ForumTitleContentMemberSexCountryDate/Time
Middle East and North AfricaI'M GOING TO EGYPT !!
dancin5hr.gif dancin5hr.gif Thanks to all the wonderful MENA members who are wishing me a safe journey!! I wish we all could take a flight together to Egypt....can you imagine...it would be PARTYYYYYYYY TIME!! kicking.gif kicking.gif

Take care and take care of each other...see you in 3 months.. heart.gif rose.gif
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-09-28 22:17:00
Middle East and North AfricaI'M GOING TO EGYPT !!
:dance: I am just so happy today!!! Made a decision to go to Egypt and wait with Wael (L) until the visa comes. I have been thinking of doing this for a long time and today is the day I did it!!! I leave September 29 and return December 23. WOW i AM IN HOG HEAVEN :lol:
Everyone have a great evening and night.. :dance: :dance: :dance:
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-07-31 20:30:00
Middle East and North AfricaSecond time around
We do have to admit going thru all of this immigration process has been...has been...

AN ADVENTURE!!! helpsmilie.gif helpsmilie.gif helpsmilie.gif
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-09-26 13:36:00
Middle East and North AfricaSecond time around
girlwerewolf2xn.gif headbonk.gif dead.gif blink.gif wacko.gif unsure.gif girlwerewolf2xn.gif
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-09-26 13:32:00
Middle East and North AfricaExperiences in Egypt
Don't know if this has been a topic before, but would love to know what experiences you have had with your visit or visits to Egypt... are they memorable, not so memorable, funny, exciting, etc...

My memorable things : Meeting Wael for the first time, Cairo, riding on the train, going to Alexandria for the first time on the SuperJet, first taste of falafel, first taste of tahina, the pyramids, the Egyptian museum, first experience of Ramadan, the small feast, listening to the prayers, the street vendors selling their goods, the donkey's pulling their carts

Funny things: Egyptian people eating pizza with a knife and fork and adding ALOT of ketchup (only in Egypt), Wael's neighbors waving and sending kisses to me from their balconies, talking to me in Arabic like i understand, people trying to figure out what country i'm from (most think Russia or Italy), waiters can't believe I help them clear the table, Wael's parents wanting me so much to eat MEAT and i'm vegetarian as it's hard for Egyptians to believe that in the world there is some people who don't eat MEAT, the wild and crazy rides in the taxi's, watching Adel Emam, Hani Ramzi and Ahmed Helmy in funny Arabic movies, Wael going with me to the salon where ONLY WOMEN are allowed (he feels so strange but i assured him he is doing a duty translating)...

Exciting places : The great Pyramids (AWESOME SIGHT), the Library of Alexandria (absolutely beautiful) Egyptian Museum ( could live in this place), Mohammed Ali Mosque Cairo, Cairo train station, Stanley Bridge in Alexandria...

Exciting things: seeing the old Omar Sherif movies (what a handsome man), walking along the sea road in Alexandria, shopping in Carefour, people watching at coffeeshops, Egyptian weddings...

Food : Best in the world!!! The vegetables, fruit, coffee, tea, soup, seafood (especially the fish and eggplant cooked at the sea) mahshi, falafel, ice cream, popcorn at Raml square...

People : At first I couldn't get used to the stares but now everyone knows me and they are such wonderful and caring people. They are nice and extremely friendly...

Not so memorable : Tourist police not so friendly at the airport, wild taxi rides, the BIG feast with the slaughtering of animals, my mosquito bites ( don't know why they like me, but for the 4th time here in Egypt they still attack my legs until they find another tourist), the green soup doesn't like me, car horns, loud music blaring from the cars or motorcycles...

Hope everyone will share their experiences and will be helpful to others who haven't had the chance to come yet... star_smile.gif
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-10-08 10:29:00
Middle East and North AfricaWednesday
Afternoon everyone...beautiful day in Alexandria...having tea and waiting for our breakfast...

Have a great day! good.gif
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-10-10 08:32:00
Middle East and North AfricaCivil marriage in Egypt
QUOTE (painter @ Oct 10 2007, 07:13 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
Hello all..

I would like to ask about something if anyone could help..,

for first im an egyption man,and my fiancee is american,For some circumstances and with the sitiuation of the egyption ministry of justice and the embassy of US in Egypt, our case is kind complicated to marry.

