Travel Tips

For a country that founded itself on taking in wayward elements from every other country, the USA has become irritably selective as of late. Admittedly, once a haven for every person wishing to escape their more constrictive homelands, the land of the free and brave has become a tad crowded. Throw in the somewhat ambiguous fear of terrorists and one can accept the increased scrutiny. That it has become more selective in itself is not what draws my ire so much as the lack of congruency in the process. Former oil barons escape from the rapped they left behind quite easily while those that are being persecuted have to jump through hoops.

My wife who comes from what is by any modern estimation a US friendly country had to deal with these hoops for the past fourteen months. Okay, Germany didn’t back us in Iraq but how many did? Oh, and they did give full support in Afghanistan which in retrospect accomplished just what? I certainly hope we’re not still holding Hitler against them when Nixon has been pardoned and Reagan magically exalted. But this is not meant to be a discourse on the merits of war and peace, only one on the lack of compassion regarding those waiting to enter the melting pot that symbolizes our great nation.

Doreen and I met quit innocently at a friend’s flat in Munich on New Year’s Day 2002. What seemed like an incredible fling to both of us somehow blossomed into love over the course of the next year. We managed to spend that summer together in New Jersey, but it took some maneuvering. For those in the dark, a visitor gets only three months to explore the vast greatness of the United States of America these days. Prior to 911, six was more common. How limiting terrorists to half the time will save the planet is beyond my simple mind but expecting a tourist to see even a cursory bit of our sea to shining sea in that time is just plain silly. But I’ll be honest; we weren’t here to explore the whole country but each other. So, Doreen had to fly home mid-summer at great expense only to secure a new visa on her return for another three months. When they ran out, we fled to Peru and Bolivia for additional time together.

The next two years were a rerun of this complex scenario with us flying back and forth between the US, Germany, and various third world countries to remain at each other’s side. One thing had become decidedly clear in all the commotion; we did not want to spend any more time apart.

After eight months of teaching English for Berlitz in Munich, family and the idea of vast opportunity in the US drew us back to Florida that winter. While Doreen was here, we decided to talk to a lawyer to explore our options. We had figured getting married would be an involved affair, with us having to leave the country, get a fiancé visa and return to get married and were quite surprised when the lawyer told us we could get married the next day. We left his office and felt like Dustin Hoffman and Katherine Ross in The Graduate when they “escape” on a bus and soon find they don’t know where they’re going. We decided to rush things a bit so we could be together even though it meant none of her family being present for the wedding. It was a small gathering of my immediate family and we were both surprised at how different and happy it made us feel. For the eternal bachelor it was especially enlightening to find that what I had been running from all those years was so pleasant.

We then proceeded with the expensive paperwork to make Doreen legal. The process sounded simple. She would get her Social Security number and a temporary work permit quickly enough, and could stay until her interview, which they promised within a year. In fact, they said things were running ahead of schedule and to expect it in more like seven months. To be safe, we paid extra for a travel permit that would allow Doreen to come and go from the country while she waited. It sounded good in theory but what they failed to explain was how little warning you got for the interview. So, months passed and with Christmas coming and Doreen extremely homesick for her family, we had to pass on flights, afraid that the interview date would coincide with the holidays. After being in countless situations where she had to leave the country, she now felt somehow like a prisoner as she waited for the elusive day.

In the middle of February, we finally got the notice of her appointment with destiny, it would be March 14th. As the day approached, we gathered up all of our documents showing how long we were together. Countless photo albums from around the globe and our wedding would surely suffice, as well as joint checking/savings accounts statements, credit cards, car title, marriage certificate, and wedding rings.

We drove down to Miami nervously. After waiting in a room with fifty other hopefuls for two hours, we were finally led into the office by our interviewer. She gave us an initial scare with some terse dialogue and questions but soon it was apparent she was more in a hurry than anything else. It was nearing the lunch hour and she still had another interview after ours. We deluged her with our paperwork and she never even asked to see our sizable photo portfolio sitting conspicuously in a huge box next to me.

Doreen got the visa stamp in her passport allowing not only work for a year but also the ability to come and go as she pleases. It was explained that her temporary “Green Card,” which in fact, would be pink, would arrive in ten days. This would be good for two years at which point, we would have to submit additional documents via mail that we were still together. She’ll get one for ten years at that point and could become a citizen if she likes. We walked out gleefully but trying not to glow too profusely for those still waiting. It was such a relief to have this finally behind us.

A few days later, a formal notice arrived to welcome Doreen to the United States of America as a permanent resident alien and explained the same process I’ve already delineated. We heaved a big sigh of relief and quickly booked flights back to Germany for mid-May. All this time to find out when we can leave you might joke. But at least now we can come back “home” as husband and wife and not be overly scrutinized. Oh, we’ll still have to walk through in separate lines and she’ll have to wait a bit longer but she’ll get the same time as me to explore this great country and each other too.