Michael_and_Julie

Kakatuwa cla

Hi! As far as i know, you do not need to retake the seminar. All you need to do is go to the Quirino office, tell them you need the sticker and that you already had the seminar last year and they will will give you a form. fill out the form they give you, and pay P400 for the replacement of your prism cert (if you had the seminar when you were still single) and return the filled out form and give them your passport.

Note: I think you do not need to pay the P400 if the name in your passport and the name in your cert is the same.

Hope that helps.

st. mary's is okay too. just bring the green certificate.

so i can get the sticker at st.mary's even i took the seminar at prism?

just the certificate? i dont need to bring the immigrant summary(original)?

Hi! My interview will be on June 3, 7am....

Good luck to all of us here.

Julie

Philippine senator angered by Alec Baldwin's joke

MANILA, Philippines (AP) - Actor Alec Baldwin's joke about getting a Filipino mail-order bride provoked a sharp response in the Philippines, with one senator saying Monday that the "30 Rock" star faces violence if he ever visits.

Baldwin, 51, who is divorced with a teenage daughter, said in a May 12 interview on "The Late Show" with David Letterman that he would love to have more children.

The Emmy-winning actor quipped that he was "thinking about getting a Filipino mail-order bride at this point ... or a Russian one."

Baldwin has been involved in a bitter dispute with his ex-wife, Oscar-winning actress Kim Basinger, over custody of their 13-year-old daughter, Ireland.

Philippine Sen. Ramon Revilla said Monday that Baldwin's comment was "insensitive and uncalled for" and an insult to millions of Filipinos.

He called the actor is "arrogant" and said he is apparently unaware that the Philippines has a law against mail-order brides.

"Let him try to come here in the Philippines and he'll see mayhem," Revilla said, using a local idiom that implies the speaker will personally administer a beating.

The senator himself is a former action-movie star who occasionally still appears on Philippine TV.

http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D9...;show_article=1

Hi. We also got stuck at the NVC. I dont think you or your fiance will get an email telling you that you can now schedule your interview. Its up to you or your fiancee to call the embassy or the call center to confirm if your papers are with them and if you are now eligible to schedule your interview.

My Guess-timate is that if you call this week your schedule would be between 2nd-3rd week of June....they usually give a lead time of 1 month. We called them to schedule our interview on the first week of this month and we got a first week interview for next month. You can always call them to check if they have an earlier appointment if your fiance has finished her medical early.

After you schedule your interview via the call center, they will immediately send you or your fiancee (whatever email address you gave them) a CONFIRMATION email of your schedule as shown by pRetTy_aNgeL. I think this is the only time we ever got an email from the embassy.

Hope this helps. Good luck and God Bless.

Julie

Hi, we have the same interview date. Maybe I will see you there. Attach ko dito yung forms na send ng lawyer namin for me to fill up. Online yan and yung pdf namin is updated kya di na ako nag handwriting para mafillup ang forms. Pwede rin daw handwriting yan sbi ng asawa ko kya lang mas formal and readable if computer written especially kung sa mga kagaya ko na pangit ang sulat. Wala pa rin ako natanggap na snail mail galing sa embassy and siguro kung mayroon man, 1 month pa bgo dumating yun and i will be done with the interview by then. Iba-iba kasi experience nila dito sa VJ, meron nakakatanggap ng snail mail, meron ding wala gaya natin. Pero nung tumawag ang husband ko sa callcenter to schedule my interview, meron akong natanggap na email confirmation nung schedule na na-set nya. Importante daw yun email confirmation ksi yun ang ipapakita sa guard sa embassy to prove na may schedule ka nga. Kung wala ka nataggap sa email, i think you better call them again to resend it or give them another email address.

Just read these guides:

http://manila.usembassy.gov/wwwh3219.html

http://manila.usembassy.gov/wwwfk3en.pdf

Good luck sa iyo and see you sa June 3. God Bless!

Julie

PS

Congrats sa cute baby nyo....

hello mga friends, gusto ko lang magtanong ulit about sa mga documents na kelangan iready. lapit na kasi interview kaya kelangan maayos ko na rin to lahat.. so eto tanong po tanong ko. Ang forms DS-156 and DS-157 ba pwede i fill-up by handwritten? or kelangan lang online siya? Wala kasi akong natanggap na forms from the mail kaya nagtataka ako kung bakit? meron ba dapat talaga akong matanggap? Pati nga confirmation letter for my interview wala rin e kahit sa email man lang, or di ko rin alam baka sa junk mail nasama e kadalasan dinidelete ko agad junk mails ko...in case kung nadelete ko man yun , ok lang ba na tumawas sa US embassy ulit para mag ask ng confirmation letter? Sana mga sis and bro masagot nyo tanong ko... salamat ng marami sa tulong...interview ko June 3, so l need your prayers guys...God bless everyone...and maraming salamat sa ano mang tulong in preparation to my interview.

