Colombia Club

[Mike and Adriana 0]

Same for me, JK. I live in Florida, so there are plenty of Spanish speaker around. So, while my wife is learning more English (she learned some in Bogota, but it's another thing to use what she learned here), she can at least get by. But I don't want her to "get by" forever. I want her to assimilate, including learning the language at a conversational level. It's tough, but she has finally realized the importance and has been working hard - she wants to work and I told her that was fine, but she would not be able to find a decent job (or go back to school) until her English was much better. That really motivated her.

I often wonder how Colombianas/os who move to other parts of the country make out. My wife has a friend in rural North Carolina. I know a guy who married a Colombiana who lives in Arkansas. I assume there are not a whole lot of Latinas in those places, but maybe that's not true any more.

Interesting,

Mike

PS - For all of you K-1 and K-3 folks....just a warning as you look forward to the future...your husband/wife will be expected to speak English at the AOS interview. If he/she cannot converse with the official in English, YOU must provide a translator.

i'm fortunate to live in an area where there are very few latinos so my wife will learn much faster than if i lived in or near a hispanic community. i'm happy that my wife really wants to learn and has been practicing a lot, to the point of being able to answer my questions in very good english, if i ask them slowly of course. i grew up in jackson heights ny and anyone who knows this area knows that it has a large latino community. one of the problems with arriving to an area like this is that people get too comfortable and don't feel a need to learn english and learn it well. i have seen countless numbers of people live here for 20 years and speak like they just arrived yesterday. unless they are self motivated or pushed by someone, what ever people pick up is just enough to get by but certainly not enough to be considered fluent. this is a problem that i want my wife to avoid falling into and she knows that the first 2 years are crucial to learning. just like you guys, i make sure to point out the universal mistakes made by latinos, like when "you" is pronounced "jew". i know that when we have kids, they will speak, read and write both languages perfectly.

JK

[HAL 9000 96]

Lucky me I can translate any new questions that may arise at the AOS interview.

[Mike and Adriana 0]

This is actually a good question to ask experienced folks on the AOS forum. Since the petitioner (husband/wife) is required to be there for the interview and, thus, is a party to the interview, can he/she also serve as translator for the beneficiary (wife/husband)? Would seem to me that it would make misleading/doctored/fradulent responses easy IF the U.S. official did not speak Spanish and, thus, had no idea what your wife/husband said and if you really translated it accurately.

Since my Spanish is what I'd call "functional" and my wife will be far from fluent, I'll be bringing a translator - don't want to risk screwing something up and I don't think the official would be amused if I broke out my dictionary or translator program in the middle of an interview if I did not remember a noun or verb!

Lucky me I can translate any new questions that may arise at the AOS interview.

[lucho562 0]

If anyone is wondering what food is available at the embassy? The below link is the embassys cafeteria menu. I do not see carimañolas or deditos

http://bogota.usembassy.gov/wwwsccafemenu.shtml

[Mononoke28 135]

If anyone is wondering what food is available at the embassy? The below link is the embassys cafeteria menu. I do not see carimañolas or deditos

http://bogota.usembassy.gov/wwwsccafemenu.shtml

What's a carimañola?

[lucho562 0]

I maybe off on the spelling. It is made out of yuca, kind of like an enpanada. You grind up the yuca and use like the masa that is used for enpanadas. Real good!!!!

[HAL 9000 96]

This is actually a good question to ask experienced folks on the AOS forum. Since the petitioner (husband/wife) is required to be there for the interview and, thus, is a party to the interview, can he/she also serve as translator for the beneficiary (wife/husband)? Would seem to me that it would make misleading/doctored/fradulent responses easy IF the U.S. official did not speak Spanish and, thus, had no idea what your wife/husband said and if you really translated it accurately.

Since my Spanish is what I'd call "functional" and my wife will be far from fluent, I'll be bringing a translator - don't want to risk screwing something up and I don't think the official would be amused if I broke out my dictionary or translator program in the middle of an interview if I did not remember a noun or verb!

Lucky me I can translate any new questions that may arise at the AOS interview.

Well true in thinking of different service centers around the country... I am aware that there are many more Spanish speaking BCIS officers in, say, Miami, than in Chicago- my local office... but I have been inside the Chicago office and have heard officials there speaking Spanish even amongst themselves. I am not worried about that aspect of the AOS interview.

[HAL 9000 96]

I maybe off on the spelling. It is made out of yuca, kind of like an enpanada. You grind up the yuca and use like the masa that is used for enpanadas. Real good!!!!

