Colombia Club

[Mononoke28 135]

Whaaaaaaat???!!! Oh my gosh! What surprise.

Let me be the first one to congratulate you both!!!

I totally understand about having to do it, the price hike is way too much, I certainly can't afford it with all the fees I've already paid and every other expense. My "wedding" wasn't special either and we keep talking about having a real wedding some day. Who knows if that will happen.

Anyway... CONGRATS LUCHO!!!!

Diana

[buck501 0]

I think this is leading to good info for those reading this and just beginning the visa journey.................it is expensive. If at all possible think about this before. I know "love happens". But to get into this and then not be able to complete the process because of lack of funds would be devastaing. This is not the same as having a relationship in your own country. I hired a lawyer........Holmes & Lolly........$2900.00, include AOS for her and her son. At this point in time I could have done it all myself. When counting the total cost to date over the last 1.5 years, including visits, lawyer, translations I am up over $18k in out of pocket expense and she is not here yet. I realize I have spent more then many and knowing now what I do, I could get by for much less. It is all relative to your income. I am about tapped out. What I am saying is, it is expensive. Know that going in and plan ahead. Figure out ways to keep cost a minimum. I have had to pretty much save every penny of my disposable income, setting aside some of the pleasures in life I used to enjoy in hopes of a lifetime of having my love here with me. It has been and I hope it will be worth every penny. Good luck to all.

[lucho562 0]

On top of the $ is what's most important when planning a wedding....TIME. When applying for a K1 visa, you do not have the time to plan your wedding because you will never know exactly when and if your fiance will be able to travel to USA. We all know that it takes about 1 year in advance to plan a wedding. Plus its not really fair for the fiance's family if they are all in Colombia. To have a 1 sided wedding is not too great. I'm looking to having the ceremony in Colombia. It is much easier to have my family members travel to Colombia than her's coming to USA. Yes, we will be able to plan a nice ceremony to get married next year, but it is not the same because in the back of your mind you think "technically we are already married". So it sucks. This is the downfall with the K1 visa. However the most important is that we are together. Sorry for rambling on, but i'm

[parkpapa 0]

Hello all!

We are tying the knot today....in attempts to beat the USCIS price hike deadline. However I am happy that we are getting married however it's not what we really wanted...civil marriage. Next year we will have a 'real' wedding, the whole 9 yards, gown, tux, partying, etc.

Wow, Lucho!! All the best to both of you.

[Mononoke28 135]

On top of the $ is what's most important when planning a wedding....TIME. When applying for a K1 visa, you do not have the time to plan your wedding because you will never know exactly when and if your fiance will be able to travel to USA. We all know that it takes about 1 year in advance to plan a wedding. Plus its not really fair for the fiance's family if they are all in Colombia. To have a 1 sided wedding is not too great. I'm looking to having the ceremony in Colombia. It is much easier to have my family members travel to Colombia than her's coming to USA. Yes, we will be able to plan a nice ceremony to get married next year, but it is not the same because in the back of your mind you think "technically we are already married". So it sucks. This is the downfall with the K1 visa. However the most important is that we are together. Sorry for rambling on, but i'm

I know what you mean, it's not the same. As much as you want to believe that a "real" ceremony is the "real" wedding, it's just not the same, you're already married. But we had a civil ceremony in Medellín at the Notary and I guess now we just have to plan the religious ceremony in Colombia. Bad part is the Catholic church makes everything so complicated to do anything over there, augh. PLUS, my husband is not even here so now we have to plan on when to go back and do it! Geez!

But regardless of that, you'll be married and there are so many wonderful things you can do in L.A. to compensate, just having a romantic dinner this weekend somewhere on the beach is plenty enough. I loooooooove L.A., wish I could live there again.

Diana

[Chester y Monica 2]

YES!!!!!!!!!!! We got our approval, visa on Wednesday. I wont say visa in hand until it is.

Im on a reallllyy slow connection so Ill give you details tomorrow when I get home.

lol

dre

Congratulations!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[paisita411 0]

Lucho...congratulations to both of you. I know exactly how you feel, we will have a REAL wedding sometime next summer, too.

Now...for the details...

Well, first of all Im ashamed to say that we got to the embassy 26 minutes late for our appointment. It was 7:26am and line 3 was empty!!! I asked the usher if we could go in and she said, no youll have to make another appointment. I showed her the email correspondence I had from the vice-consul and told her she was personally expecting us (which was the truth) and could she go in and ask her pleasssssssssssse. She agreed and 10 minutes later she let us in. IM SOOOO ASHAMED but we were up til 3am going over every document and question so yes, we overslept.