DS156_English.pdf

DS156K.pdf

DS_157.pdf

Try the City Garden in Makati. That is always our first choice because its nice and very affordable. They have a rooftop pool that you can enjoy especially during these super hot days. And my husband always enjoyed the food there.

I can also recommend The Pan Pacific Hotel in Manila. I think its a 5 star hotel so it will be a bit pricey. Food there is expensive(the rooftop restaurant) but we always eat at the ground floor where they have a cafe just at the back of the hotel. And the sushi there is divine, super sarap.

The Sofitel is also very nice but expensive. They have the best service because its really what you paid for. But the security guards there are not so nice. Filipinas with foreigners are treated differently for some reason....just my experience....

Good luck

Julie

I can suggest City Garden Hotel. We stayed in the one in Makati but they also have one in Manila. I think its P1300 per person. But they are always fully booked so you have to reserve in advance like 3 weeks or so before.

Hi!

Found this restaurant near Pan Pacific Hotel called Zamboanga.... Reasonnably priced food for dining and they have cultural show every night at around 8pm. Try it, you might enjoy the food and the show. My husband did. Ive seen foreigners even try the cultural dance on stage....

Julie

Well, this is what also happened to our case. We called NVC 1 week after the approval from USCIS. We were told that within 1 week, our papers will be sent to USEM manila. So we waited about 2 weeks before calling Manila Embassy and that took days for me because the line is always busy as you can imagine. When i finally got a hold of the embassy, i was told that our papers was not with them yet and is most probably still with NVC. So the next day i had my husband call NVC to confirm if they still have our papers and sure enough, we were told we are still on "additional processing"....no other detail was given like if we need to submit addiotional docs or something...crazy........ We immediately contacted our lawyer and she obviously doesnt know what to do about this additional processing. I did my research in VJ and learned that a lot of couple here in has also been put on additional processing and it takes approximately about 30-52 days to be stuck in NVC. in our case, we spent 42 days in NVC before we learned that they have sent our papers to Manila. Im still going to confirm if we are now eligible to schedule my interview.

Lesson learned here, our lawyer knows nothing....hahaha....we just have to rely on our own hardwork to finish this. Although she did offer to seek the help of the senator and congressmen, and she is seeking help from her co-leagues that are yet to reply to her.....big help that is.....opppss sorry, venting.......goodluck to you and your partner. God bless!

Julie

thanks for the response..i really appreciate it..

i called NVC to check the status of the case and the operator i spoke said "additional processing" the operator didnt really give much information of what it means. i told the operator that my approval letter NOA2 is up to July and she said if it goes beyond that they can fix it. they said as soon it process they will send the letter or package to manila and contact my fiance from there. so right now, what do i need to do? i dont know what package my fiance is suppose to recieve. can my fiance start working on his part while its under processing. i hate to see him scheduling the interview ahead of time and then doesnt have the package yet. should i just wait? do u know what "additional processing" do they meant? i have all other documents prepared like my affidavit of support. i know there are some other required documents i need to do..but i dont know..is there a checklist for me (petitioner) i need to prepare..after i recieved a letter from NVC with a case number and while is being process? my I129-F and G325 forms package went well with no RFEs..it took only 3 months and 14 days to get my NOA2. i was very happy for that..now this..huhuhuhuhu..im really nervous..any information you guys can help me i really appreciate it..thanks again for your all replies..god bless..

javafox:

Hi! We also received the same letter. I think its a general letter they sent out to all. When we called the USEM here in Manila after 2 weeks from receiving this same letter, we were told that they still dont have our papers yet. When my husband called NVC to verify if our papers have been forwarded to Manila, he was told that we are still under "additional processing"....but Thats just our case, i have seen and read of people here in VJ who were able to schedule their interview as early as 2 weeks from receiving this letter....goodluck

Jeff&Madz:

Hi! I have read that they do accept scanned copy of NOA2....but if the original arrives to you, better send it to your beneficiary just to be safe......

Julie

Sali din...

My husband first learned "Mahal Kita" and when he says "Salamat" the clerks will all smile at him...he got that down correctly. He forgets a lot of the words i teach him especially numbers so i will have to teach him that later when we are together. The things he still remembers are "po", "opo", "gwapo", "maganda" and the nasty ones are "utot " and "ipis"....hahaha

Julie:star:

javafox:

Hi! We also received the same letter. I think its a general letter they sent out to all. When we called the USEM here in Manila after 2 weeks from receiving this same letter, we were told that they still dont have our papers yet. When my husband called NVC to verify if our papers have been forwarded to Manila, he was told that we are still under "additional processing"....but Thats just our case, i have seen and read of people here in VJ who were able to schedule their interview as early as 2 weeks from receiving this letter....goodluck

Jeff&Madz:

Hi! I have read that they do accept scanned copy of NOA2....but if the original arrives to you, better send it to your beneficiary just to be safe......

