplane reservations for Christmas. YES! Already have them in hand!!	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2009-12-03 07:00:00
Philippines	Visa Approved!!	QUOTE (rommelb @ Dec 2 2009, 10:10 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> ok... she just called 5mins ago.. she passed the interview. godbless Congratulations!! You made it!!!	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2009-12-02 22:20:00
Philippines	Visa Approved!!	We made it! Glady's visa was approved today! She will be back in my arms for Christmas!! What a relief and what a great feeling. Best wishes and Happy Holidays to all of you still waiting. Keep your faith and God Speed! Mark and Gladys Mae	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2009-12-02 21:45:00
Philippines	For the American men that went to Cebu	My wife is from Talisay City just outside of Cebu. We have traveled to Bohol which was interesting and had some extraordinary features, but was not really too exciting. Our favorite place so far has been Malapasqua Island off the Northern tip of Cebu. A tiny island about 45 minutes from the dock, it is clean with numerous resort and diving options, awesome snorkeling, great restaurants and nice white sand beaches. It is relatively quiet and relaxed with few people - mostly European and Chinese tourists/divers. It was an awesome visit for me! The only problem I had was I about lost my eye balls when a group of Chinese men diving in speedos went by! HA. Not an image I care to remember.	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2009-12-05 01:06:00
Philippines	Visa Journey Summary IR/CR	Hi All, Thought you might appreciate a summary of our USA IR/CR visa journey. For us there were no serious issues and only one mistake! Overall I think we did well and completed the process in good time. Here is a summary. We were married on January. This was our first wait. I did not file our I130 until we had our "certified" marriage certificate which we did not get until March. So we filed with US Immigration then. We received our Noa1 promptly. I was expected to then not receive the Noa2 until September, but actually received it in July. Then on to the National Visa Center. This process was a bit confusing and the VJ interaction was very helpful. But this process went pretty well with both fees paid online, forms downloaded, scanned and returned. Remember to keep copies of all forms submitted. I did not save a copy our I864 form and then sent it without a signature. So I had to start over. I am sure this mistake cost us 2-3 weeks, but it was easily corrected - just more time and hassle than it should have been. Once we were finished at the NVC, we received our visa appointment date in about 2 weeks. At that point Gladys went to Manila for her medical exam. She did not want to try to complete the med exam and interview on the same trip and I was more worried about something being an issue in the medical exam. But no worries. It went well. See the NinJones summary for an excellent discussion of the med exam process. Then on to the visa interview December 3. Gladys had general questions about me and her - name, age, address, etc. Nothing difficult. Then a few specific questions about my divorce, employment and background. Again more specific but not too difficult. The consular did look at her packet - which was detailed and very well organized - but had only a few comments. Again nothing difficult and she was finished by 9am. Total time in the embassy was 2 1/2 hours. She was approved and actually received her visa in Cebu on Saturday after interviewing at 6:30am on Thursday. Total time from our first submittal of the I130 to visa was about 260 days. Lessons Learned: 1. You do not need a lawyer. In fact I am sure that will add time and significant expense. There is plenty of good help on this site and your questions do get answered. 2. There IS a difference between an IR/CR visa (married) and a K (fiance). The most confusing issue online are the fees due before the interview. For the IR/CR your fees are ALL PAID to the National Visa Center (at least in the USA), so the only fee due locally at or before your interview is the visa shipment fee, paid at the embassy after your interview. You do have to pay for your medical exam on the day of your appointment. K1 visa applicants pay a fee in the Philippines prior to the interview and must have the receipt at the interview. Be careful getting advice for a K visa from someone getting a IR/CR and vice versa in this regard. 3. Pay attention to details on all forms. Make sure everything is completed accurately and CONSISTENTLY from form to form. Much information is re-entered on multiple forms. Make sure it is always the same. Remember to save copies of all forms submitted and DO NOT FORGET to sign them! HA! Once your National Visa Center application forms are completed and the fees are paid submit the I864 and DS 230 forms together and as soon as you are notified by the NVC. This is a bit confusing, but both are needed and can be sent together once your fees are paid and confirmed - you will receive an email. 