ForumTitleContentMemberSexCountryDate/Time
CanadaJust found out didn't get a June interview....how disappointing!
I'm sorry to hear that, Linda. But on a happier note, happy anniversary!

You share an anniversary with my parents, only they will be celebrating their 45th anniversary.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-05-20 10:30:00
CanadaMedical Exams
Just FYI---as of March, Dr Chana in Edmonton was no longer doing immigration physicals. For you, Dr Viljoen in Calgary would be the most convenient place to go anyway. The consulate told TheATeam (or her fiance) that they were going to get a new Edmonton doctor. Whether that has happened or not, I don't know.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-05-21 16:23:00
CanadaOne more thing to freak out about before the interview
Okay, thanks, everyone.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-05-21 16:39:00
CanadaOne more thing to freak out about before the interview
And I'm only paid once a month. It's PROBABLY at home, but the house looks like a tornado's gone through so whether or not I will find it is anyone's guess. As it stands, I have copies of pay stubs from January 1, January 31, February 29, and March 31. If I can't find the April 30 pay stub, I can probably get something from the bank showing I deposited it, but that's probably about it. I'll also have a letter from my boss on judicial letterhead. Do you think I will be okay with that?

Mind you, it is either going to turn up or not at this point. My plane leaves early Sunday morning. Fortunately my head is attached so I don't have to worry about leaving that behind, too.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-05-21 16:09:00
CanadaAAAARGH!
The only time I think of miles and kilometers being the same thing is when I see a speed limit sign in mph.

Yeah, that doesn't work too well, actually, come to think of it.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-05-21 16:52:00
CanadaEntering Canada for my fiance's interview
Heh---I'm a lot smaller than my fiance, so I'm not sure they'd believe me! And yes, I am being overly cautious. We always joked about how much nicer Canadian customs would be than American. On the way north you could admit you were going to Montreal because the drinking age was lower there. On the way back to your own country, you had to be prepared for the third degree.

My fiance, meanwhile, is completely calm. Either that or doing a very good job of hiding it from me.

I haven't seen him in three months. I can't wait (okay, not to make anyone puke or anything....).
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-05-21 16:13:00
CanadaEntering Canada for my fiance's interview
Four days and four hours until I see him again! But who's counting?

I'm glad I'm not the only one going through the scenario in my mind.

Length of stay is another trick question, because I will be staying in Canada for 8 days, but then I have to cross back just to fly home from Vancouver.

Oh that's right---Montreal mails the visa and you have no idea how long exactly it will take. That is frustrating. I'm so glad Vancouver at least lets us pick it up the next day.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-05-21 12:37:00
CanadaEntering Canada for my fiance's interview
Thank you, Krikit. That puts my mind at ease.

Cross posted. Thank you, Laura. And---you have an interview date! Woohoo! Congratulations.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-05-21 12:09:00
CanadaEntering Canada for my fiance's interview
What should I tell them? I am sure they already know I have a Canadian fiance, so I am thinking it might make sense to say I am going for his visa interview at the US consulate and then vacationing with him on Vancouver Island. Or should I just say meeting up with my fiance and some other friends?

And yes, I'm being overly cautious.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-05-21 11:57:00
CanadaFiance's review of Dr Viljoen in Calgary
Well, strip poker won't work, as I'll be following Len's advice and packing no clothes to take to the interview!
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-04-16 15:23:00
CanadaFiance's review of Dr Viljoen in Calgary
First off, making the appointment. He initially called and was told that he had to speak to the doctor himself to make the appointment. That turned out not to be right. But he has different staff people to handle his regular practice and the medicals. If the person who handles scheduling medicals is not in, you have to either call back when she is or try playing phone tag with the doctor. Anyway, my fiance called back when the right person was in and got an appointment for two weeks later.

He found Dr Viljoen to be very pleasant, didn't even really say anything about him having a doctor 'tude. He asked about why he was immigrating and how we met and even laughed at my fiance's jokes (what he told me was "if you joke around, he will be friendly").

The exam was pretty straightforward (he listened to his chest and did that thing where they thump your chest while listening to the stethoscope). Then he sent my fiance on his way to have the X-ray and bloodwork. He told him he could call on Monday to see if his results wer ready, and sure enough they were (a total of four days, or two business days, because his appointment was on a Thursday).

