Forum	Title	Content	Member	Sex	Country	Date/Time
Mexico, Latin & South America	HOLA gente de Mexico!	Have you all tried to name your own price on priceline, we saved 100 on each ticket for December by using this. bougt a priceline tix a number years ago for one of my sisters: sacrmaneto,ca --> salt lake city, utah salt lake city, utah --> Los angeles, CA Los angeles, CA --> guadalajara, MX all to save 200 dollars. no thanks. Daniel :energetic: Ours turned out to be a one way that leaves at 9:30 in the morning. No complaints here	tabta	Male	Mexico	2006-10-21 08:50:00
Mexico, Latin & South America	HOLA gente de Mexico!	Have you all tried to name your own price on priceline, we saved 100 on each ticket for December by using this.	tabta	Male	Mexico	2006-10-20 12:43:00
Mexico, Latin & South America	HOLA gente de Mexico!	I just found this thread, I didnt know there was a mexico thread either. As you can see from my timeline, my husband and I arrived in the US in March. We filed DCF in Mexico City. As for timelines, I am not sure if mine will be very helpful, but from what I have seen after the ase reaches CDJ it takes at least 8 months for an interview, but usually more. good luck	tabta	Male	Mexico	2006-10-12 16:21:00
Mexico, Latin & South America	Cartilla Militar in Mexico	We are getting ready to submit IVF package to NVC for my inlaws. My father in law serves for a year in the Mexican Army. I just received his Cartilla MIlitar in the mail. Does EVERYTHING on the cartilla need to be translated. There are several pages that are general pages that appear in everyones cartilla about the military armed forces. Do I also need to translate these or do I only need to translate the pages that are directly related to my father in law.	tabta	Male	Mexico	2010-11-07 08:42:00
Mexico, Latin & South America	Parent interview	My in-laws now have their interview scheduled for Feb. 3rd at CDJ. There interviews are on the same day and time. Will they have a joint interview or will they each be interviewed separately?	tabta	Male	Mexico	2011-01-11 21:10:00
Mexico, Latin & South America	Atencao Brasileiros em EUA	Hi all! Just wanted to let everyone know that if you have not contacted the consulate serving your area to register your presence then you may want to do so now so you can register to vote in the Presidential election. My wife received an email from the Houston consulate last week telling her where to go for registration. It was only open for 6 hours on Saturday, and the registration officials said they were going state to state doing the registration. You will need your Brazilian ID with picture (passport or RG) and current US document with picture showing current address, and finally, your Titulo de Eleitor (if you have one). Good Luck! Mike and Luciene I thought we couldn't vote in the US. After i'm done with the K1 and the AOS can I vote there? I'm sorry...Let me clarify. You can register or the Brazilian presidential election...not the US. You'll need to contact the Brazilian consulate to register your presence (if you want) in the USA so they can contact you about various things. Mike	minha_raposa	Male	Brazil	2006-04-27 18:19:00
Mexico, Latin & South America	Atencao Brasileiros em EUA	Hi all! Just wanted to let everyone know that if you have not contacted the consulate serving your area to register your presence then you may want to do so now so you can register to vote in the Presidential election. My wife received an email from the Houston consulate last week telling her where to go for registration. It was only open for 6 hours on Saturday, and the registration officials said they were going state to state doing the registration. You will need your Brazilian ID with picture (passport or RG) and current US document with picture showing current address, and finally, your Titulo de Eleitor (if you have one). Good Luck! Mike and Luciene	minha_raposa	Male	Brazil	2006-04-26 21:13:00
Mexico, Latin & South America	Rio consulate and sponsorship	When we went through last April they required 3 years. Good luck	minha_raposa	Male	Brazil	2006-03-29 20:18:00
Mexico, Latin & South America	Brasil/Latin America Travel Auctions	Hello all! Thought I'd share a different option for everyone when exploring travel to Brasil and other LA countries. This is an auction website that I found on VJ a few years ago when planning my first trip. I actually won the auction and flew roundtrip for around $750 from Miami. Here is the link . Here is another site that I sometimes use when researching prices. . This one is also very good. Luciene and Mike Edited by minha_raposa, 18 July 2006 - 05:33 PM.	minha_raposa	Male	Brazil	2006-07-18 17:32:00
