Appointment Date in Mexico

We were just notified of our appointment date in Ciudad Juarez--Monday August 31st, 2009.

Jose needs to get a medical exam in Ciudad Juarez before his Monday appointment,so the latest he can get it is on Thursday August 27, 2009. It looks like we will be flying from San Francisco to Ciudad Juarez on August 26th. This appointment is basically just to confirm that Jose is in Mexico, who he is, and that our marriage is valid. I'm not allowed to attend the appointment. We will be staying with a Mexican family who lives in Ciudad Juarez. The wife is the sister of Mr. Delgado, who I worked with in the Arellanes Junior High English as a Second Language class. The husband is a pastor, and I believe their daughter is 18. They live in a nice area of the city, and according to Mr. Delgado, they have never experienced any violence in their area. They have offered to pick us up and drop us off from everywhere we go.

Once Jose gets his medical exam and has his appointment on Monday, we will fly to Mexico City on Tuesday September 1st. It looks like we may take a bus to Manzanillo, Jalisco, because there is always an 11 hour layover in Mexico City to get to Manzanillo. Our friend Bianca's mother has offered to pick us up from the Mexico City airport, take us to the bus stop, and help us get the correct tickets. It's only 55 dollars per person on a luxury bus from Mexico City to Manzanillo. Then we will take a bus from Manzanillo to La Manzanilla, where we will live in Joelle's house.

Six weeks after Jose's appointment in Ciudad Juarez, he will have another one there again. This will be where he presents all the evidence about our life in the United States, and what would happen to our life if Jose was not allowed to return to the U.S. Here is where all the letters everyone is writing comes in. The immigration officials will read the letters, view pictures of our life in the United States and what our life in Mexico would be like, and look over other documents. The officials will decide if our case is strong enough to let us return quickly or not. Three- five days later, Jose will be mailed his Mexican passport that will either contain a visa to return to the United States or not. If there's no visa, we will be living in Mexico 13-15 months longer, while waiting for the visa. We're preparing for both situations, but hoping to be able to come back quickly!

-Emma