vivamex

Hi everyone! Thanks for all your words of encouragement. Sorry I haven't been able to give an update all day. I've been over at our new house cleaning to keep my mind off of the interview. Aldo got the visa!! He said it was so simple. He got to the embassy this morning at 7 am. They checked to make sure he had all the documents he needed, and then they sent him back to his hotel room because he had brought his cell phone with him. So he came back and they gave him a fast pass to go right inside. He said he was really nervous because the guy interviewing in front of him received a ten year ban. But he said the CO just asked him where we met, where I was born, the year I was born, the names of my parents and if he had met my family. The only documents he even wanted to see were my financial documents. And then he just said congratulations and sent him on his way! That was the smooth part, however we hit a snag after that. The CO officer gave him a case number for DHL and told him his passport with the visa should be ready by about 3 pm (he was finished with the interview by noon). He kept calling and checking the online status, and told the people at DHL that he needed his passport back today because his flight was scheduled to leave tomorrow morning at 6 am. Well, their office closed at 6 pm and his passport wasn't ready, so he didn't get it. He called to try and change his flight to go back on Friday, but they were all sold out so he is stuck in Juarez until Saturday. It's costing about an extra $300 for him to stay, with the cost to change the flight and the two extra nights in the hotel. I guess if SOMETHING had to go wrong, I'm glad it was with that and not with the interview! Everything can't always go perfect and really, up until now, we have had a breeze of a journey. I am SO incredibly relieved to have this over!! I wish he was coming up here right now, but we have to wait another month. Oh well, it's all worth it. So there you go! Hopefully all of you will have a smooth ride as well! Best of luck to everyone!!

Thanks for the update!! So glad that everything went well....except for the DHL delivery. I'm sure I'm not the only one on here that was anxiously awaiting the news on how the interview went!! Again, Congratulations!!!

Ahhhh!!! I'm going to have an anxiety attack this morning already. My nerves are going wacko. I'm sure everything will go just fine with Aldo's interview...we have prepared really really well, but still, there's that nagging "what if". I gotta try to stay busy today to keep my mind off of it. Keep us in your prayers please! I'll give you all an update as soon as I hear something from Aldo.

Hang in there!!

Hi everyone! Just thought I would give you an update since Aldo got to Cuidad Juarez late last night. He is staying at the Holiday Inn Express next to the consulate, and he says the area around the embassy is very nice and he doesn't feel unsafe at all. He got in around midnight last night and said it was very quiet in the area. He went to the embassy this morning at about 7:15 and waited in line at the information window for 40 minutes to have them print out the invitation letter for him. He said it wasn't a problem at all. He just gave them the CDJ #, showed his passport, they printed the letter, and he was on his way. He then went for his medical exam, which he said was easy as well. He was back in the hotel room by 10:30, and they told him to come back at 2 pm for the results. So far, so good! I'm so so so nervous for the embassy interview tomorrow!! I'll keep you all posted on how it goes!

Thanks for the update! Glad to hear all is going well so far. Did he say anything about the increased military presence? They put 3,000 additional troops in the city over the weekend, 1,000 more today and I think another group of 1,000 is on the way. I'm sure you are nervous. We are too and we are a month and a half away from going!

I'm fixing to go to my interview in the next couple of weeks, but I just realized that all the planning I had done might have been in vain now.

Do I have to go to the NEW US Embassy or the OLD one?

If it's thew new one, then how far is it from the old one?

Could I stay at a hotel close to the old one and be able to walk to the new one? I was thinking about staying at Los Cedros hotel that is recommended here in the site.

Thanks

From what I understand, the old consulate is all the way across town from the new one. The old one is completely closed, so you can't go to that one, and the old one is in a very bad part of town so I don't think I would recommend staying near the old consulate. My fiance is staying at the Holiday Inn Express--it is right next to the new consulate. You might want to check into that. Good luck!

What does this mean for the medical exams then? Did the clinics move close to the new consulate or are they still located by the old one? Thanks

Try this link: It will take you to a Juarez map showing the Consulate, medical clinic, hotels, etc....

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&amp...019054&z=16

Documents do not have to be translated as long as they are in english or spanish. Take the oringinals, but take COPIES, they might want to see the originals, but if they want to keep something, insist they keep a copy if it is something important.

Thank You!