4. At the med exam and interview be prepared. Be very polite, patient and professional. Dress accordingly - clean and conservative - no skin, no extra makeup - look professional. During your interview be calm, collected and professional (everyone is nervous). Answer all questions politely, respectfully, and accurately, but do not provide any additional information unless asked specifically. Address each question succinctly and directly and do not over talk or provide extra information. Less is much better as long as your questions are answered. You will be asked about your spouses USA address, history, work, etc. 5. Before your interview we recommend reviewing all "information" forms submitted especially the DS230 which you will be required to sign after your interview - the consular will have it there for you at your interview. Remember you will need the I864 form also at your interview. 6. Your "proof of relationship" packet for your interview is important and will determine your success. It should be clean and well organized. For our interview we included the following: Copies of all important documents - CENOMAR, birth cert, marriage cert, etc. Examples of letters, cards and emails - both physical and virtual-electronic - covering the span of the relationship. Proof of visits to the Philippines - receipts for airlines, hotels etc, photocopy of passport stamps, etc. Copies of Yahoo chat logs for each month. Bank and money transfer receipts. Phone records. Photos from every visit - various locations, times, with friends and family etc. I am arriving in the Philippines on the 9th and we will be home in Maryland by Christmas. We would love to hear from all of you especially on the East Coast and in Idaho where we also will spend a lot of time. Hope this helps! Enjoy the ride and Best of Luck to you all! Happy Holidays!!	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2009-12-05 08:29:00
Philippines	Visa Journey Summary IR/CR	Hi All, Thought you might appreciate a summary of our USA IR/CR visa journey. For us there were no serious issues and only one mistake! Overall I think we did well and completed the process in good time. Here is a summary. We were married on January. This was our first wait. I did not file our I130 until we had our "certified" marriage certificate which we did not get until March. So we filed with US Immigration then. We received our Noa1 promptly. I was expected to then not receive the Noa2 until September, but actually received it in July. Then on to the National Visa Center. This process was a bit confusing and the VJ interaction was very helpful. But this process went pretty well with both fees paid online, forms downloaded, scanned and returned. Remember to keep copies of all forms submitted. I did not save a copy our I864 form and then sent it without a signature. So I had to start over. I am sure this mistake cost us 2-3 weeks, but it was easily corrected - just more time and hassle than it should have been. Once we were finished at the NVC, we received our visa appointment date in about 2 weeks. At that point Gladys went to Manila for her medical exam. She did not want to try to complete the med exam and interview on the same trip and I was more worried about something being an issue in the medical exam. But no worries. It went well. See the NinJones summary for an excellent discussion of the med exam process. Then on to the visa interview December 3. Gladys had general questions about me and her - name, age, address, etc. Nothing difficult. Then a few specific questions about my divorce, employment and background. Again more specific but not too difficult. The consular did look at her packet - which was detailed and very well organized - but had only a few comments. Again nothing difficult and she was finished by 9am. Total time in the embassy was 2 1/2 hours. She was approved and actually received her visa in Cebu on Saturday after interviewing at 6:30am on Thursday. Total time from our first submittal of the I130 to visa was about 260 days. Lessons Learned: 1. You do not need a lawyer. In fact I am sure that will add time and significant expense. There is plenty of good help on this site and your questions do get answered. 2. There IS a difference between an IR/CR visa (married) and a K (fiance). The most confusing issue online are the fees due before the interview. For the IR/CR your fees are ALL PAID to the National Visa Center (at least in the USA), so the only fee due locally at or before your interview is the visa shipment fee, paid at the embassy after your interview. You do have to pay for your medical exam on the day of your appointment. K1 visa applicants pay a fee in the Philippines prior to the interview and must have the receipt at the interview. Be careful getting advice for a K visa from someone getting a IR/CR and vice versa in this regard. 3. Pay attention to details on all forms. Make sure everything is completed accurately and CONSISTENTLY from form to form. Much information is re-entered on multiple forms. Make sure it is always the same. Remember to save copies of all forms submitted and DO NOT FORGET to sign them! HA! Once your National Visa Center application forms are completed and the fees are paid submit the I864 and DS 230 forms together and as soon as you are notified by the NVC. This is a bit confusing, but both are needed and can be sent together once your fees are paid and confirmed - you will receive an email. 