Mexico, Latin & South America	This is ridiculous	May sound silly, but are you buying a one-way or RT? The reason I ask it because I had the same problem bringing my wife from Brasil. I also found a RT to be a better deal than the one-way, and I was able to purchase the ticket for her here in the USA and avoid this same hassle you are dealing with. While you may waste the return portion (I hope), the cost is certainly insignificant. For instance, I just made a OW vs. RT search on TAM for August 20 flying from GRU to MIA. The OW portion cost R2.520,26 and a RT (returning on August 27) costs R2.5279,85. There is only about a R70,00 difference! Again, if you do something like this, you CAN book from here and send the ticket to you SO. ###### luck and many congrats to you both!	minha_raposa	Male	Brazil	2006-08-11 22:04:00
Mexico, Latin & South America	casando de novo no brasil	Oi, gente Nos casamos aqui nos EUA, mas gostariamos de registrar o nosso casamento no Brasil. Estamos indo em menos de um mes e ja sabemos que e necessario enviar o documento original (Marriage Certificate) para o Consulado do Brasil para que eles autentiquem, e depois esse papel vai ser traduzido por um tradutor ligado ao Cartorio no Brasil. Enfim, minha pergunta: alguem sabe quanto e a taxa para eles registrarem o casamento no Brasil, e tambem por quanto esta trabalhando um tradutor? Aguardo uma resposta de voces Valeu Luciene & Mike	minha_raposa	Male	Brazil	2007-02-05 01:30:00
Mexico, Latin & South America	Ruby Tuesdays Coupon	I used that coupon a couple of weeks ago. It includes pretty much everything on the menu except for the lunch specials. Good deal..... QUOTE (Marie87 @ Feb 25 2009, 06:15 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Passing along another great deal! Ruby Tuesday Buy One Entree Get One Free Expires March 24 * Fine Print - Must Purchase From Their Specialties, Fork-Tender Ribs, or Handcrafted Steaks - Marie	Robina	Female	Pakistan	2009-02-25 18:55:00
Russia, Ukraine and Belarus	Successful interview!!!		Brad and Vika	Male	Ukraine	2012-08-07 17:17:00
Russia, Ukraine and Belarus	ukraine embassy visa question	Thanks for the info, one more question, if you do want it delivered and you go to fedex after interview do they ask what address to ship it too? The Fedex window (where you pay for the shipping) used to be right next to the embassy building. There is a new embassy now, so maybe there has been a change and you can just go back there - it sounds like VaggoLena has more current information. If you pay for Fedex, they will ask you where you want it delivered. We said that it should be held at the Fedex office in Kiev.	Brad and Vika	Male	Ukraine	2012-08-14 16:17:00
Russia, Ukraine and Belarus	ukraine embassy visa question	Hi, Yes your fiancee can pick up the visa from the embassy. She has to request it though. Since my wife's town is pretty far from the embassy and since fedex does not deliver to her town, she requested to have it picked up instead. I disagree, unless something has changed. My wife asked to pick up, and was told that she could pick up at Fedex in Kiev, but not at the embassy. So we did stick around a couple of days to get the visa, visiting and calling Fedex until it arrived.	Brad and Vika	Male	Ukraine	2012-08-14 10:40:00
Russia, Ukraine and Belarus	Just got this E-mail from USCIS	This form letter has the same language we got when Vika was approved for GC after her interview. Oddly they screwed that up too, and did not actually produce the card. I wonder if perhaps this is in response to your address change, and you will get a confirmation in the mail (rather than the I-129). I hope that is it. Have you called them at all? I know that usually doesn't help, but this may be weird enough that even a scripted phone wonk would see the problem understanding the meaning of the email. Edited by Brad and Vika, 14 August 2012 - 09:56 PM.	Brad and Vika	Male	Ukraine	2012-08-14 21:55:00
Russia, Ukraine and Belarus	MIL Visa	Good suggestions, thanks. Parents purchased the flat, after her death my wife gets it, BUT her brother has rights to live there. Basically she has to pay and he lives there free So, losing this flat may not be that bad option. My wife doesn't want her to come on a tourist visa, since she may not have anything left when she returns. Maybe renting her a place there is an option. Thanks and all other suggestions welcome! You are welcome. If her brother has rights to the place, it is probably a percentage, right? So if your wife owns 50% (or all of it), and can't sell without his permission, she is out the value anyway. I think she can divide the apartment and rent her 50% out though. So getting the apartment is the carrot, dividing it is the stick. Just a thought. Edited to say that my wife says that she has a 33% interest in her parents flat. She is an only child, who will eventually inherit all of it. So in your case, maybe mom owns 50%, and each kid 25%. It was weird hearing that the kids have an interest at all. Edited by Brad and Vika, 17 August 2012 - 08:27 PM.	Brad and Vika	Male	Ukraine	2012-08-17 20:24:00