Julie

As far as i read in the forum, both petitioner and beneficiary get a copy of the embassy letter. Its just sometimes, the USC copy arrives earlier than the beneficiary's copy.....(not so sure about this, my husband and myself haven't received our letters yet....)

Julie

Hi!

When my husband was here i took him to Intramuros and Manila American Cemetery and Memorial in Mc Kinley Road, Taguig....he appreciated the history.....I also took him to Taal Vista Hotel....nice view there but he didnt like the hotel restaurant......

Julie

Hi HappyDancer!

From Rosario, dito sa Flexi Homes....Lived in the same house for the past 25 years.....

Julie

Hi Julie,

Where in Pasig are you from? I used to live there in Kapitolyo.

Julie - Born in San Juan, Manila...lives in Pasig City

Michael - Born in Savannah, Georgia.....lives in Louisiana

Julie - Born in San Juan, Manila...lives in Pasig City

Michael - Born in Savannah, Georgia.....lives in Louisiana

Hi! Sali ako....

I think there is nothing crazier than preparing a wedding in the Philippines....kaloka talaga.....pero super happy and exciting....

Julie

Hi! hope this helps you a bit.

I got a CENOMAR(singleness) in 2007 and it also said Affix Doc Stamp so it think you're good to go....but just to be safe, you better secure another copy....I just got a cenomar(marriage index) last 3/24 and it got released 3/31....you should go now so you still have a bit more time....the lines at the NSO office in QC wasnt that bad when i got there in the afternoon....Goodluck....

I'm planning to go there on April 16-17.....But not so sure yet.....Waiting for lawyers advice and waiting....Hope we can meet there if i do....

Im No. 7 This is No. 8 Post

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=189388

Happy Reading

sorry

opps, i just posted #7. sorry

this makes what, #6 thread about this topic?

NY gunman kills 13, commits suicide

AP

By WILLIAM KATES, Associated Press Writer William Kates, Associated Press Writer – 4 mins ago

BINGHAMTON, N.Y. – A gunman barricaded the back door of a community center with his car and then opened fire on a room full of immigrants taking a citizenship class Friday, killing 13 people before apparently committing suicide, officials said.

Investigators said they had yet to establish a motive for the massacre, which was at least the fifth deadly mass shooting in the U.S. in the past month alone.

The attack came just after 10 a.m. at the American Civic Association, an organization that helps immigrants settle in this country. Police Chief Joseph Zikuski said the gunman parked his car against the back door, "making sure nobody could escape," then stormed through the front, shooting two receptionists, apparently without a word.

The killer, believed to be a Vietnamese immigrant, then entered a room just off the reception area and fired on a citizenship class.

"The people were trying to better themselves, trying to become citizens," the police chief said.

One receptionist was killed, while the other, shot in the abdomen, pretended to be dead and then crawled under a desk and called 911, he said.

Police said they arrived within two minutes.

The rest of those killed were shot in the classroom. Four people were critically wounded.

The man believed to have carried out the attack was found dead with a self-inflicted gunshot wound in an office, a satchel containing ammunition slung around his neck, authorities said. Police found two handguns — a 9mm and a .45-caliber — and a hunting knife.

Thirty-seven people in all made it out of the building, including 26 who hid in the boiler room in the basement, cowering there for three hours while police methodically searched the building and tried to determine whether the gunman was still alive and whether he was holding any hostages, Zikuski said.

Those in the basement stayed in contact with police by cell phone, switching from one phone to another when their batteries ran out, Zikuski said. Others hid in closets and under desks.

Police heard no gunfire after they arrived but waited for about an hour before entering the building to make sure it was safe for officers. They then spent two hours searching the building.

They led a number of men out of the building in plastic handcuffs while they tried to sort out the victims from the killer or killers.

Most of the people brought out couldn't speak English, the chief said.

Alex Galkin, an immigrant from Uzbekistan, said he was taking English classes when he heard a shot and quickly went to the basement with about 20 other people.

"It was just panic," Galkin said.

Zhanar Tokhtabayeva, a 30-year-old from Kazakhstan, said she was in an English class when she heard a shot and her teacher screamed for everyone to go to the storage room.

"I heard the shots, every shot. I heard no screams, just silence, shooting," she said. "I heard shooting, very long time, and I was thinking, when will this stop? I was thinking that my life was finished."

Dr. Jeffrey King, speaking at a Catholic Charities office where counseling was being offered Friday night, said he was certain his mother, 72-year-old Roberta King, who taught English at the community center, was among the dead.

Authorities read a list of survivors and his mother's name wasn't on it, he said.

King, one of 10 children, described his mother as a woman brimming with interests ranging from the opera to the preservation society to collecting thousands of dolls. He recollected a recent conversation in which he told her to enjoy her retirement.