Im thinking of marrying through civil marriage in Egypt,but she is afraid that if we did, it wont be recognized in US and that i will not be able to go there to her in future.

and from another side the idea that [we dont know till when we have to wait the sitiuation to be solved between MOJ and US embassy] make both of us really sick,it could be loooooooooong years if we waited.

however, it seem for me that the civil marriage is the fastest and the best solution for now to be with each other so soon,but she is worry about the case if they didnt recognize it in US.

So,Are there any ideas or solutions could help for going into civil marriage for now and be recognized from US in future??,What is the best ways to make that work??,and What the probabilities of the succeeding toward that matter??

any advise will be appreciate,thanks for help.



First, i'm getting confused about what you consider a "civil marriage"....
Second, you have answered your own question that the Egyptian Ministry of Justice is no longer doing the Egyptian/American marriages....and since this kind of marriage is the only authorized marriage that is recoginized here in Egypt or the United States so I guess any other kind of marriage "civil marriage" won't be recognized neither here or in the states or at the consulate level...
Third, i'm afraid that after you go thru what you call "civil marriage" you will have complicated your case as you may loose your chance to apply for K1 visa coz she is no longer your fiance....

so IMO the best option is K1 "Fiance" Visa .........
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-10-10 15:26:00
Middle East and North AfricaI-130 Petition First Interview @ Cairo
My husband and I also were married in Egypt and had our I 130 petition interview at the Embassy in Cairo. The consular interviewed me first (USC), then interviewed Wael, then interviewed both of us together at the end. He asked me for photos, any emails, etc. The consular was very specific and very nice to both of us. When our interview was finished he gave us our letter of approval and told us we were now ready for the next part of the process.

I don't know how the procedures are there now but this is how we had our I 130 petition interview.
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-10-12 06:15:00
Middle East and North AfricaHow is everyone in AP doing? How's your SO handling it? how long have you been in AP ? How many "flags"
QUOTE (amrssnowangel @ Oct 17 2007, 06:55 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
I was interviewed by a Washington Post Reporter for a news article to print sometime this week...I referenced to the time it takes to go through Cairo, and stated that I didnt understand the lack of information, mis-information, mistakes that are inexcusable. I also questioned why if each Embassy is a US Embassy....why they EACH have a DIFFERENT way to process these petitions. How is it in one Embassy its 2 weeks, another 10 months? Why cant we get answers as to WHAT is going on with our cases? Anyways...your congressmen, representatives can inquire...thats about it. We need immigration reform HERE in the STATES to make this work smoother.



good.gif good.gif
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-10-17 09:32:00
Middle East and North AfricaI Got It Today
kicking.gif kicking.gif Hope we can get together while you are here!!
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-10-19 12:57:00
Middle East and North AfricaWarm Fuzzy MENA thread
Can still see Wael's face and eyes when I arrived at the airport in Cairo...it was like the sun opened up and all I saw was my baby's huge smile biggrin.gif ...loved every moment of this and still makes me feel soooo good heart.gif heart.gif heart.gif

Can't wait to see him again kicking.gif kicking.gif kicking.gif
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-09-04 13:48:00
Middle East and North AfricaI wanted to share something nice my husband said last night
Being here in Egypt with my sweetheart is the best that life has to offer...i need nothing more...and..he makes the best popcorn in the world! smile.gif
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-10-24 15:53:00
Middle East and North AfricaLink to my pics from my recent trip to Egypt
Wow thanks for sharing ALL these beautiful and wonderful pics!! Isn't Egypt fantastic...can't see enough here...You guys looked sooooo good... good.gif
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-11-07 11:32:00
Middle East and North Africak1-Cairo Confusion
QUOTE
The job was for the embassy to state that we are free to marry.TRUE That means verifying that we're not already married and are of the correct age to be married.TRUE That's it. The job is not to educate us on the pros and cons of marrying an egyptian.TRUE I swear we give up so much freedom when we embark on marrying someone oversees it's just ridiculous. wacko.gif




I totally agree!! good.gif
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-11-07 12:55:00
Middle East and North Africak1-Cairo Confusion
QUOTE
That is disgusting and uncalled for. EWW ! How degrading and rude. I hope you write a letter and report that. Not that they will do anything about it. Good luck. Also there is a woman called Stacey Brothers-Jackson that was really helpful. I don't remember her e-mail but she is in Cairo.



