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| Juarez, Mexico |  Review on January 29, 2015: |
TomSD
Rating:  | Review Topic: K1 Visa
This is a continuation of my previoius review. Today my partner was approved, yeah! We arrived at the sala de espera (waiting room) about 30 minutes before the scheduled time for the interview, meaning we arrived at 6 45 for a 7 15 apptmnt. I recommend that you get there 30 minutes early but no more than 30 minutes. Any earlier than 30 minutes and you just have to wait outside or at the back of the room. While in the sala de espera, the consulate staff conducted a quick review to verify that he really did have an apptmnt and then he sat in the waiting room for 45 minutes. Then he along with a good sized group all went to another building where they check you in again, verifying that you have all of your documents, including your sealed medical report. It is true that you are not supposed to take the CD you received at the medical exam. So leave it along with your cell phone and keys, etc. in your hotel room or with your fiance or friend. Once inside for the interview, there is a bit more waiting and then the interview. In our case, the interviewer asked questions about the relationship to confirm that it is real, asked if he had been married before or if he had any children and also asked about any history of drug use and piercings and tatoos. He also asked about prior arrests which my partner did not have any. The interviewer did not ask for a police report. All in all, it went well and my partner felt it was all done with respect. He was out fairly quickly, in about an hour and one half.
Other people have commented on the hotels where they have stayed. We stayed at the Conquistador where you can get really good rates if you book in advance, like under $50 per night and that includes a decent breakfast. This week, the breakfast has not varied by much and it is not gourmet, but acceptable. It includes scrambled eggs, chilaquiles, beans, bread, coffee, orange juice from concentrate, and a couple of other items. The hotel staff are very nice and fixed very quickly a few items that were not right in our room. Also, it is a short walk to the clinics and the Consulate, although you have to be careful crossing the arterial because of the heavy traffic. But I doubt that you can find anything better for the price.
We had a free day and went to the historic center of Juarez to visit the Cathedral and a nice museum about the Revolution in the Frontier. We took a bus that was in sad shape but it was cheap, only 6 pesos per person. On the way, we got a nice photo from the bus of the famous monument that looks like a big X, it is called the Monumento a la Mexicanidad. Central Juarez is not real pretty but it is worth a trip to see the Cathedral, the central square and especially the museum, Museo de la Revolucion en la Frontera. And it is very safe to travel like this in Juarez. We were back before dark and never felt unsafe at all. And there is a big shopping mall very close to the consulate and is great for going to the movies (some with English subtitles) and for eating out or shopping. It is called Las Missiones.
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Consulate / USCIS Member Review #16057