Russia, Ukraine and Belarus	MIL Visa	If I understand what you are asking, you might do a combination. A B-2 tourist visa would be the fastest way to get her here for awhile. The B-2 my MIL has is a five year, multi-entry visa. She can spend six months at a time here. 1) Get the B-2 if possible, to remove MIL from the apartment where safety is an issue. 2) Maybe rent her a place to stay when she has to go back. 3) Wife sponsors her immigration ASAP. The offer of property to the abusive son might also help. My understanding of property law there suggests that both MIL and her son, and maybe your wife, have an ownership interest in the flat where they live. If that is the case, have them tell the son that if he takes care of mama until she can immigrate, he will get 100% of the flat free and clear. That is a huge incentive for him that costs your wife nothing, assuming the apartment was transferred from the state and not purchased. The threat is that if mama is scared or hurt, your wife can make it impossible for him to ever sell the flat. She can also maybe sublet her portion to some one else. He won't want that. All of this would take loads of effort from your wife, but he probably doesn't understand that either.	Brad and Vika	Male	Ukraine	2012-08-17 09:51:00
Russia, Ukraine and Belarus	Our daughter is here! (well, was here in June)	Congratulations! Thanks a bunch!	Brad and Vika	Male	Ukraine	2012-08-21 16:24:00
Russia, Ukraine and Belarus	Our daughter is here! (well, was here in June)	Congrats. We just received Leonid's bus schedule for Kindergarten, which starts next Monday !! An exciting time. Probably stressful for mamichka though.	Brad and Vika	Male	Ukraine	2012-08-14 14:06:00
Russia, Ukraine and Belarus	Our daughter is here! (well, was here in June)	That's funny... I saw it when it was there in the beginning. Congratulations to you both! I have to say, seeing those pics, it makes me imagine and hope for the same for us in a couple of years... Very Cool!!! Not helpful This thread is awesome, not because of the new baby (congrats, by the way) but because it highlights just how crazy those superstitions can be. Nine+ months is a long time to "must not talk about" something. Good job! And good job on that kid too! I didn't want to get blamed if there was a problem Edited to say that I have a friend whose wife is about six months along. She is also Ukrainian. She has been morning sick about every day since they conceived apparently. I told him that it was his fault, and any Ukrainian witch doctor would tell him that her illness was caused by him telling people his wife was pregnant. At some point during the conversation he put me on speaker. I heard his wife shriek "You see? I said you so! You so stupid!" or something like that. Edited by Brad and Vika, 13 August 2012 - 08:12 PM.	Brad and Vika	Male	Ukraine	2012-08-13 20:05:00
Russia, Ukraine and Belarus	Our daughter is here! (well, was here in June)	Congrats!!! Tanya feels the same about the evil eye. It is not to be taken lightly... As you see, I had to adjust the pics to get rid of the one with Vika in it. The other is on borrowed time.	Brad and Vika	Male	Ukraine	2012-08-13 18:26:00
Russia, Ukraine and Belarus	Our daughter is here! (well, was here in June)	Somehow I missed this dangit! Brad, congratulations to you all, this is about the best news I've heard in awhile! She looks wonderful, and I have no doubt she's managed to find herself a great dad. So happy for you all! Cheers	Brad and Vika	Male	Ukraine	2012-08-08 21:31:00
Russia, Ukraine and Belarus	Our daughter is here! (well, was here in June)	Thanks again for the good wishes. So far, MIL is doing a good bit of the heavy lifting (FSU pun intended ). We are tired, but doing pretty well all-in-all. The obstetrician says that having daughters is better than having insurance, because they will take care of you when you need it. I hope that is true.	Brad and Vika	Male	Ukraine	2012-08-07 18:16:00
Russia, Ukraine and Belarus	Our daughter is here! (well, was here in June)	BIG CONGRATULATIONS!! That was one well kept secret!! Thanks very much everybody that responded so far for your good wishes. It had to be a well kept secret, or as you know, the evil eye will be called directly (pa-plooey). Eventually Vika will figure out what pics I posted, and will demand that they be taken down for that reason .	Brad and Vika	Male	Ukraine	2012-08-05 10:37:00