4. At the med exam and interview be prepared. Be very polite, patient and professional. Dress accordingly - clean and conservative - no skin, no extra makeup - look professional. During your interview be calm, collected and professional (everyone is nervous). Answer all questions politely, respectfully, and accurately, but do not provide any additional information unless asked specifically. Address each question succinctly and directly and do not over talk or provide extra information. Less is much better as long as your questions are answered. You will be asked about your spouses USA address, history, work, etc. 5. Before your interview we recommend reviewing all "information" forms submitted especially the DS230 which you will be required to sign after your interview - the consular will have it there for you at your interview. Remember you will need the I864 form also at your interview. 6. Your "proof of relationship" packet for your interview is important and will determine your success. It should be clean and well organized. For our interview we included the following: Copies of all important documents - CENOMAR, birth cert, marriage cert, etc. Examples of letters, cards and emails - both physical and virtual-electronic - covering the span of the relationship. Proof of visits to the Philippines - receipts for airlines, hotels etc, photocopy of passport stamps, etc. Copies of Yahoo chat logs for each month. Bank and money transfer receipts. Phone records. Photos from every visit - various locations, times, with friends and family etc. I am arriving in the Philippines on the 9th and we will be home in Maryland by Christmas. We would love to hear from all of you especially on the East Coast and in Idaho where we also will spend a lot of time. Hope this helps! Enjoy the ride and Best of Luck to you all! Happy Holidays!!	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2009-12-05 08:26:00
Philippines	My 4 yr old son passed his interview last Thursday	QUOTE (ronalyn @ Dec 5 2009, 07:19 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> hello guys! just want to share my happiness to all of you here in VJ. I accompanied my 4 yr old son to his interview on Dec03 @ 830pm. Well, the interview went very smooth because the CO who interviewed my son was tagalog-speaking; w0w! So it was my son who answered most of the questions and the CO enjoyed their conversation. My son can now see Mickey Mouse like the CO said.hehehe! And the thing was, I received his visa packet this morning! w0w! just 2days after his interview; that was fast! Thank God! My wife interview on the 3rd and received her visa in Cebu on the 5th!	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2009-12-05 07:28:00
Philippines	Friday Fishing Pics	QUOTE (Kevin-n-Merlaine @ Dec 6 2009, 01:46 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> QUOTE (Mark&Gladys @ Dec 6 2009, 12:03 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> QUOTE (Jasman0717 @ Dec 5 2009, 11:49 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> QUOTE (tallcoolone @ Dec 5 2009, 03:11 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Took a drive to a powerplant lake, the use the lake water to cool the turbines and thus the water temp is bath water warm in the middle of the winter. And the fishing is pretty darn good. We ended up with 28 total bass in the boat, had about 12 more either shake off, or break off. It was cold yesterday, I don't think temp climbed much above freezing yesterday Looks to me like your buddy caught the nicest fish! What's up with that?? Maybe your bait is not as big as you think!?!? HAHAHA. Looks like you had lots of fun. I'm jealous. I missed my whitetail hunt in Iowa this year - my passion. Oh well, I guess going to the Phil to bring my wife home is a great reason not to hunt for one season. I stay in Des Moines on Sunday, Monday and Thursday. This would have been a good year to go too. You wouldn't even need a rifle or bow this year though, just a scoop shovel...stop every 100 yards and shovel it in the pickup!! This is the worst year I've seen I think. It's like a butcher shop between here and Kansas City Yes I understand that. In Iowa during November after dark its every man for himself. I have hit or nearly hit dozens. They are a menace during the rut. I hunt in SW Iowa on our family farm and worked in DSM until October when I moved to a new job in Beltsville, MD. I had hoped to get back to hunt but no luck.	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2009-12-06 13:59:00