We went to booth #1 and the guy there was a PAISA (I hope by know weve established what this is) and since oscar and I are both Paisas, he was very nice to us. He asked me if this was our first interview, I said no, our 3rd. He asked me for the additional evidence and I pulled out our 3 ring binder busting at the seems and a 14 inch stack of 8.5 x 11 paper with all our IMs and he laughed and said, save that mountain of evidence for the consul when she calls you, it doesnt fit here and its obvious you did your homework.

About 45 min later they called us to booth 6 and we pulled out the stack again and put it on that ledge they have. The consul asked oscar about my trips to see him but he could barely understand her spanish so it over quick. She asked him if I was there, and I came to the phone. She says to me, do you know why we didnt issue your husband the visa last time? I say no. She says, well, the other CO that interviewed him speaks better spanish than me and he told her that after you were married you went on a 3 week motorcycle tour, but you said you left 3 days later, can you tell me why he told her that? I said, no, I cant speak for him but all I can say is that it is soooo nerve racking on this side of the glass that when she asked me several things I totally gave her the wrong dates and or information because I nervous and I think she just misunderstood his answer. The lady then has this paper in her hand and I though SHHHH((/&&, she is going to give me another denial, so I interrupt her and say, LISTEN I have every shred of evidence known to man here and I didnt fly on a $1500 for you to deny us based on the last interview. You have to review this evidence. SHe says, no, we are going to issue YOU your visa and hands me the paper and contines, but we just wanted you to know why you had this problem and why we made you come here again. She got up and walked away.

SO, we have our approval, but they were not happy about having to issue it. I dont care what they think, I just thank GOD for the approval. And a big huge thanks to Senator Saxby Chambliss of Georgia whos office was the driving force behind this success story. After that interview I know for sure that it was his intervention that caused them to issue us a 3rd interview and ultimately our visa, not a change of heart.

Thats the story guys. Im still in Bogota FREEZING my ### off. See you on the AOS side

I LOVE YOU GUYS

Dre

[OjosAzules 0]

I think the embassy knew that they would have collectively broken all our hearts if you didn't get the visa this time We're so happy you'll be joining us over on the next step of wild and crazy times aka AOS. Great thing about AOS is you do it from the same place, so no matter how annoying it is, you're together.

[jediknight 0]

lucho, one great thing about having your wedding in colombia is that you can have the wedding of your dreams for a tiny fraction of what is costs here. ours was a black tie affair at the prado with the ceremony at the inmaculada and it cost 1/10 of what it would have here..so enjoy it when the time comes.

JK

[TonyS 0]

Congrats Lucho!!!! Happy for ya Dre.....I understand about the Paisas now!!!!!! I joke with my wife because a singer in a restaurant in Bogota called me a Costeno. I tell her I must be from Cartegena!

[buck501 0]

Dre...............in all your post's about your denials I did not see a good reason for the denial. Now I am scared!!!!!!!! You two seem to be a perfect canidate for the visa. I am happy for you both!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I lit another fire under my sweeties hermosa culo tonight, she was beginning to slip back in to tranquility. LOL>LOL.

Augist 17th is comming up fast and slow. I want it to be over with. I love the fact that you faced oposition and over came it. You do have fortitude!!! I am impressed.

[lucho562 0]

Thanks everybody

Just got married....it's official, i'm off the market

I felt kind of bad getting married at the regristar/county clerk building. It was more funny than serious. The judge even scolded us for not taking it serious. I had told her that our real wedding will be next year, she replied, well its whats on the license is what counts, this is your real wedding. I replied, "A piece of paper doesnt mean much to us, the ceremony has much more value to us"

Hope she doesnt mess up our marriage certificate because of this. ooops

[glenn21 0]

CONGRATS TO DRE. SHE DEFINITELY DESERVES IT. I HOPE TO BE JOINING THE OLD-TIMERS ON THE AOS SIDE SOMEDAY SOON.

[lucho562 0]

Glenn,

If I may ask, why was your case put in a administrative process?

[buck501 0]

Very nice Luchco.............Married is married, I see that as just paper. I agree the ceramony is the biggie. We are planning to be married here in the US at a county court house. Then later after the AOS is complete we will go to Colombia and have a major blowout for her family and friends. My family could care less. I do have some freinds that will come down for the "real" ceramony. Congrats!!!