When he got back to Edmonton, there was an email telling him our appointment is May 27!! kicking.gif kicking.gif kicking.gif
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-04-15 11:21:00
CanadaDS-230 part II at Vancouver consulate
Thanks. It's good to know we are not the only ones who were confused!
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-06-11 14:43:00
CanadaDS-230 part II at Vancouver consulate
Obviously we are holding onto it. We assume they wouldn't just forget. Will we need this when crossing the border for the move? Or adjusting status? Or do they just not use those last two pages at Vancouver? To some extent, this is out of curiosity---we will hold onto the document---but if we have to hand it over to CBP when he moves down, we will pack it someplace accessible.

Oh, yes, and we got the visa. I will post a review sometime soon.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-06-11 10:57:00
CanadaFinally have my CR1 interview date!!!!!!!!!!
Congratulations and happy anniversary, too.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-06-10 09:39:00
CanadaNVC to Vancouver
If he is in Manitoba, I believe there are two on the list in Winnepeg. If that doesn't work, the doctor in Vancouver (Dr. Ian Morgan) can do immigration physicals and get you the results the same day so he would be able to get the physical on the same trip to Vancouver for the visa interview. TheATeam did that for hers since the Edmonton doctor stopped doing physicals after she booked her appointment with him. She posted something about the logistics of arranging that.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-06-12 15:01:00
CanadaNVC to Vancouver
It will only take two days for it to get to the consulate via DHL. The consulate should send out packet 3 in the mail within a week, but then it can take anywhere from a few days to over a week for it to actually get there. To give you an idea, ours actually reached the consulate on March 13. Packet 3 was dated and postmarked March 18, and it got to my fiance's house in Edmonton on March 26. Packet 4 only took 3 or 4 days in the mail.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-06-12 11:29:00
CanadaMelissa & Chris - good luck tomorrow
Good luck!
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-06-12 10:32:00
CanadaI don't know how I'll last...
Oh yes, I remember obsessively checking to see if my petition had been delivered to CSC (so I'd know it wasn't lost in the mail) and then checking obsessively to see if my check cleared (so I'd know it wasn't lost at the bottom of a pile at CSC or burnt by the wildfires southern California was having at the time). Even though that is a relatively short part of the wait, that not-quite-knowing for even a few days is maddening!

Saphire, you are going through the faster of the two service centers, and, as Eric and Corinna mentioned, they are moving along much faster now. Good luck and welcome to VJ!
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-06-11 11:06:00
CanadaCBR - Good luck tomorrow
Congratulations!
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-06-12 11:11:00
CanadaCBR - Good luck tomorrow
Good luck! You'll do fine.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-06-10 16:08:00
CanadaAddress?
Congratulations on your new home! You may not own it, but it is still your first home together. Now you will have some place to call your own and if you want to buy, you can take the time to find a house you really love first.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-06-12 11:34:00
CanadaCongratulations Toastburglar - visa approved on Friday!
Congratulations!
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-06-17 10:25:00
CanadaAaron & Carrie - Good luck tomorrow
QUOTE (Aaron and Carrie @ Jun 16 2008, 10:30 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
Hopefully I'll be able to sleep tonight.


I know that feeling!

Good luck.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-06-16 10:39:00
CanadaMaeve - Good luck today
Good luck to you!
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-06-16 10:45:00
CanadaHappy...Happy!
Happy birthday, Kathryn!

Happy anniversary, Kathryn & hubby!

Mmmm...cake!
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-06-21 11:20:00
CanadaI'm leaving on a jet.....train...
I don't know if you will see this before your interview (you've got to be on your way already!)--but in case you do:

Good luck, Laura and Nick!

If you don't see it until after the interview, then CONGRATULATIONS!!!
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-06-19 14:45:00
CanadaIf you only knew then, what you know now...
QUOTE (Sprailenes @ Jun 17 2008, 10:45 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
I would have also taken in home a lot more during my last year there. I kind of had one foot out the door and everything was about moving, than about taking it all in and really appreciating Canada and my family.


Well he is the one moving to be with me, but I've done plenty of moving in the past and you just described pretty much how I feel about most of the places I've left.