I would caution against dining at the cafeteria there... the capuccino, however... was pretty darn decent.

We basically ate a good breakfast at 5 AM and then left for the Embassy that morning, and thusly did not need mucho more than a small coffee. You'll be focused more likely on the event at hand.

[Mike and Adriana 0]

Our office is in Orlando...so I am sure there are plenty of Spanish speakers. However, two questions come to mind:

1) What if the officer interviewing your wife does not speak Spanish (at all or at least not fluently)? Will they switch you to another person?

2) Are the officers required to conduct the interview in English, even if they speak Spanish?

Everyone can do as they wish, but since I do not know the answer to these questions, I'm bringing a translator.

Well true in thinking of different service centers around the country... I am aware that there are many more Spanish speaking BCIS officers in, say, Miami, than in Chicago- my local office... but I have been inside the Chicago office and have heard officials there speaking Spanish even amongst themselves. I am not worried about that aspect of the AOS interview.

[jediknight 0]

carimañola and deditos are typical foods en la costa. kind of like an empanada, the carimañola i like has queso in it and so do the deditos which are rolled dough that´s fried and look like "fingers".

JK

[Mononoke28 135]

Ooooooooooooooooh, that sounds so good. So yeah Lucho, I can't believe they don't have any carimañolas!!! Cheap #$%@!!

Anyway, when we go (if I decide to go to the interview, I'm at such odds with that, all because of the stupid printer "problem" they seem to have) we'll do the same, eat a big breakfast, then have a snack at the embassy and go out and celebrate with a big, thick and juicy churrasco when we get approved. Yuuuummy!!

Edited June 19, 2007 by Mononoke28

[HAL 9000 96]

THAT'S the Attitude!!!

Check out the restaurants around Parque de la 93... yuummm...

[paisita411 0]

Its been a long time since I posted here, but I had to share the news with all of you:

THIS IS UNBELIEVABLE!!!

I just got home from visiting my husband in Medellin last night (6/17/07) and of course, today I'm sitting at work completely bummed out because although we had a wonderful time together, everytime someone asks me how my trip was I want to say "TERRIBLE!! I'm here and he's there and we don't know when he's coming!!!" Its taking all my strenght not to cry.

Well....my cell phone rings..ID UNAVAILABLE...I'm so busy that I hesitate to answer b/c its probably a bill collector (ha ha ha), but I think, sometimes when the hubby calls it says the same thing...so I answered......

"This is the vice-consul from the US Embassy in Bogota..." I almost fell out of my chair! "We have your husband's application under administrative review and want to offer you another opportunity to interview in Bogota" The lady is as nice and polite as she can be, she tells me that the police certificate and medical examsa are all valid and that she only needs me to send her an updated I-864 with this year's tax return and then she says "how SOON DO YOU WANT THE INTERVEIW?" (YESTERDAY, I want to scream!!!) She says that the embassy "understands that long distance relationships are difficult and that they have to be very carefull in order to prevent marriage fraud" (she was almost apologizing to me)...then she says to me...."do you remember that I was the one that interviewed you and your husband in Februrary?" I SURE DID! So with that I started to explain away some of the concerns she raised at the interveiw and she said "let's not revisit the interview, I'm going to give you the opporutnity to have another interview with another officer and to provide additional evidence" I told her that I just got home from Colombia last night and she said "that's great! that will be very beneficial to proving the validity of your marriage" She gave me her email addres and asked me to email her with the dates I'm available to travel to Bogota with my husband and promised to get back to me this week with an interview date!!!!

I don't know if this was prompted by my constant pestering of my congressman (Sentator Saxby Chamblis, GA), incestant prayers to the Almighty or what, but I thank God first for this unbelievable turn of events and secondly to the support from the VJ community!

I have a meeting with my boss today to formally request the time off (I'm out of vacation days and just got home yesterday!) and as soon as I get the OK at work, I'm emailing her with my availability for the appointment!!!!!!! It looks like we can have an interview in less than a month!!!

Thank you to everyone in the Colombia Club and on VJ for your prayers, support and advice....I'll keep you informed of our progress!!!

Dre

[HAL 9000 96]

DEAR GOD I hope it gets resolved quickly, OskaryAndrea!!!

[jediknight 0]

andrea, that's great news!! i hope that you won't have any problems getting the time off from work and can fly down soon. it was a good thing you answered that call. all of us have read your story and wish you the best. thank God for this second opportunity. let us know how things develope.

JK