Russia, Ukraine and Belarus	Our daughter is here! (well, was here in June)	Our daughter was born in June, and because of concern about attracting the evil eye, I was just given permission to let the information out. She is awesome, we are thrilled (but tired). In-laws are all ecstatic! This is why getting MIL here was such a big deal for us Edited by Brad and Vika, 12 August 2012 - 05:39 PM.	Brad and Vika	Male	Ukraine	2012-08-04 12:07:00
Russia, Ukraine and Belarus	Info on Accepted system of transliteration by US	I have a similar transliteration table written on a cocktail napkin by a lovely young woman circa 1999. ... ah, the good ol' days. Well... those may be typos	Brad and Vika	Male	Ukraine	2012-08-16 19:50:00
Russia, Ukraine and Belarus	Info on Accepted system of transliteration by US	Mixed Latin letters in Russian? What? Yes, Ukraine has a "i," as does Belarusian. But the letters are CYRILLIC, and having an "i" does not a Latin alphabet make. P.S.: it is not a "middle name." It is a patronymic. Thank you eekee! ffp, just because the letters appear the same, doesn't mean they are pronounced the way the latin alphabet is pronounced. Different looking letters are not typos.	Brad and Vika	Male	Ukraine	2012-08-15 16:18:00
Russia, Ukraine and Belarus	Info on Accepted system of transliteration by US	I assume this is for filling out the native alphabet portion of the I-129. There are other issues with transliterate spelling than simply picking the correct sounding letter, and many of those have been discussed ad nauseum here. First off - because English letters can have several sounds, it is easy to pick alternate spellings for words or names that are technically correct, but odd looking. My wife's name (Viktoriya in her passport) is an example. Also, in Ukraine and other Russian speaking countries, the official language equivalent of a word or name may be quite different than the Russian. My MIL's name (Nadiia in her Ukrainian passport) is spelled differently in English if you use the Russian pronunciation (Nadezhda). For the 129, let the passport spelling be the guide, with alternate transliterate spellings listed out on the form.	Brad and Vika	Male	Ukraine	2012-08-12 16:40:00
Russia, Ukraine and Belarus	Visiting in her home city....	"I don't know what happened. We got along so well on our trip to Egypt. Something changed." Yeah, buddy. Life! I hope those guys read this VJ RUB Forum and realize there's a lot more to it than clicking on the hottest one and buying her a free trip somewhere. Wake up guys! It takes work just like it would with any other chick. Yes, she's hot. Yes, she's sassy. But at the end of the day, she's just a woman like all the rest of 'em, even if she does wear heels to the supermarket. There you go	Brad and Vika	Male	Ukraine	2012-08-21 18:46:00
Russia, Ukraine and Belarus	Visiting in her home city....	Nothing directed at your post Brad. Congrats again to you guys!! What I was posting about was the OP and the attempted correlation (?) between face-time and the two didn't really know each other and dissent amongst USC/FSU relationships. My limited experience (notice the qualifier) is that those with issues have nothing to do with face-time but the quality of the communication during the relationship. Of course, I personally was all set to visit my wife again in Russia but she insisted that I save the vacation time for when they got here rather than to visit her again.....the basis was that we felt the quality and content of our continued communications was good. It apparently was since we are still happily married and the 5 year old has a nice life. I just don't put much faith into these "cultural differences" and other mumbo jumbo as the cause of dissent between new couples.....all of the issue are "normal" issues everyone, even all USC marriages face. From my readings the suggested minimum meetings in person is two, with at least one with their family and friends. What I don't see much talk about is the quality and content of the communication....for some, obviously, it is not so automatic as it is with others....you two included. Thanks for clarifying, and no offense taken at all. I hope I didn't give any. The important thing in my mind also is getting to know your SO before you exchange rings. However that is accomplished, the familiarity needs to be there. I don't think you must do all of that in person, but it helps if you can spend time together physically too. Most USCs wouldn't dream of marrying some one from America they haven't met, but some believe that the geography is some kind of magic bullet imo. How many men have we read about in this forum alone who start sending money to some one they haven't met, to avert some disaster, say? How many of those guys are married happily? How many could have dodged a bullet by trying to get into their SOs life in person - discovering perhaps that her mother was perfectly