Stacey Brothers-Jackson ...I still remember her so well ...she was the first person I met at the American Embassy on the American side....WOW!! I needed to have her notarize my eligibility to marry certificate....my first encounter was of her yelling at me and asking me was I sure I wanted to marry an Egyptian as "didn't I know how abusive Egyptian men were"....at first I was shocked at this... came out of nowhere and really didn't know how to respond to her yelling at me....she wasn't very nice and had me in tears...i wanted to be as graceful and respectful as i could to her as i did have respect for her position as i have respect for my Embassy...

I still don't know why she did this....to me this will always be the one thing i will remember on our visa journey and would hope it never happened to anyone again...

I am truly very happy she was nice and helpful to you!! Keep the faith and I hope your journey will end soon...

JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-11-07 11:28:00
Middle East and North AfricaWE GOT OUR VISA!!!!
They didn't for a MC only a new police record...

Good luck!!
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-11-01 11:32:00
Middle East and North AfricaWE GOT OUR VISA!!!!
Thanks everyone for the wonderful comments!!


Hi Monnik,
Wael was looking at the waybill and found out the number was the same one we used to return our packet 3 to the embassy....not the one that he paid for at the visa interview....as far as we can tell by the tracking number at DHL that number has never been used...

What a system huh...

So now don't know what to think as where is the waybill Wael paid for to send his passport back from the embassy!!


JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-11-01 10:54:00
Middle East and North AfricaWE GOT OUR VISA!!!!
QUOTE (angeljan @ Nov 1 2007, 05:57 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
OMG that is so great! good.gif Congrats! Now he can come back with you right? Wow you were hoping this would happen while you were still there and now your dream has come true. I don't know what to say right now lol I'm speechless. I'm so just so happy for the both of you. Will have to tell my hubby when he gets up, I know he will be so happy for the both of you too. kicking.gif

Take Care and keep us posted

Jan



Thanks everyone!!! Yes he will now have the chance to go back to the states with me...We haven't checked airlines but will sure to find something....
Just can't believe it and we are so happy... kicking.gif kicking.gif
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-11-01 08:53:00
Middle East and North AfricaWE GOT OUR VISA!!!!
What a wonderful surprise this morning when DHL called and said they have a delivery!!! I am so happy to be here with him to receive this most wonderful of wonderful news.... kicking.gif kicking.gif kicking.gif
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-11-01 03:00:00
Middle East and North Africacan't believe it's over
Our warmest congratulations to you and your husband!!! Victory and triumph finally!! good.gif
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-11-04 10:09:00
Middle East and North AfricaThinking of Going to Cairo
Was just thinking...when everyone gets here in Egypt why don't we have a VJ reunion!! Wael and I would love to meet everyone in person...what do you think about it? Wael and I have already met one couple here from VJ last night and was so nice comparing our timelines and venting!! So guys think about it and perhaps we can all finally meet with our SO's... star_smile.gif
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-10-07 14:47:00
Middle East and North Africacamel day!
Flew British Air 4 times to Egypt and had no probs with the weight....my suitcase was the large oversize one and all BA did was put a tag on it that said "heavy"... good.gif


JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-11-07 12:47:00
Middle East and North AfricaEgypt AP list....
QUOTE (CairoBound @ Nov 8 2007, 07:13 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
Well let's see. The last email my husband received from the Embassy was approximately 2 weeks ago and it's the same answer "Still in AP and he'll be contacted once it's done". The embassy doesn't respond to my emails any longer. Guess I made them mad some how. I wrote Oprah and received an email back from her folks indicating that they received thousands of emails a day and may not hear anything soon. Wrote the senator and they put an inquiry into the Embassy and they received the same information as we receive in our emails. Wrote Condeleeza Rice and haven't heard anything back from her.

So I've got a couple of questions that maybe someone will know the answers to. Since we originally filed our papers in April of 2006, isn't the medical, etc. only good for so long? I've heard that the I30 and I129F don't expire since they are "in the works". But the finger prints from the police station, medical, etc - are they the same and don't expire as long as they are in process?