Philippines	Friday Fishing Pics	QUOTE (Jasman0717 @ Dec 5 2009, 11:49 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> QUOTE (tallcoolone @ Dec 5 2009, 03:11 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Took a drive to a powerplant lake, the use the lake water to cool the turbines and thus the water temp is bath water warm in the middle of the winter. And the fishing is pretty darn good. We ended up with 28 total bass in the boat, had about 12 more either shake off, or break off. It was cold yesterday, I don't think temp climbed much above freezing yesterday Looks to me like your buddy caught the nicest fish! What's up with that?? Maybe your bait is not as big as you think!?!? HAHAHA. Looks like you had lots of fun. I'm jealous. I missed my whitetail hunt in Iowa this year - my passion. Oh well, I guess going to the Phil to bring my wife home is a great reason not to hunt for one season.	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2009-12-06 13:03:00
Philippines	December 7th - Pearl Harbor Day	QUOTE (Kevin-n-Merlaine @ Dec 7 2009, 08:55 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> One really great thing about my trip to Tacloban was the hotel I stayed in - Hotel Alejandro. It belonged to Dr. Alejandro when the Japanese invaded Leyte and they took it from him and used it for their officers. The old house is completely restored and the hotel is built around it on 3 sides. It's an amazing old home and it is FILLED with photos and memorabilia from the war, as is the rest of the hotel. There are original documents there as well - the letter written to the Filipinos by Gen. Macarthur after the liberation, leaflets that were dropped by air instructing the people about the pending invasion and the photo collection is just amazing. This is the upstairs of the old home and this is the bottom floor. You walk through the old home to enter the lobby of the hotel. This one isn't related to the war of course, but what a very cool place the roof of the hotel is!! Not only was the old house filled with photos like this, the entire hotel is! They were adding more photos to the walls nearly the entire time we were there. We spent a lot of time looking through them and still didn't get to see them all. My Uncle was in the battle of Leyte so it was pretty amazing to look through all of the history they have hanging on the walls there. Awesome photos! Thanks for sharing.	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2009-12-07 20:59:00
Philippines	December 7th - Pearl Harbor Day	QUOTE (tallcoolone @ Dec 7 2009, 06:46 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> The day we reflect upon the Japanese sneak attack on Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, that killed over 4,000 American while they were sleeping. 10 hours later they attacked the Philippines The USA was staying neutral during WW2, while Germany was conquerin Europe, and Japan was taking over Asia. Once the did thier cowardly attack, it forced the USA into WW2. I made a trip to Pearl harbor a few years ago, and their is still oil rising from the sunken Arizona with hundred of American entombed in the ship. I also made trip to PunchBowl Cemetery where 2 family members were buried from the attack. I will never Forget nor Forgive http://en.wikipedia....on_Pearl_Harbor Thank you for honoring this day. This was as horrific and tragic as any wartime event ever in the history of the US. We as a society can never forget what happened at Pearl Harbor and we must prevent the same scenario from ever developing again, here or in any free nation on earth. I also lost family in both World Wars and the cowardice of this attack should and must be remembered forever. The behavior of Japan in particular in the Pacific with regard to prisoners of war and the treatment of occupied nations was also inexcusable under any circumstance. But I would submit to you that the attack on Pearl Harbor, and WWII in general, was precipitated by greed and an arrogant quest for absolute power and world dominance by the imperialistic leadership of both Japan and Germany - at the EXPENSE of the common citizenship in those countries who for the most part had no control nor no part in the atrocities committed. That is why we must also now forgive both nations. They suffered even more than we as a result of the war as the devastation across Germany and particularly the craters in Hiroshima and Nagasaki clearly attest. To forgive is devine. To not forgive is immoral. To forget is unforgivable. Just my thoughts today. God Bless all our Veterans on this Hallowed Anniversary!	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2009-12-07 19:09:00
Philippines	USEM- December 2009 Interviews!	QUOTE (fransha @ Nov 4 2009, 11:43 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Ok, i'll start here and hopefully everything will post too, those who are having interviews on December 2009... I am ON.... DECEMBER 08,2009 Good luck to US ALL Decembers'! Fransha Hi Fransha, We are on December 3rd. Gladys passed her medical exam this week. So we are hoping for the best now! Good luck to everyone. Mark and Gladys	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2009-11-13 22:35:00
Philippines	Skips hotel	QUOTE (Dakine @ Dec 19 2009, 04:26 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> http://www.skipsbeachresort.com/ I love Plantation Bay resort but want to try another place that's not so expensive. Anyone ever stayed here? Sure looks good. Skip's is just ok. Skip is gone now so the management has changed. Not nearly as nice as the online pics - at least last January.	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2009-12-19 19:06:00