healthy, or her live-in boyfriend had no idea that she planned to leave for America? Like you, I have corresponded and spoken with a bunch of people that married non-USCs. Even met a few VJers from time to time. Honestly, a fair number of them that spent significant face time pre K-1/K-3 have relationship issues too. Some of the Vjers that met playing online games seem to be doing fine together, even though the majority of their communication was online before they exchanged a promise, or a handshake. Most of the happy (emphasis here) couples seem to have really undertaken to get to know each other well - in a variety of ways. Sorry for the rant. I want to acknowledge again that what we are calling face time with your SO does not necessarily equate to familiarity with your SO in my mind. In many cases it could help early on imo. I think cultural differences are a part of that familiarity mix too, along with gender, age, religion, and so on. Maybe Phil, we were both just lucky	Brad and Vika	Male	Ukraine	2012-08-15 21:26:00
Russia, Ukraine and Belarus	Visiting in her home city....	Based on personal knowledge of about 10 couples here in the US, those who are having "difficulties", are merely having the usual difficulties that could be expected, based on the facts particular to them. I don't know if additional face-time would have made any difference in their cases. To summarize: 1. The FSU spouse (and/or family) not being fully prepared for how life is conducted here in the states versus back in their country. One may call this cultural differences or just differences in living in a different country. I've seen FSU folks totally freak out over some of the vast differences and place 100% onus on the USC not preparing them fully before asking them to come here to live. My wife and I were able to do this long distance using the various communication medium available. Many USCs may not be able to fully utilize these mediums or are just not as adept at discussing the differences. Don't know if added face-time would have helped. 2. Financial difficulties and not realizing the true costs to bring the FSU folks over there and the ongoing costs required as they assimilate into this life and how their new family lives can be conducted. In two cases the USC is fully to blame and did not fully disclose to their future spouse; in my mind I wonder, "What were you thinking? You are not financially ready for this endevour." Also in these two particular cases these guys had multiple vists, so face-time is not the issue. 3. When FSU children, especially young children are brought over, I see that the USC spouse does not fully engage themselves in the lives of these children. This leaves the majority of the burden on the FSU spouse who in turn is trying their best to also assimilate. A point of fact is that the USC spouse has already had children (all that I know have grown up children) and maybe (just my thought) that they are through with raising another small child. Again I don't know if additional face-time would have helped. But a very large majority of USC/FSU couples I know are doing very well; so I personally don't see a lot of problems. What I do see is that the FSU future spouses place a lot of trust in the USC (to fully prepare them for their new lives) and I do see that they are very hard workers when faced with issues. If I had any advice to give it would be to the USC to fully do their homework prior to ever beginning with the international dating process. Secondly would be fully honest with themselves and with their future spouses. This advice holds true for any future spouse immigrating from most countries to the US. Since I mentioned face time above, I suppose this is indirectly a response to some of my post. If not, I stand corrected. As you can see Barry, and as I said above, there is some disagreement as to the need to actually see and spend time together Those of us with opinions are pretty entrenched, and will post the case at great length. Again, I think that there is no one way to go about this, and people posting here have met in all kinds of different ways. Anybody who says they have the one true recipe is delusional. Two things I seldom see written on VJ: 1) I spent zero face time with my SO during the process. It was a mistake. Had I visited and really got to know my SO better, this could all have been different. 2) I visited my SO 27 times during our K-1/K-3 process. It was a mistake. We are such a great match, we could have done 100% of our relationship on skype. All my time spent was a waste. Generally, folks who met in person and spent time will say it is important, folks who didn't say it isn't. Couples who are happily married maintain they did it right, those who split up claim they did everything right. I am happily married, spent lots of time (considering the distance) with my wife during our K-1. I am happy I did, she is happy too. I am right I also try not to take all of this too seriously. I am right about that too.	Brad and Vika	Male	Ukraine	2012-08-15 16:12:00