I have a question about translation of documents. I just called the 800 # to ask whether or not our translated documents need to be notarized for the interview in Juarez. They said we don't need to translate anything that she brings to the interview as long as they are originals. I have seen previous posts on VJ stating that people were taking their translated documents with them, and I know that the answers from the Juarez hotline aren't always accurate. Does anyone know whether or not we need to translate her Spanish documents?

Thank You!!

I'm fixing to go to my interview in the next couple of weeks, but I just realized that all the planning I had done might have been in vain now.

Do I have to go to the NEW US Embassy or the OLD one?

If it's thew new one, then how far is it from the old one?

Could I stay at a hotel close to the old one and be able to walk to the new one? I was thinking about staying at Los Cedros hotel that is recommended here in the site.

Thanks

From what I understand, the old consulate is all the way across town from the new one. The old one is completely closed, so you can't go to that one, and the old one is in a very bad part of town so I don't think I would recommend staying near the old consulate. My fiance is staying at the Holiday Inn Express--it is right next to the new consulate. You might want to check into that. Good luck!

Any idea on how much the night runs there? My price range is 50 bucks a night. Or does anyone have any other suggestion?

The Holiday Inn is more like $70 a night, but I'm sure there are other hotels in that area that are cheaper. Maybe someone else can recommend something.

I booked the Holiday Inn Express over the weekend for our upcoming appointment. $42 plus taxes per night. Total of $99 for the 2 nights. Check www.orbitz.com

I got the letter from from my lawyer. He sent a scan to me via email. It says that they have our information and that we have an open appointment. It also gives a web address to get all of the info and instructions. It was dated Feb. 10 and he got it on the 17th. I assume this is all we need. We surely don't need to wait to get the letter here in Mexico. I have first hand experience that it could be 3 months or never before the package ever gets here. So I guess my question to all of you would be if you have checked if it has arrived to your US address?

It arrived to my US address today. Check page 188 for the answer to your other question. Good luck!

WOOHOO! I called the NVC today just to check on the status of our case with them and get the case number. Our NOA2 was dated 19 Feb so I figured that possibly it was still there, but NO! The operator told me that the case has already come and gone to Juarez, it left on 25 Feb! I got the case number, so I'm sure I can contact Juarez to see where we are. Any suggestions as to how much time I should wait to see when they've sent packet 3 out?

We got our NOA2 Jan 28 and it arrived at NVC on the 30th then left and arrived on the Feb 02 at Juarez and we are still waiting for our package to be sent to us (We only want the package to be sent so we can go to Juarez we won't wait for it to arrive) The juarez phone people said it could take up tp 6 month in the worst cases but it mignt leave in about 4 more weeks.... I am hoping that that is not ture 'cuase i have heard that some ppl get thier package SENT in one months time.

Oh no! Wow, that's a long time, I can't IMAGINE waiting up to 6 months MORE! I'm going to give them a call when I'm home next week to see if they've at least received it. Do you call once a week or once every couple of days to check to see if they've sent the package?

Congrats Limejello and hang in there Cici....We got our NOA2 on 1/12....went to the mailbox today and bam!! Package received!! It will come soon for you. To answer the question, I only called a few times during the 1.5 month wait. Just tried to be patient every day and tried to BREATHE.

Maybe your right, vivamex. I don't want to screw things up by changing my address this far into the process.

Since I didn't receive the NOA1 and the mail here is notoriously unreliable, I can pretty much guarantee that I won't get the NOA2 OR the NVC letter. If that is the case, can I go to the Juarez embassy with only the NVC case number (no letter at all) if I call them and confirm that they HAVE sent the invitation letter out?

Check page 188 of this thread. Someone has done this before, so it looks like you can go after you confirm that they have sent the invitation letter. I'm one of those people that have to see it to believe it, so I'm waiting until I have the invitation letter in hand before traveling that far with my fiance. Have you signed up for case status updates via email with USCIS? If not you should do so. They will send you an email confirmation once the NOA2 is sent. The NOA2 is then sent to the National Visa Center for processing and forwarding to the Consulate. They will be able to tell you when it will be forwarded and whether they are sending it to the Consulate electronically or by mail. After that you can call and hound the folks at the call center they have set up for visa questions in Mexico. 01-477-788-7070 - Looks like they are in Leon, GTO from the area code. Their answers are vague which is to be expected, but they are the ones that can tell you whether or not the invitation letter has been sent. Keep asking questions until you get the answers you want....the call costs USD $7. Not a pile of money by any means, but it is frustrating when you hang up and then remember you forgot to ask something you really want to know and then you have to call back.