Philippines	Hip, Hip, Hooray, Go Chargers!	To all my friends in California Sur, or wherever they may be, please join me in extending congratulations to our San Diego Chargers for short circuiting the Jets! Ouch. Sorry about that. Jets win 17-14. Kaeding misses 3 field goals all season and the misses 3 today. I was rooting for the Chargers also.	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2010-01-17 20:00:00
Philippines	Hip, Hip, Hooray, Go Chargers!	To all my friends in California Sur, or wherever they may be, please join me in extending congratulations to our San Diego Chargers for short circuiting the Jets! You might want to wait until the game is over. Just a thought.	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2010-01-17 16:36:00
Philippines	WDC and Maryland Filipinas??	Hi All, We are looking for Fil/AM couples in the WDC Baltimore area. Are there any local groups active? We would like to network with similar couples and would like to meet some new friends with similar interests? I look forward to hearing from you. We also travel through Iowa and Idaho periodically, so new friends there would be a blessing as well. Happy Holidays!!	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2009-12-09 00:09:00
Philippines	Canadian Divorce - Please advise	I need some advice. My wife's cousin is married to a Canadian man - they were married in the Philippines. She recently received her visa (after 18 months!) and happily flew to Canada to join him. But, to make a very long story short she has already returned home and is seeking a divorce. What is the process for her to divorce in Canada? What rights does she have? Will the divorce be recognized in the Philippines? Is there a "best case" scenario for them both? I will write a post detailing the tragedy of this failed relationship soon, but need this advice in the mean time. Thanks to all in advance.	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2010-02-14 15:14:00
Philippines	why do Pinays	QUOTE (Mark&Gladys @ Dec 6 2009, 10:59 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> QUOTE (JelloShotGirl @ Dec 6 2009, 09:58 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I am American Girl, I married my husband who is from Philippines. It just turned out that way. I didnt go" looking" for a foreign guy.....we just met eachother I never thought I would marry a foreign guy or an Asian guy, it just happened. .........its called LOVE>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Ok I will weigh in here. I too married a Pinay by accident and purely for love. So, I commend you for your answer and I hope you have the love of your lifetime. I was not looking for a filipina, nor ever expected to marry someone like her. But here I am and I am very happy. With regard to white women, I have married, dated and worked with lots of white women in the USA and I have the utmost respect for them. I work daily with white women in my office who are brilliant and professional and very talented. These women are beautiful, smart, sexy and intelligent - and very successful. However, there IS a difference when it comes to relationships. In general (and there ARE exceptions) white women in the USA have never experienced true hardship. They do not really understand the concept of community, family and relationships. They often do not appreciate discipline and sacrifice and are often very shallow and materialistic. They are typically focused on careers and a new car - not on a husband and family. I am not even saying this is all bad - just reality. But they tend to be spoiled and driven by their careers. Relationships are a distant second for many. Personal values are predicated on peer pressures and they lack character. Consequently, it is hard for men who want a more traditional marriage and relationship to find a woman in the USA that meets their needs. I will use you as example with my apologies. I initially thought your login name was a bit strange for a filipina. Now I see that you are not from the Philippines and it makes more sense to me. In fact, no filipina would use a name like that. They are too discrete, honorable and conservative. If that does not make sense to you then you really do not understand what a filipina is. What do you imagine that most people think when they read your login name? Immediately, I discounted you as someone only interested in partying and selfish physical/material pleasures - someone who does not really understand relationships and the importance of family, community and personal values. That is absolutely typical for most women in the USA and is exactly why most of us appreciate the values, beauty (physical and otherwise) and unconditional love we found in the Philippines.	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2009-12-06 14:17:00