Russia, Ukraine and Belarus	Visiting in her home city....	I see a lot of problems in RUB marriages occur because the partners didn't know each other and had little face time before marrying or becoming engaged. I visited Tanya 5 or 6 times in quick succession before we got engaged. I am curious about what others did as well. +1 for you Barry! Several of us make that point regularly. There is some disagreement amongst the order about face time being necessary, and can you get a good sense over the internet alone, etc. I don't think there is any one way to do this correctly because everybody is different. There does seem to be a common theme to the relationships that have troubles - that being the couple really didn't seem to be on the same page. Although I met Vika here, we both felt it important to spend a fair amount of time together. We decided after she returned to Ukraine though . I visited as often as I could during the visa process, and she says that it meant the world to her that I showed up for her interview and escorted her home.	Brad and Vika	Male	Ukraine	2012-08-13 15:27:00
Russia, Ukraine and Belarus	Did you buy a ticket for you and/or your S/O in advance?	About what we did. Had Visa delivered to Kherson from Kiev. Flew out of Odessa four to six days after interview. Don't remember exactly... Having done the K-1 visa process twice. Once for my first fiancee and once for my wife I could have selected either of two options. The first time, with my first fiancee, I was totally confident that we would get the visa, I went to Moscow to be there for the interview, infact as far as I could tell I was the only one out there waiting for his fiancee. I had booked a ticket for both of us for a week from the interview and we planned to stay in Moscow and pick up the visa. Well, we didn't get the visa. We got a dreaded 221-G instead. I ended up with the money for her flight being wasted. I thought I would at least have a little extra room on the way back with an empty seat beside me but even that didn't happen. Three or four weeks later she did get the visa, came here for 89 days and returned to Russia. With my wife, I did not buy the ticket in advance. My wife wanted to return home to say her goodbyes and to finish her affairs so once we got the visa then we got the ticket. She came about three weeks after the interview and that was almost 5 years ago. She is actually back in Russia right now visiting her mom and heads back here tomorrow. So there were two options I could have selected. # 1. I was totally convinced my first fiancee would breeze throught the visa process and wasted a lot of money. # 2. I had learned my lesson and would not have considered buying the ticket in advance. The posts above illustrate what I expected to find, and what the poll shows, a fairly bright line division. There are those like us who bought tickets in advance, had no trouble getting a visa, and advise others to roll the dice if you feel good about your chances. Then there are others who had extra expense and/or issues getting the visa, and either delayed purchasing, delayed buying ticket(s) to save money or allow for other business, or spent extra cash to change tickets. They all advise not to buy in advance. So it seems to me that you cannot plan for all contingencies, and at some point may have invested money just to learn that it didn't work out. I believe personally that with a relationship across cultures and continents, you WILL at some point be spending money or time, or effort, and discover it was for nothing. It happens with families and relationships all over. We don't believe that any of it was really wasted if you are doing it for your family. All a matter of opinion.	Brad and Vika	Male	Ukraine	2012-08-11 11:16:00
Russia, Ukraine and Belarus	Did you buy a ticket for you and/or your S/O in advance?	I bought a ticket for Tanya in advance, and had her flying 5 days after the interview. .... Visa arrived with two days to spare! I think that is about the same schedule we had. We may have stayed in Kiev a few more days, I'm too lazy today to go back and check.	Brad and Vika	Male	Ukraine	2012-07-28 17:06:00
Russia, Ukraine and Belarus	Did you buy a ticket for you and/or your S/O in advance?	We bought tickets way in advance, but left some time for slow delivery, delays, or questions. Edited to add fourth option. Please post your reasons for your vote. Edited by Brad and Vika, 26 July 2012 - 08:12 PM.	Brad and Vika	Male	Ukraine	2012-07-26 20:01:00
