Утвердил!

[mox 298]

You sly dog, I knew that "e-mail" about Alla & Jeffery would get you ahead of us! Good for you Kirk!

Hehe, I was waiting for that.

Have you set a date for when she will come to the states? We're not sure how long after her interview she's going to come out...after Kevin's debacle I'm pretty gun shy about making any definite plans now.

[Kazan' Tiger 1]

Kevin's dilemma scared me a bit too. No plans after the interview have been made. However, Alla would not agree anyway. Last time we spoke, I was tossing some wedding ideas at her and I got, "Jeffery... Did Embassy agree to make visa without me? We will have this talk after I have visa." At minimum, school has to finish. I can safely say, no talk will be had about departure until she has her visa in her hands and she can see it with her very own eyes. It's the way my girl is about, pretty much, everything.

You sly dog, I knew that "e-mail" about Alla & Jeffery would get you ahead of us! Good for you Kirk!

Hehe, I was waiting for that.

Have you set a date for when she will come to the states? We're not sure how long after her interview she's going to come out...after Kevin's debacle I'm pretty gun shy about making any definite plans now.

[visaveteran1 33]

Mox---great news! Just two months from today.

[mox 298]

Mox---great news! Just two months from today.

And dammit...after all this waiting and Waiting and WAITING...AGGHHH!!!! It's not enough time!!!!

So I'm trying to put together a schedule for her trip to Moscow. Anyone know if the train runs from Moscow to Yoshkar-Ola in the afternoon/evening? I'm trying to decide if I should have her leave Moscow in the afternoon of her interview, or if she should stay until the next day.

Edited March 14, 2008 by mox

[visaveteran1 33]

Kevin's dilemma scared me a bit too. No plans after the interview have been made. However, Alla would not agree anyway. Last time we spoke, I was tossing some wedding ideas at her and I got, "Jeffery... Did Embassy agree to make visa without me? We will have this talk after I have visa." At minimum, school has to finish. I can safely say, no talk will be had about departure until she has her visa in her hands and she can see it with her very own eyes. It's the way my girl is about, pretty much, everything.

You sly dog, I knew that "e-mail" about Alla & Jeffery would get you ahead of us! Good for you Kirk!

Hehe, I was waiting for that.

Have you set a date for when she will come to the states? We're not sure how long after her interview she's going to come out...after Kevin's debacle I'm pretty gun shy about making any definite plans now.

Yes...my wife likes to say: "step-by-step." Meaning let's not get ahead of ourselves.

We decided long ago that Nadia will go to Moscow for the interview and return home to put things in order, say goodbye to family and friends and pack her belongings, etc. It's risky to book a flight around the interview date as we saw with Kevin's near 2 week delay. That's why the state dept. advises against booking a flight prior to the interview. And, obviously, to buy a ticket on short notice would cost a lot more than booking it weeks in advance. And it would get VERY expensive staying in Moscow for a long delay...plus rescheduling flights usually costs about $200 a pop for changes.

Because Nadia will use the train to get to and from Moscow, the travel costs are only a few hundred dollars versus the $600 plus to fly. So there are not many incentives to fly to the USA right after the interview. There's another travel issue as well. Nadia is uncomfortable going to unfamiliar airports, so she wants a direct flight from Moscow to the USA. This can be done but any delays throws that option out the window.

I feel torn about having her fly over to the USA alone. Part of me says i ought to escort her to the USA but the costs and the difficulty I have with long flights is a major issue. Until I actually know her interview date I can delay that decision but it's an open question right now.

[mox 298]

Yours and Nadia's thinking is very sound, sc. I don't think we ever even considered having her go straight from Moscow to the states. As you say, there's a lot to do...packing, saying goodbye to friends and family, etc. She'll go home to wait for the visa to be delivered.

I'm gonna go back and do a search on some of the older threads, but does anyone have recommendations on a travel agency I can purchase train tickets through without paying a huge premium? I know I could just have Nadya do it, but quite frankly I'm having a hard enough time getting that girl to go get her police reports, so I'd like to take care of as much as I can from this end.

[NavarreMan 10]

Instead of going out to the bar to get a beer, why don't you stay at home and watch Lifetime you bumbling Mary. You could sit there in your housecoat and furry pink slippers, paint your nails and listen to some Sarah McLachlan while sipping on white zinfandel you Nancy boy.

Just kidding man. I know those tears and the getting choked up were all side effects of the stress relief of getting through the VJ process, not from being all "mushy and stuff" inside.

Congrats! Won't be too long now.... then you can cry about your interview date you sissy!

Just loves Slim's humor. My kinda guy! Mox, welcome to the downhill slide. I called Tanya and woke her up with the news when we were approved. Kevin & Natasha just got their visa's in Moscow and will be on the plane home on the 18th (last word I heard on it). Tanya interviews on 4/3 and you guys should be shortly after that. It will all happen fast now.