Philippines	why do Pinays	QUOTE (JelloShotGirl @ Dec 6 2009, 09:58 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I am American Girl, I married my husband who is from Philippines. It just turned out that way. I didnt go" looking" for a foreign guy.....we just met eachother I never thought I would marry a foreign guy or an Asian guy, it just happened. .........its called LOVE>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Ok I will weigh in here. I too married a Pinay by accident and purely for love. So, I commend you for your answer and I hope you have the love of your lifetime. I was not looking for a filapina, nor ever expected to marry someone like her. But here I am and I am very happy. With regard to white women I have married, dated and worked with lots of white women in the USA and I have the utmost respect for them. I work daily with white women in my office who are brilliant and professional and very talented. These women are beautiful, smart, sexy and intelligent - and very successful. However, there IS a difference when it comes to relationships. In general (and there ARE exceptions) white women in the USA have never experienced true hardship. They do not really understand the concept of community and relationships. They often do not appreciate discipline and sacrifice and are very materialistic. They are focused on careers and a new car - not on a husband and family. I am not even saying this is all bad - just reality. But they tend to be spoiled and driven by their careers. Relationships are a distant second for many. Consequently, it is hard for men who want a more traditional marriage and relationship to find a woman in the USA that meets their needs. I will use you as example with my apologies. I initially thought your login name was a bit strange for a filipina. Now I see that you are not from the Philippines and it makes more sense to me. In fact, no filipina would use a name like that. They are too discrete, honorable and conservative. If that does not make sense to you then you really do not understand what a filipina is. What do you imagine that most people think when they read your login name? Immediately, I discounted as someone only interested in partying and selfish physical/material pleasures - someone who does not really understand relationships and the importance of family and relationships. That is absolutely typical for most women in the USA and is exactly why most of us appreciate the values, beauty (physical and otherwise) and unconditional love we found in the Philippines.	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2009-12-06 10:59:00
Philippines	for the men with kids from an ex wife!!!!!	Charlie, I am up to my ears in ex-wife issues. My kids are 8, 7, and 2 and now live 2500 miles away. Ours is a very long story, but we have numerous issues and she has made absolutely unbelievable accusations. Obviously for the best interests of the children it would be best for you to have a friendly, cooperative and rational relationship with your ex. Sometimes however, that is simply not possible as is the case for me. So, for what it is worth I add the following recommendations: 1. Keep everything away from the children regarding your conflict with your ex. That will be difficult, but you must be the better person in that regard and the kids will reward you for that some day. I always complement their mother when I talk to the kids if only for the small things she does well for them. 2. Do not see or talk to your ex in private if you can help it. Tape all phone and personal conversations and try to exchange the kids in public or with a chaperone. She can make accusations that will damage your reputation and jeopardize your visitation and custody if given the opportunity - even if you are completely innocent. The accusations alone will create a stigma and it will stick with you. 3. Be prepared to defend your rights as a father in court. Make you case and document it as strongly as possible. Use a divorce mediator if at all possible. 4. Keep your ex away from Pam and try to protect your relationship from the baggage. Remember that this is her first marriage and she wants it to be fresh and healthy and naive. That is also tricky and I know how difficult that can be, but do your best. 5. Time heals all wounds and your ex may get over the divorce and improve her attitude. BUT don't assume that will happen. Give her some time, but be prepared to fight if needed. Make sure you get your time with the kids and settle it in court if needed. They need a strong father more than ever. Good Luck. Mark	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2010-03-30 19:13:00
Philippines	where did you met your wife/husband/fiancee	I graduated from Cornell University and Iowa State University, as well as from the University of Mayhem and Tragic Relationships. My perfect wife graduated from the University of Hunger, Poverty and Reality and has degrees in Social Perfection, Personal Grace and Public Civility. We met while attending graduate school at the University of My Foreign Bride - Class of 08. Edited by Mark&Gladys, 19 April 2010 - 06:40 AM.	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2010-04-19 06:39:00
Philippines	where did you met your wife/husband/fiancee	We met at myforeignbride. I wandered in there inadvertently one night and "the rest is history".	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2010-04-04 07:09:00