My mom is coming down and we are driving from Merida to Ciudad Juarez sometime in mid-April (4-day drive)! I am a little worried about the crime and everything, but my fiancee and his friend are going to be with us.

Because it's going to take so long to get there I want to make sure we have EVERYTHING in order before we go. I'd rather have too many papers than not enough, and I think it would be horrible to go all the way there only to discover that you've left something out. We never did receive the NOA1 here in Merida, and I only knew about the NOA2 because of an email update I received. I'm thinking about changing my address with the NVC to my mom's address so that any correspondence will actually be received. Opinions?

I'm not sure about changing your address. Don't they require that you live at the address where all correspondence is to be sent??? Again....not sure.

I actually very scared of going there.... my and I are both going to Juarez there is too much deads and killings to go alone....

PS:

I still have not gotten my Package 3 sent .... waiting wand waiting

Sorry to hear your packet 3 hasn't been sent yet. Patience is a virtue that is difficult to have during this process. I'm curious to know how they select which applicants receive their packet 3 and when. The consulate received my NOA2 after you, yet when I called this past weekend they said my packet 3 was sent on 2/19. After questioning further I found out that "sent" doesn't mean in the mail. It means the invitation letter has been written and "sent" to another department within the consulate. Have you called to ask about yours?

Is anyone as concerned as I am about going down to Juarez for the interview in the near future? The news you read is horrible, especially what has happened this past week. Four police officials were killed a few blocks from the Consulate. I called and they said they won't do the interview in another embassy. Under no circumstances do I want my fiance go to Juarez by herself. I'm going down with her and I'm very concerned about being in that city. I hear there are 4,000 Mexican Army troops in the city now. Has anyone been down there recently? How was your experience?

My fiance and I are both concerned about his safety in Juarez as well. We made sure to make reservations at the Holiday Inn right next door to the consulate so that he doesn't have to travel in the rest of the city...just to and from the airport and he will do that by hotel shuttle instead of a taxi. Of course, that's no guarantee. He is going to make sure to stay in the hotel room at all times other than the medical appointment and the embassy interview. I hadn't heard the latest news...that is really scary! I don't blame you for wanting to go there with her. If I were you, I would do that too. With her being a female that puts her in an even more vulnerable position. When is she going for her interview?

We are waiting on packet 3, which was mailed on 2/19. Looking at going in April. Yes, she will be in a more vulnerable position considering the fact that she is female. The fact that I have a fair complexion makes me stand out as well, so that concerns me. That is a good plan...to stay in the hotel room at all times except for when it is necessary to leave. If you google "ciudad juarez news" you'll find all of the stuff I've been reading. I'm hoping the military can do some good and at least bring some kind of order inside the city limits. You are exactly right. There are no guarantees. If a group of armed men want to do bad things they will do it and anyone caught in the crossfire is of no concern to them.

Is anyone as concerned as I am about going down to Juarez for the interview in the near future? The news you read is horrible, especially what has happened this past week. Four police officials were killed a few blocks from the Consulate. I called and they said they won't do the interview in another embassy. Under no circumstances do I want my fiance go to Juarez by herself. I'm going down with her and I'm very concerned about being in that city. I hear there are 4,000 Mexican Army troops in the city now. Has anyone been down there recently? How was your experience?

Hello All....this is my first post after reading for a few weeks, so go easy on me if this question sounds absurd. I just called the 800 number to ask a few questions about our case. I was told our packet 3 was mailed on 2/19 and that it will arrive in 4 weeks. I know I sound impatient here, but why so long? If the packet has been placed in the mail I wouldn't think it would move that slow.

You can go to juarez any time now.... you really don't have to wait for it.....go to juarez take your NVC letter tell them that they have alreay mail you packet 3... they will print out the letter for you... look a few pages back on this forum for more information...

Print all the forms on the juarez web site!

ConGrads!!!

Much appreciated!! Good luck to you!!

Hello All....this is my first post after reading for a few weeks, so go easy on me if this question sounds absurd. I just called the 800 number to ask a few questions about our case. I was told our packet 3 was mailed on 2/19 and that it will arrive in 4 weeks. I know I sound impatient here, but why so long? If the packet has been placed in the mail I wouldn't think it would move that slow.