Russia, Ukraine and Belarus	Western Union or Moneygram?	Interview on what end, the US or the Russian end? If they ask me here, I can show them my tuition bill. I am a USC; I'm obviously not some mafia moll. I think you are fine eekee. I send various amounts occasionally to Kherson, Ukraine with MoneyGram and never had a problem. I think the last was $700 to help with a funeral about ten months ago. The only issue any of us had was that the bank didn't have enough dollars and wanted to give Hrvna instead for part of the transfer. I doubt that is a problem in Moscow (if I remember, Moscow, right?).	Brad and Vika	Male	Ukraine	2012-08-21 16:23:00
Russia, Ukraine and Belarus	Visiting fiancée	Good point on all you said. I put this out here, I send $1,000 a month to my wife so she can get things ready for the birth of our child. I never ran into no trouble. I didn't meet her on no ramance tour either. I was very nervous the first time I was there (to the point my head be snapping around every 30 seconds in paranoia, laughing). The only times I had People look at me funny is when I flew out of Vienna. They all rush that plane to get good seats as I just took my time getting from shuttle bus to plane in 20 dagree chill. I was way off the beaten path because I was dress with a base ball cap and jeans while everybody else was dress like there going to a family wedding or something (lol). At Minsk when you go upstairs to get the insurence before going to through the check point for passports? That kinda old blond headed woman was cold faced, cold talking, no smiling, do my job and the heck with you kinda woman (laughing), she talked English and I finally got a smile from her after I paid up (lol). The rest going through that blocked off area before getting to the front loby kinda freaked me out. I had them repeat themselves at least 5 times so I understand what they was asking. I thought "oh #######, they think I'm starting trouble, going to jail" (lol). Nope, just gave up on the dumb American and let me through (laughing). I got allot of funny moment there. I couldnt find how to flush a tiolet one time (laughing). But after that it was like being normal out of town guess. This will be my fourth visit and this time I finally can see my new born daughter. But, if there's anything else I need to watch out for? Do tell please because I'm not there to go against the grain, just want to visit my wife and child and work on the paper work to get her here later on. Chad I was laughing while reading your post. The first time I ran into the in-the-floor trench toilet, I was pretty surprised. I used to pass through the airport without getting insurance. When I registered at the militsia station (with my landlady filling out forms) they would just sell it to me there. You are way past the point I was talking about - sending money. When I was last in Minsk, all medical care was free, and my ex made about $400+ per month. She was making more than most I think. Rent in the university district was about $250 for three rooms (for her). You might want to look into the free account/ATM card. It may save you some fees, and any hassle she gets for the transfers. You probably already know the basics about travel there, don't say anything negative about the government in public, don't be critical of the President (even on the land line phone), etc. I am sure your wife has you covered buying things. I hired a driver rather than take taxis, and my partners initially provided an interpreter. Again, the wife would cover you better anyway . I used to bank in Vilnius, Lithuania to avoid sending money back and forth from America. Vilnius is a decent place for a vacation after the baby comes, whenever your wife will agree to go . PM me if you want to know more about the place, I am happy to share, and it is a place you can both get in easily. Any EU country will let you in, and they give folks from Belarus a visa at the border. You can take a train or bus (4-6 hours depending). The last time I went, I took a train. The train was full of Kazaki workers returning from Moscow, drinking, singing, and having a great time. When they stripped down to sleep and were walking around the train in their underwear it was a little weird though. When we crossed the border on the way back, the passport control lady brought a train conductor to translate for me. I thought I was in trouble too. She asked if I had any appliances with me. I blinked a couple of times, and said "yes, I have a microwave oven in the overhead, and a refrigerator under my seat". The translator paused, then smiled like a hyena while she translated. The Kazaks screamed laughter, and the passport woman blushed red and started yelling at me - explaining what appliance means (walkman, cell phone, etc.). Good times.	Brad and Vika	Male	Ukraine	2012-08-19 12:16:00