Philippines	Lawyer - Davao, Panabo	Hi VJers! I need some help from someone with a connection to Davao City or Panabo City, Philippines. I need to confirm that the lawyer listed below is practicing law and in good standing in one or both of these addresses. I would greatly appreciate some help from anyone in the area. Thank You! MARLINE GOLOSINO, LAWYER NOTARY PUBLIC 1st Office Address: GOLOSINO-ONG Law Office Uy Bldg. Dr. 2 Carriedo St. Panabo City 2nd Office Address: Office in PAO-Reg. XI Davao City PAO-Public Attorneys Office Ecoland, Davao City Home Address; 25 Dalisay St. Amoville Village, Panabo City	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2010-04-27 17:37:00
Philippines	What would be considered alot of money in the Philippines	First of all I would like to know if 5000 pesos is considered a fair amount of money. In the US, for me atleast, 500 usd is alot so what would be a pretty good amount in the phil Fair for what?	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2010-04-17 11:00:00
Philippines	How did your fiance propose to you in the Philippines?	I proposed to Gladys in a romantic restaurant at the top of the Fuente Towers Crown Regency in Cebu. That is the top of the city in Cebu. We had a romantic dinner and then I proposed after dinner on one knee and held her hand, then showed her the ring.	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2010-05-17 17:55:00
Philippines	does your filipina wife shaves her legs?	Gladys has very thick typical filipina black hair, but has no hair at all on her legs or arms. She does shave her armpits occasionally, but she has only a number of hairs there. I am sure that is an ancient tropical genetic adaptation which has been changed a bit by more recent Spanish and other ethnic influences. That is why some girls have some leg hair and others do not. She does trim other places - but never shaves.	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2010-05-23 13:50:00
Philippines	Dating Scam Stories	let's avoid the namecalling please. Indeed. I apologize to Rocky N Bullwinkle. My sensitivity trumped my better judgement.	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2010-04-30 16:05:00
Philippines	Dating Scam Stories	Why do you what to bring this stuff up. I think that is exactly your intent. Maybe, you are really some bitter old American woman, from one of the other forums! I think maybe you are an idiot. This "stuff" was significant in my life and I was interested in hearing from others with similar experiences. I suggest you find something positive to say or say nothing at all.	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2010-04-30 12:37:00
Philippines	Dating Scam Stories	OK...now it's your turn. Thanks to all of you for sharing your stories. I will add mine. It is a very long story, but I will provide the condensed version here. In the summer of 2007, I lost a personal business that I had built with a relative to make money for Cystic Fibrosis. This business was well designed and had an excellent business plan, but was a victim of bad timing, extraordinary bad luck and poor management on my part. Good intensions are not worth much and I lost my life savings, a huge portion of my families net worth and was left with bankruptcy and huge debts. My marriage of 7 years was struggling. I had been very busy with a full time job and the failing business and my wife had suffered long with depression and emotional instabilities. Earlier that year my wife's father had abandoned her family (4 younger children) and had suffered a breakdown of his own. Our third child was born in September of 2007 and my wife and now 3 children moved back in with her mother - 1200 miles from my office and our home. She assured me that everything was ok with the marriage, she just needed time with her mother and time to recover from our loss and the emotional loss of her father. I flew the 1200 miles back and forth every 2 weeks to spend time with my family and still keep my job all that Fall. In late September of 2007, while playing basketball at my church I ruptured my achilles tendon and had to have surgery, crutches and months to recover. Now I was working and traveling on crutches and a cast. My wife used this and one excuse after another to stay with her mother, refusing to rejoin me at home and suffered additional emotional stresses as she recovered from childbirth. In December we were growing further and further apart, even though she was seeing a counselor. Nothing I did seemed to help her or the marriage. On December 23 my father passed away which was crushing for me. My wife attended the funeral but was cold and sad and distant. After the funeral, she flew back to her mother's home. She promised that she was doing better and would join me soon. But, on January 8th - a very cold and dreary day - I received an email at 6pm from 1200 miles away. She had filed for divorce. No counseling, no help from our church and no previous discussion, although in retrospect there were obviously many signs. I felt like my world had ended. I was broke, heart broken, still in a cast and now alone. My family was gone. I did everything I could to try to change her mind. I stalled the divorce proceedings and asked her to see our church officials, go to counseling, meet with a mediator, on and on. She had originally told me that she