I will raise a glass or two tonight and drink to your health and good fortune.

Cheers

Bill

[mox 298]

Just loves Slim's humor. My kinda guy! Mox, welcome to the downhill slide. I called Tanya and woke her up with the news when we were approved.

LOL...I first read this as "I called Tanya and woke her up with the news that you were approved." I was thinking, wow...I had no idea I was so popular. I wonder if Tanya jumped up and ran down the halls of her apartment complex yelling "mox has been approved!! mox has been approved!!"

Then I re-read it and realized I am not, in fact, the center of your universe. *sigh*

Kevin & Natasha just got their visa's in Moscow and will be on the plane home on the 18th (last word I heard on it). Tanya interviews on 4/3 and you guys should be shortly after that. It will all happen fast now.

Our interview is May 14th, woo!

I will raise a glass or two tonight and drink to your health and good fortune.

Same here. "ZA...er...health and good fortune!"

[NavarreMan 10]

Yours and Nadia's thinking is very sound, sc. I don't think we ever even considered having her go straight from Moscow to the states. As you say, there's a lot to do...packing, saying goodbye to friends and family, etc. She'll go home to wait for the visa to be delivered.

I'm gonna go back and do a search on some of the older threads, but does anyone have recommendations on a travel agency I can purchase train tickets through without paying a huge premium? I know I could just have Nadya do it, but quite frankly I'm having a hard enough time getting that girl to go get her police reports, so I'd like to take care of as much as I can from this end.

Mox,

Check this guy out. He is in New York and helped me get my Russia visa on very short notice. He seems on the up-n-up and was very helpful.

Dan Ikonsky Travel

732-277-7428

718-227-6245

877-541-6460

[slim 1,525]

I feel torn about having her fly over to the USA alone. Part of me says i ought to escort her to the USA

Stop. She's a big girl. Give her some time to say goodbye to everyone and get packed and ready for her new life. Make sure she has everything she needs for the trip and good instructions and backup plans, etc., and then let her go it alone.

Plain and simple, if she can't make it to the USA without your help, she's not going to make it in the USA without your help.

I know we all want to be there to help her along; I know I sure did. But, there are certain things that they need to be responsible for and do themselves. Police reports too, mox! I felt like I had to do everything from this end and "do my part to help out" but then it hit me... what is she doing? She's agreeing to come here. That's it.

Let her do some of the work! Nay, make her do some of the work. If you're setting the precedent now that you're going to do everything, once she's here and once you're married, you're still going to be doing everything. (You'll be doing it anyway, but at least some of it will be "her idea.") Good luck guys, and remember, these girls take care of themselves every day just fine without us. That day (or three!) that she's coming to the USA should be no different.

[mox 298]

Stop. She's a big girl. Give her some time to say goodbye to everyone and get packed and ready for her new life. Make sure she has everything she needs for the trip and good instructions and backup plans, etc., and then let her go it alone.

Wow...we actually agree here, slim.

In other news, 7th seal broken, apocalypse officially underway.

[Kazan' Tiger 1]

I always found the tickets bought right at the station to be the cheapest. That's what I will be doing for Alla. Think Nadya will go there if you sent her the cash?

Yours and Nadia's thinking is very sound, sc. I don't think we ever even considered having her go straight from Moscow to the states. As you say, there's a lot to do...packing, saying goodbye to friends and family, etc. She'll go home to wait for the visa to be delivered.

I'm gonna go back and do a search on some of the older threads, but does anyone have recommendations on a travel agency I can purchase train tickets through without paying a huge premium? I know I could just have Nadya do it, but quite frankly I'm having a hard enough time getting that girl to go get her police reports, so I'd like to take care of as much as I can from this end.

[slim 1,525]

In other news, 7th seal broken, apocalypse officially underway.

Being totally serious, I could actually see the apocalypse happening in our lifetime.

[mox 298]

I always found the tickets bought right at the station to be the cheapest. That's what I will be doing for Alla. Think Nadya will go there if you sent her the cash?

I think there's about a 30% chance she'll buy shoes with the money and then get after me for not giving her enough money for the train ticket.

Actually the only hesitation I have is that I have heard these trains can sell out. Given her proclivity towards procrastination, I'd hate for it to become an issue.

Being totally serious, I could actually see the apocalypse happening in our lifetime.

Well, someone's been saying that same thing for about the last 30,000 years. Someone's bound to be right someday.

[slim 1,525]

Well, someone's been saying that same thing for about the last 30,000 years. Someone's bound to be right someday.

And that's why I'm getting ready. I've got my tin-foil hat on, my granola and bottled water, and my bomb shelter in the back yard.

Nah. Nothing that serious. Just some kevlar and a few extra MREs.

What gets me though is the fight is supposed to be "post-rapture" and for some reason, I don't think I'm going to just "disappear" when the trumpet sounds. Either way though, what's the use of surviving the apocalypse if there's no more pie?