"I said, 'Mom you're in your 70s,'" King said. "She said, 'What? You don't think I enjoy working?'"

Gov. David Paterson said the massacre was probably "the worst tragedy and senseless crime in the history of this city." Noting mass killings in Alabama and Oakland, Calif., last month, he said: "When are we going to be able to curb the kind of violence that is so fraught and so rapid that we can't even keep track of the incidents?"

The community center was holding class "for those who want to become citizens of the United States of America, who wanted to be part of the American Dream, and so tragically may have had that hope thwarted today," the governor said. "But there still is an American dream, and all of us who are Americans will try to heal this very, very deep wound in the city of Binghamton."

The suspected gunman carried ID with the name of 42-year-old Jiverly Voong, of nearby Johnson City, N.Y., but that was believed to be an alias, said a law enforcement official, speaking on condition of anonymity.

A second law enforcement official, also speaking on condition of anonymity, said the two handguns were registered to Jiverly Wong, another name the man used. Both officials were not authorized to speak publicly.

Initial reports suggested Voong had recently been let go from IBM. But a person at IBM said there was no record of a Jiverly Voong ever working there.

The police chief would not confirm the name of the dead man with the ammunition satchel, saying authorities were still trying to establish with certainty that he was the gunman.

"We have no idea what the motive is," Zikuski said.

He said the suspected gunman "was no stranger" to the community center and may have gone there to take a class.

A woman who answered the phone at a listing for Henry D. Voong said she was Jiverly Voong's sister but would not give her name. She said her brother had been in the country for 28 years and had citizenship.

"I think there's a misunderstanding over here because I want to know, too," she said.

Friday evening, police searched Voong's house and carried out three computer hard drives, a brown canvas rifle case, a briefcase, a small suitcase and several paper bags.

Police leaving the Voong home shortly before 8 p.m., soon after four people arrived by car and went into the house. It wasn't clear who they were, but they promptly turned out the lights.

Crime scene tape was stretched across the street about 20 yards from the house, and a steady rain fell as two state troopers stood guard to keep anyone but neighborhood residents from entering the dead-end street.

Waiting outside a Catholic Charities office where counselors were tending to relatives of victims, Omri Yigal said his wife, Delores, was taking English lessons when the gunman attacked. He had no word on what happened to her.

He finally left the center feeling sullen shortly before 8 p.m.

"They told me they don't have much hope for me," the Filipino immigrant said before going home to wait for a telephone call.

The American Civic Association helps immigrants in the Binghamton area with citizenship, resettlement and family reunification. The shootings took place in a neighborhood of homes and small businesses in downtown Binghamton, a city of about 47,000 situated 140 miles northwest of New York City.

The Binghamton area was the home to Endicott-Johnson shoe company and the birthplace of IBM, which between them employed tens of thousands of workers before the shoe company closed a decade ago and IBM downsized in recent years.

A string of attacks in the U.S. in the last month left 44 people dead in all.

A gunman killed 10 people and himself in Samson, Ala.; shootings that began with a traffic stop in Oakland, Calif., left four police officers and the gunman dead; an apparent murder-suicide in Santa Clara, Calif., left six dead; and a gunman went on a rampage at a nursing home Sunday, killing seven elderly residents and a nurse who cared for them.

___

Contributing to this report were Associated Press writers George M. Walsh and Chris Carola in Albany; Kimberly Hefling and Devlin Barrett in Washington; Michael Hill in Binghamton; and John Wawrow in Buffalo; John Kekis in Johnson City; and the AP News Research Center.

Link:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/hostage_shooting

These are my favorites:

♥♥♥"Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened" Mathew 7:7-8 ♥♥♥

♥♥♥ "Therefore I will look to the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation; My God will hear me." Micah 7:7 ♥♥♥

♥♥♥ "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11 ♥♥♥

♥♥♥ "Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart" Psalms 37:4♥♥♥

Julie

Mine actually say on the Remarks "No Record on File"

I asked the clerck there and she said that is qhat is normally printed if you have no case or records (criminal or otherwise) found with the NBI.

Hi! Just got my NBI Clearance last March 16, 2009. It just took me about 1 hour to get my NBI Clearance at the Carriedo office since there is no "Hit" on my name (Hit = meaning i have a unique name and that there is no criminal records found)

For my passport, it took me 7 days (I had it expedited) for Php750.

Julie

Hi,

My fiancee started collecting her papers for her embassy interview. I'm wondering how long it will take to get the following docs:

- Passport: my fiancee says that it will take about a month. This seems awfully long to me...

- NBI clearance: my fiancee says it only takes a day, but my tita says it can take weeks. Which is it?

Thanks for the input.

opps, sorry for the typo error....

Does your NBI clearance say no criminal record?