would consider reconciliation and outlined a list of things she needed. That list became my life. For the next 4 months I studied and worked. I went to counseling and wrote about all my experiences and worked with my church leaders. I often slept less than 4 hours a night and lost almost 30 pounds (I was 5'7" and 155 pounds when I started). I became totally obsessed with my desire to save the marriage and return to my family. And I developed severe depression and essentially became mentally ill. During this period, I interacted periodically with my wife directly and indirectly through our church. Sometimes it felt like I was making progress, but it always eventually slipped away. She would engage me and be encouraging and then retreat. In early April she asked that I give her some time and leave her alone and although she still wanted the divorce she would consider reconciliation. She told me that I needed to meet someone else and focus my attention elsewhere. At this point, I was in desperate shape. My health was slipping, my job was in jeopardy and I was losing my battle to save the marriage. The divorce became final on April 24th. I was lost and alone emotionally unstable and very vulnerable. I needed someone to talk to that did not know my situation so I joined a church sponsored forum for singles. I was of course not ready for a personal relationship and chatting online helped. I met several very nice women, and made a few friends, but nothing serious. I liked talking online because I could come and go as I pleased, nothing really was expected of me and I did not have to deal with a "real life" relationship. Chatting filled most of my evenings completely for several weeks. One night in June I clicked on a link for an international dating website and I was hooked. The women were exotic and interesting and much different than the women on the other site I had been visiting. At this point I had never been exposed to international dating, VJ or any other resources. It felt good to have someone (several someones) eager to talk to me. They supported me emotionally and made me feel good about myself again and they took me away from all my worries - at least for a while. But I was still very insecure and vulnerable. Recently divorced and in desperate need of attention and support. At the time, I was not aware of the potential to be taken advantage of or the incredible lengths that some women (people) would go thru to prey on people just like me. In retrospect, I should have known better and I certainly am not proud of my mistakes. I typically act in good faith and trust everyone - and I paid for that. I sent a little money to several different women, all of which I am sure now were scammers. And I sent a lot of money to one in particular who was brilliant. She used dozens of pictures from a filipina movie star to keep me on the hook. She also used a blurry, poor quality web cam and she built an incredible story which I did not doubt (however, I am also sure I did not really want to see the truth). It felt good to be useful and appreciated. A friend of her's eventually clued me in and that ended it. It turned out that the woman who scammed me was a single mother and was desperately poor. She has since apologized and I have forgiven her. I did learn my lesson and my mistakes are easy to see now. Hindsight is 20/20. I related that story to illustrate how people sometimes arrive in places and circumstances that are almost unbelievable before the fact. Life takes us on very strange paths sometimes. It is clear to me that I was mentally and emotionally ill for a long period of time and I was certainly taken advantage of for that. However, I suggest that those of you in a rush to condemn me for being "stupid" enough to get scammed online consider that maybe you have not been in my shoes and I hope you never have to walk that path. Eventually, I regained my health and emotional stability. I continued to chat - much more carefully now - and weeks later met an amazing woman who is now my wife, Gladys. I have a new and much better job. My credit cards are almost paid off and I have 40% custody of the kids. My ex-wife is finding peace in her life and we are communicating now and our kids are adjusting well. So life is good! But God certainly works in very mysterious ways.	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2010-04-29 23:42:00
Philippines	Dating Scam Stories	OK...now it's your turn. Thanks everyone for your responses and yes it is my turn. I will post it in the next day or two.	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2010-04-28 20:20:00
Philippines	Dating Scam Stories	Hi VJers: I am curious to hear stories by those of you who were scammed on-line by someone in the Philippines. My intention is not to embarrass anyone or disparage the Philippines (I am married to an extraordinary woman for the Philippines), but I would like to hear your stories. I personally learned a very hard lesson there at a particularly vulnerable point in my life and I would like to help others learn from my experience. I am happy to share my story if others would like to contribute theirs.	Mark&Gladys	Male	Philippines	2010-04-27 17:48:00