Planning the wedding is stressful, so if anything, maybe we would have gone ahead and secretly gotten married and then filed for a K3. At the time, they were taking only slightly longer than K1s, though I think that's changed.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-06-17 15:00:00
CanadaHow long have you and your loved one been separated?
We said goodbye at the Vancouver airport June 2, so 15 days ago. Our longest separation was three months between February 28 and May 25.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-06-17 14:52:00
CanadaDeposit a canadian check in a US bank
I'm glad I saw this thread. This is something I thought would not be a problem--I assumed they would hold the check to wait for it to clear for perhaps longer than they hold out of state checks from my parents, but I didn't expect it to be a big deal otherwise. I asked my bank and it seems direct deposit works fine but they have some major malfunction about actual physical checks. She said something about having to collect it from the bank on which it was drwan, though---what does that mean? Does it just mean it's going to be held for extra time to clear or that it can't be done at all, period?
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-06-22 15:24:00
Canadatransporting a dog via air or something
Someone has probably dealt with this and has a better answer, but if all else fails, could you fly the puppy someplace cooler but near, such as Flagstaff or Albuquerque, and drive him from there?
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-05-19 13:53:00
CanadaWoo hoo
Wonderful news, Laura! Congratulations to both you and Nick.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-06-27 14:51:00
CanadaGah--short term health insurance
He usually gets coverage through RBC but they won't cover him since he is intending to immigrate. We had assumed they would. I'll pass that info about TD along to him.

I also found this thread as one of the "similar topics" under my thread after I posted it:

http://www.visajourn...showtopic=21732

In case anyone else is looking as well. The links are still good but I have no idea if those have good plans or not. I just emailed them to my fiance to look into.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-06-30 11:36:00
CanadaGah--short term health insurance
We will get legally hitched on July 26 and then however long it takes to complete the paperwork for him to be on my insurance. We should cross the border July 17, possibly the morning of the 18. We want to find some kind of insurance that will cover him from July 17 for at least one month, possibly through the end of August just to be on the safe side. I know that I've seen this discussed and others have dealt with this. What have you used?
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-06-30 11:12:00
CanadaAbandonment of Petition
America's loss and Canada's gain. Wherever it is, I hope you will be together very soon.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-06-27 14:34:00
CanadaListing household items for POE
QUOTE (Carlawarla @ Jul 1 2008, 06:51 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
You're supposed to have the serial numbers written down. I made a quick list not on the box but a seperate piece of paper. Note also about DVD's, CD's etc. no pirated or copies of things!


Uh oh. What about VHS tapes recorded off the TV? He taped the re-airing of the first Saturday Night Live with George Carlin for me. We also have a 6-CD set that is a compilation put together by someone from the travel site we indirectly met through. Should he mail those things? The CD thing isn't a huge deal since we both have a copy and he could just give his to someone, but I really want to watch the George Carlin thing and I obviously don't want to get into any trouble when we cross.

Edited by SonoranSongbird, 02 July 2008 - 12:44 PM.

SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-07-02 12:42:00
CanadaListing household items for POE
Thanks! That is more or less what we thought, but wanted to be sure. Also didn't really know that about the serial numbers for electronics.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-06-27 15:35:00
CanadaListing household items for POE
What I mean is, will it be okay to list the contents of each carton as "books, linens, clothes, and dishes" (etc) or do we need to break it down ("5 pairs of jeans, 3 tea towels, 8 dessert forks, 12 paperback books, 10 hardcover books..." and so on)?

One other moving related question--is there usually a line up for crossing the border at North Portal, SK-Portal, ND?
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-06-27 14:41:00
CanadaShould I bring wedding and recent pics to CR1 interview
Yes, if you have them, bring them! What I ended up doing (so as to avoid lugging a photo album on the plane) was to put a few pictures of me and fiance and fiance with dog in loose photo album pages and bring those. Of course, we don't have a wedding album yet, and most of our vacation pictures don't have either of us (much less both of us) in them (just pretty scenary and signs that amused me). But if you have extra copies of some of your better wedding photos, that would be an option as well.

Good luck!!! Not that you need it, you'll do fine.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-07-07 11:44:00
CanadaWell Mes Amis. . . . . .
Woohoo!!! Congratulations, Cat!
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-07-07 11:38:00
Canadawhere did you first meet? online vs in person
We met in person, but it was at a meet-up for a travel site I post on. The poster who organized it was his best friend of about 30 years, and she brought him along. That was in 2003, and there was a bit of mutual attraction that neither of us acted on (or realized was mutual) until last year. He did register a handle on the site right after I went home, though, which is how we stayed in touch with each other for the intervening years.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-07-08 11:21:00