Russia, Ukraine and Belarus	Visiting fiancée	I do western union every time. Had no problems her and I with this. I read some post on here about opening a joint account, but me here in the states and her still over there? I find it much easier to just WU her money and it's easier for me to stay on top of things. Plus, we don't know if we can trust the system over there with the type of money I make out here as a tug boat captain. I have allot of security safeguards tag to every thing in my life. You use my name on a computer? It sends me a message, you try to use my SSN? They call me, you try to find my bio info? ( the deeper stuff), agencies of various types call me or tacks me down. It's one of those things that because I work with high hazmat stuff out here, and with threats of terrorism in our world, it's a security blanket for my life in case the ####### hits the fan out here. And my bio got pulled (or tried to get pulled) 3 days before I went on my first trip to Minsk. That's how I know the KGB was doing there jobs. No problem. But, as for what was asked in this forum about what to put on why our going there, I surgest just the plain truth because if you get caught in a lie, then there's no trust, but if you show your being honest? Then they know your being truthful because 9 out of 10, they know what your going there for. When we do our visa with washington, and they send our paper works to there embassy in Washington, they do there checks before the decide to give a visa. You get a visa? Your ok, they don't give you a visa? Something triggered there red flag alert. Just something to think about. I think those are some good points, from a guy with recent experience. You are right not to wire money from your main account here, or any account connected to it. The account suggestions were probably to reduce the transfer expenses, depending on what you send. I have suggested (for Ukraine if I recall) opening a separate account (like we did) that has no fee, and a debit card that has no fee if you can find one. Most european banks don't seem to charge fees for withrawals, so you get a $2 fee from the American bank plus a currency conversion fee (so $5 or $6 for say, a $300 transfer). Cheaper than WU. MoneyGram is cheaper too, but they had no MoneyGram in Minsk last time I was there. It can be your account - not joint - and she has your debit card. I think the government only cares about two things: first, that you are not financing anything illegal, like the opposition, and second, that you are not repatriating dollars. The second is why you have to show your passport if you convert rubles to dollars before you leave. All this assumes that you are at a certain point in the relationship. My wife refused to accept money or even talk about finances until she was here. Every relationship is different, but I wouldn't recommend a monthly stipend early on. Each to their own. I have also had my visa request held by our government on the way to the Embassy of Belarus. Two weeks where it was unavailable on the UPS system, no explanation. Our government does some screeneing too . My suggestion about not disclosing that you are in Belarus (or anywhere else) on some sort of a wife hunt is just common sense. I was mostly joking about the KGB caring about that especially. In many places, telling the customs people you are on a romance tour, or meeting women on your own identifies you as a sucker. Law enforcement and customs are entrepenurial activities in many places, and you just don't want to be identified as a target before you leave the airport. Now there isn't a huge tourist industry in Belarus that I know of, so they would probably guess that tourist is code for something, but I doubt they would waste much time on it, so long as you don't seem to be connected to a government, andf aren't a journalist.	Brad and Vika	Male	Ukraine	2012-08-18 12:58:00
Russia, Ukraine and Belarus	Visiting fiancée	I'm guessing he said this because your fiancee would have to show her passport to collect money at Western Union, and her name goes on a list. If you send cash in a letter (and it doesn't get opened on the way) you are good to go. The point of my post was not that I consider the KGB a threat to the USC, rather a warning not to bring unwelcome attention to the fiancee. That's right. I don't know if there is any more to it than that now, but the person receiving used to have to deposit the money in the National Bank and fill out a form. Only if the transfer was from America. Again, I was there doing business, not meeting women, and it was some years ago. The Democracy in Belarus Act put me out of business.	Brad and Vika	Male	Ukraine	2012-08-17 20:20:00