MrsAmera

They are chanting "Our King, our King, he'll always be our King".

Translated by my wife, who's mother tongue is Dharija (Moroccan dialect Arabic) and was born in Fes, where we still live. There's no unrest here.

Curious why you would sign up to an internet site for US visas only to state something that is untrue and not related to a visa. This is your only post... troll.

what oldahmed said - my husband - native darija speaker was the one who translated it.

msheesha - it took me a long time to find something that he found interesting enough to read. What I found he liked were books by Moroccan authors. He's read two books by Leila Lalami (The Secret Son and Hope and Other Dangerous Pursuits), The Sheltering Sky by Paul Bowles (that one took a little more effort to get into). Right now he's reading A Life Full of Holes: A Novel Recorded and Translated by Paul Bowles by Driss ben Hamed Charhadi. Although they are in English I think he can relate to the places, some of the language and stories so it's easier to grasp.

Most universities do offer ESL classes targeted just on pronunciation/ speech. My husband has been taking ESL classes for awhile now and has started actual university classes this semester. Part of it I think is really just time. I noticed that the more he is reading, the faster his vocabulary is improving. I work hard to find him books that he will think are interesting.

Yes there was also something going on in Fez though not clear if they are related. Something is supposedly slated for Feb 27th..

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?sk=group_178263625546111

and some pictures/video from Tangier:

http://www.tanja24.com/news767.html

From Fez:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lzw1EAn4NS0

They are chanting; "Ben Ali left and the king is uneasy."

Have been talking with a lot of activist friends who say that Moroccans generally are not interested in overthrowing the king but would like changes.

Sofiyya has given some great advice. Will it be a problem with the consulate - hard to know but there's a good chance it will come up. If they investigate further, such as a home visit, and the boys family states their dislike of the relationship, that could be a problem certainly. Religious differences - yea that will probably come up too. The fact that you have children from a prev. relationship - yup that will come up too.

There are a lot of stories on here, in this scenario...sadly very few pan out long term. Doesn't mean yours won't but I encourage you to really take a hard look at things. I'm sure he's a sweetheart, he's a nice guy. I'm 26 and honestly, even if he was a sweetie I would really really really have a hard time with a 22 year old as a partner. My husband and I met when I was 19 and he 20, we married at 20 and 21. Getting the visa will be the smallest hurdle. When/if he comes here will be the real challenge and one I encourage you to think about without blinders.

I had lived on my own, paid my own bills, had my own job etc when my husband came. He had no clue how to do any of these things, barely spoke the language and had never left home. I didn't get a partner. It took a long time for him to adjust to life in the US and I know that a big part of that was his age. He just hadn't had to do any of those things yet. It might not seem like a big deal now, but down the road rest assured it will be WAY bigger than what you're worried about now. I'm not saying these things to be mean to you - but I've been there.

We have now been together for 6 years - married for 5. If god forbid something ever happened and I was single...there is not a chance in he*** I would do this process again.

Has anyone had a down right denial of an IR1/CR1 after it was returned to DOS? I would love to talk to someone as soon as possible about this (for a friend).

Not in a mosque however. I believe that most imams do require you to have the proper paperwork to do it in a mosque.

Not in a mosque however. I believe that most imams do require you to have the proper paperwork to do it in a mosque.

Youssef was automatically registered. I guess the appointment will be your best bet. If not I would plead ignorance in that you understood it would be done, assumed it was and hope they understand?

If you have legally changed your last name, that is what should be listed on the passport. You could run into problems with immigration folks - especially now that they have made a lot of changes to laws regarding names on airline tickets. If you wanted to be 100% safe - get an expedited new passport. Otherwise go with one of the other suggestions, of carrying a marriage cert, etc.

So true about how fast the time goes! We're at 6 years together. Can't wait to see your little girl Kelz!

One other issue that might come up - just to prepare you for this possibility - is that even though it may be traditional to marry a cousin there..it's not here. The CO may look at your relationship as a way to get a family member into the US and not as a valid fiance relationship. Without pictures of the two of you it may compound this. You will need to provide as much evidence as you possibly can to show them that it is an actual relationship and not just a means for your fiance to enter the US.

One other issue that might come up - just to prepare you for this possibility - is that even though it may be traditional to marry a cousin there..it's not here. The CO may look at your relationship as a way to get a family member into the US and not as a valid fiance relationship. Without pictures of the two of you it may compound this. You will need to provide as much evidence as you possibly can to show them that it is an actual relationship and not just a means for your fiance to enter the US.

I think that explaining the situation will help to some degree however I know with many petitions photos are vital. But if you don't have them, you don't have them. I would provide as much other proof as possible that can show you did meet. Maybe letters from your parents and his parents? Explaining in the situation?

Haha mine says "this is the suck" he also said he thinks hell might be WI in winter lol

Good luck getting ahold of someone - they have a very limited time frame of being open. They are worthless in my opinion lol

Also most halal meat has the blood drained - no sitting blood - longer lasting/fresher meat. IMO

It's not illegal for Moroccans to change dirhams to dollars - it's illegal to send money out of Morocco. You "Might" be able to send USD or Euros to the US but def. not dirham. As others have said it's very difficult to send money out of Morocco.

Send it to me? LOL. Folded up on the end of a bed is how I would have it - like in a long rectangle.

Nope that steamer doesn't have a lid. My couscous steamer from Morocco doesn't have a lid either. I think if it did have a lid the couscous would end up a lot more wet than it's supposed to be.

Ever since discovering clay couscous steamers I've decided to get this one;

http://www.claycoyote.com/index.cfm/Cous-Cous-Steamer-and-Colander/n/fuseaction/product.display/product_id/42/

Can't wait to try it! I think it will have less sticking (an issue with metal steamers). Will let you know how it turns out!

I'm sure this has been discussed ad nauseum in the past, but I wasn't a part of the convo. I'll also try to do a search, but has anyone found a good couscous steamer? Preferrably one that does well with the couscous that is already formed? (i.e. - I'm not making the couscous myself by hand but buying it from the store, if that makes sense).

Thanks

really a clay couscous steamer?? I have to do some research on this - i've never seen one!!

I've used both a steamer insert and a couscousierre. The steamer will leave your couscous a little more wet than the couscousierre. I'm afraid I can't recommend a brand in the US as mine came from Morocco.

I guess it depends. At my husbands ceremony there were about 24 people being sworn in. There was one mother with her two young children (maybe 5 and 3?) and they were able to sit with their mother. Another husband and wife were there with a young baby. The baby sat with the mother but I think that had the man been there alone with the baby it would have been ok. Call the courthouse and find out. I think that the whole thing took about 1 hour for us.

I don't understand why it's an issue? Either way you would be able to go to the wedding - or is it about money? If the oath is scheduled while you're gone make sure a family or friend is getting your mail and send back the letter to postpone (we had to do this 3x's while my husband was out of the country this summer). The interview can also be rescheduled for this reason. To get a US passport you can expedite if needed. Some have same day and some next day. We expedited my son's passport applying on a Wednesday and had it via Priority mail Friday.

The American media unfortunately is a lot more censored than other news. Watch the nightly news in Europe and you'll find them reporting much more freely and critically of what is going on I wish it were more transparent and less $$ driven!