Ukrainian Couples... What did you bring?

[Chris Knouse 3]

This is primarily for the Ukrainian couples out there, but anyone can shed some light on this if they want to share.

What did your fiancee bring when they came to the USA?

- Did they ship things before coming over?

-- any suggestions?

- Cars, clothes, dishes?

I have everything my Fiancee and her son will ever need ( other than me ) so I am unsure what she should bring.

[cranehand 0]

She will be bringing 4 suitcase's full of SHOES!!!!!!!!!!!!! LOL

[cranehand 0]

But seriously,

We talked about shipping some of her posessions over but after doing some more research we saw that sometimes these packages can be held up in customs for weeks even months at a time. It can also be somewhat expensive. We decided that when I go over for the interview I would pack very light, and bring 5-6 empty bags for her to pack her very favorite belongings. The other things could wait until our return trip for our first visit as husband and wife

With each of us able to have 1 cary-on and one personal item and each of us having 2 checked bags each @ 23 kilos each, we figured we could get a good amount of her belongings over that way. 50 Euro for third checked bag and 100 Euro for every bag after that, this could also be expensive but she bought a digital scale and the weights will be checked even before we get to Borispill.

Car in Ukraine? sell it. Dishes? Not sure but if they are precious to her I wouldn't risk shipping or packing in bags. Maybe leave with mother and have them around when you two have your own Dacha somewhere in Yalta

Good luck

[payxibka 10,045]

Not a K-1 fiance(e) visa topic.... moving thread

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

This is primarily for the Ukrainian couples out there, but anyone can shed some light on this if they want to share.

What did your fiancee bring when they came to the USA?

- Did they ship things before coming over?

-- any suggestions?

- Cars, clothes, dishes?

I have everything my Fiancee and her son will ever need ( other than me ) so I am unsure what she should bring.

I was traveling to Ukraine a lot and brought back a suitcase full of off season clothes each time. We shipped some books, some kitchen utensils she could not live wthou tand left the rest. we have a flat in Donetsk so a lot of stuff is still there.

No cars involved. We left all the dishes there

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

She will be bringing 4 suitcase's full of SHOES!!!!!!!!!!!!! LOL

she will be uspset she bought so many shoes in Ukraine when she sees how cheap they are here

[cranehand 0]

she will be uspset she bought so many shoes in Ukraine when she sees how cheap they are here

That's what I keep telling her But hey, whatever makes her happy

[payxibka 10,045]

she will be uspset she bought so many shoes in Ukraine when she sees how cheap they are here

but all the shoes here in the USA are made in China and they are "horrible"

[tom&tanya 48]

Tanya is bringing one suitcase. photos, clothes, (I'm sure 75% of this suitcase is shoes). The rest of her stuff is now at Mom's house and we will bring some of it back as time goes by in our future visits.

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

but all the shoes here in the USA are made in China and they are "horrible"

True enough. And Alla does not compare quality because she doesn't have to. Sure, the shoes she paid $300 for in Ukraine are better quality than the shoes she paid $22 for here, no doubt. But at that price how many times can she buy them?

She also finds she can buy shoes for certain clothes for example, and only wear them occasionally with that dress, for example. She no longer has to consider her shoes when buying a dress, she will just get a pair of shoes to go with it at Marshalls for $19. This way the shoes will "last" just as long, at least to her way of thinking. True it is not "apples to apples" but it is "shoes to shoes". Alla is just thrilled with the shoes and clothes she gets here, and the price she pays.

She had 8 pairs of shoes in Ukraine and her mother told her not to show me because it would "scare me off" to see such extravagance! I think now she has 8 pairs of shoes...in her car!

[payxibka 10,045]

True enough. And Alla does not compare quality because she doesn't have to. Sure, the shoes she paid $300 for in Ukraine are better quality than the shoes she paid $22 for here, no doubt. But at that price how many times can she buy them?

She also finds she can buy shoes for certain clothes for example, and only wear them occasionally with that dress, for example. She no longer has to consider her shoes when buying a dress, she will just get a pair of shoes to go with it at Marshalls for $19. This way the shoes will "last" just as long, at least to her way of thinking. True it is not "apples to apples" but it is "shoes to shoes". Alla is just thrilled with the shoes and clothes she gets here, and the price she pays.

She had 8 pairs of shoes in Ukraine and her mother told her not to show me because it would "scare me off" to see such extravagance! I think now she has 8 pairs of shoes...in her car!

Our wives are very opposite.... mine would rather have less with more quality, than to have more that is just disposable....

[eekee 182]

America also has the advantages of ebay and outlet malls and loehmann's and so on. Those 22$ shoes at Marshalls may well be equivalent to the 300$ shoes in Ukraine, just marked down heavily.

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

America also has the advantages of ebay and outlet malls and loehmann's and so on. Those 22$ shoes at Marshalls may well be equivalent to the 300$ shoes in Ukraine, just marked down heavily.

I am not sure if they are equal to $300 shoes in Ukraine, maybe, but they are better than $22 would indicate because, yes, they are heavily marked down. Alla loves Marshalls and TK Maxx just for that reason. She also prowls Macy's for huge discounts/sales.

Alla is not so different than your wife, Pay. In Ukraine, where shoes are just expensive, she would rather pay a little more, even 50% more, and get good quality that would last a long time. She would get her shoes repaired many times...also her purses, handbag straps, etc. As I said, she had only 8 pairs of shoes, including two pairs of boots. She has had a couple pair of shoess repaired here, but thinks the cost is ridiculous, compared to Ukraine (that is where we make up for low cost shoes)

The first winter Pasha was here, his down coat for which Alla paid more than $300 had a broken zipper. We took it to a repair shop. $50 to repair the zipper but a NEW Colombia coat which has proven to be even warmer and more useful was $79! She just brings a LOT of clothes to her friends, who think she is about crazy ut tells them.."No kidding, this stuff is almost FREE in the USA" Before leaving this last time she bought a suitcase full of clothes for children for her friend with a 2 year old, I think it is enough clothes to last until the kid is at least 6. All different sizes. she was buying things on discount racks for 50 cents or $1...even up to $2 or $3 for some things like jeans.

But for the OP who asked...

One of things she missed and brought back on her first return trip, was a nice set of enamelware pots which she prefers for cooking. They are really nice and while they were not cheap in Ukraine, they would be very expensive here and probably available only in a specialty kitchen shop. Each time she, or we, go to Ukraine we try to bring there the things that are cheap here and return with a suitcase full of what is cheap there....contact lenses, for example.

So assess what she has, what she needs, what is cheap here. The shipping cost for some clothes for example, could easily exceed the cost to replace them here. She can alwasy bring an extra suitcase each time she visits. Some of our stuff from Ukraine usually trickles back on each visit, but not so much.

[payxibka 10,045]

Alla is not so different than your wife, Pay.

Maybe yes, maybe no.... My wife does like TJ Maxx (not TK Maxx), Marshall's and DSW... so in this regard they are the similar. However, my wife would NEVER have eight pairs of shoes, in her car....

[Martyshk 137]

Maybe yes, maybe no.... My wife does like TJ Maxx (not TK Maxx), Marshall's and DSW... so in this regard they are the similar. However, my wife would NEVER have eight pairs of shoes, in her car....

DSW has wide selection of shoes. From cheap to quite expensive and from ####### to good quality. Of course there's the clearance isle there...

My wife likes DSW quite a lot. She says it's the only store so far besides the big department stores where she saw decent shoes for a decent price. (and I tend to agree with her on that)