It's coming up on ONE YEAR now that we've been on AP. I just don't get it. I thought for sure the embassy would have some kind of a heart and approve just prior to one year, but I guess I'm wrong. I've heard the longest from Egypt that's been on AP is 1 year and 3 months. Any bets that ours will go longer?



First i'm sorry for your long long A/P....before they issued Wael's visa the Embassy sent him RFE for a new police record...I guess because the old one had expired....Really have no idea the time limits on everything and wouldn't know where to search to find out, but i'm sure when they are just about ready to issue his visa they will request from him any outdated documents that need to be replaced.

Wishing you and Hassan will be reunited very soon...take care
Jeanne and Wael
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-11-09 05:49:00
Middle East and North AfricaFor all Egyptian's or married/fiance to an Egyptian
Congratulations!!
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-11-10 07:17:00
Middle East and North AfricaMAXIMUM MOJO to POLAR BEAR
Best of luck!! good.gif
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-11-09 16:16:00
Middle East and North AfricaNEW BABY
What a sweetieeee!!! Blessings to you!
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-11-04 15:27:00
Middle East and North AfricaSuuuunday
Sara, baby is so sweet!!!
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-11-11 11:34:00
Middle East and North AfricaWE'RE APPROVED!!!!
Congratulations!!! kicking.gif
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-11-09 16:19:00
Middle East and North AfricaMy Fiancee and I are meeting up in morocco
Great pics!!
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-11-10 14:58:00
Middle East and North AfricaHI ALL MENA
dancin5hr.gif Good news!!
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-11-14 21:04:00
Middle East and North AfricaIts Thursday 1 day before Friday thank god!
Afternoon everyone! Beautiful day here in Alexandria...finally is beginning to be cool but not cold...have a great morning, afternoon or evening in your part of the world... smile.gif

Hope you feel better soon AJ1...take care and have plenty of chicken soup yes.gif
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-11-15 07:54:00
Middle East and North Africait's a happy day for sunnykleo - visa in hand :)
Congrats!!! kicking.gif kicking.gif
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-11-16 08:10:00
Middle East and North AfricaSaturday!
Afternoon everyone!
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-11-17 08:22:00
Middle East and North Africapast relationships?
I am me and he is himself....MY BABY LOVES ME JUST THE WAY THAT I AM good.gif
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-11-15 16:14:00
Middle East and North AfricaAnyone heard from Heartland ?
Great news!! Take care of yourself and have a nice Thanksgiving!!
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-11-10 07:12:00
Middle East and North AfricaDay 8 of the 6 days
Just wondering....if he gave them his passport then how does he fly? Am I missing something? Where is he flying from to Cairo?
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-11-12 19:28:00
Middle East and North AfricaSunday
QUOTE (jessNgeorges @ Nov 18 2007, 10:42 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
QUOTE (JeanneVictoria @ Nov 18 2007, 01:44 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
QUOTE (jasman0717 @ Nov 18 2007, 07:48 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
Are you ready for some football blink.gif



I'm ready but no American football here to watch on his TV...I miss football !!



When are u guys coming back to the states??



We leave Dec 23rd from Cairo! Will introduce Wael to some REAL football good.gif


JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-11-18 17:15:00
Middle East and North AfricaSunday
QUOTE (jasman0717 @ Nov 18 2007, 12:24 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
QUOTE (JeanneVictoria @ Nov 18 2007, 09:44 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
QUOTE (jasman0717 @ Nov 18 2007, 07:48 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
Are you ready for some football blink.gif



I'm ready but no American football here to watch on his TV...I miss football !!



I'm watching San Diego at Jacksonville, pretty good game.




JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-11-18 17:00:00
Middle East and North AfricaSunday
QUOTE (jasman0717 @ Nov 18 2007, 07:48 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
Are you ready for some football blink.gif



I'm ready but no American football here to watch on his TV...I miss football !!
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-11-18 12:44:00
Middle East and North AfricaHappy Monday MENA
Happy late Monday evening...we are off to meet another couple for coffee...have a great day!
JeanneVictoriaFemaleEgypt2007-11-19 11:25:00