Sweet Home Alaska! - Russian Ukrainian Belarus Travel Music Woman Dating News

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Sweet Home Alaska!
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Posted by: Keith In Kodiak

Everything went like clockwork... like broken, rusty clockwork - but it all worked and the Kat is now in Alaska!

We stayed at the Hotel Zarya, pretty nice if you get the "Standard" rooms. The "Economy" hallways looked sort of Stalinist like maybe the same guy who decorated Lubyanka prison back in 1948 had also done Zarya. The Standards were quite nice and reasonably priced.
Kat's interview was on the 3rd, a Friday. It was pretty basic - "How long have you known each other?" "Where did you meet?" "How long has he been divorced?"

So, the Interview being on a Friday we expected (hoped) to get the Visa on Tuesday, the 7th. I had not booked our departure tickets until the following Saturday, the 11th - just in case.
Anyway, the 7th came and no Visa. The 8th was a holiday (Womens day - and yes, I brought her present - a watch.) Late on the 9th and no Visa... Now we had only one day (Friday) to get the Visa! Late on Thursday I went to the Embassy and was admitted to the Consul and Immigration section after being anally probed and poked with magnetic sensors at the entrance. The Consul was closed - they only work in the morning!! And Immigration and the others I spoke with were absolutely no help at all. I've never met a bunch of bureaucrats as indifferent and useless as this bunch.

The Consul and Immigration Sections are at the right side of the building as you face it from the street. There is another entrance at the center with a small sign saying "American Citizen Services." I entered there (citizens only, Kat had to wait outside) and after the usual security indignities was admitted to a room with a small window. I explained my problem to a young guy named Eric and he took some information, dug into his computer and in a matter of seconds was able to determine that the Visa had been issued on the 7th and picked up by DHL!
He then called DHL and speaking fluent (apparently) Russian with several people learned that the Visa was at the wrong DHL office. It was not at the small downtown office but was at the big distribution center! We could pick it up until 9pm that night.

Lesson: If you have an issue with the Visa, ignore the lazy bastids in the Consul and at Immigration. Instead, use the center door to Citizen Services.

It was champagne time that evening!

The flight there and back with Aeroflot was "OK." A direct flight to LA, where I could connect with Alaska Airlines. The food on Aeroflot is very basic. There were no movies or anything like that. The Russians on board had all brought duty free booze and food packed at home and so had a party most of the way to LA. The price was just super - $800 for a round trip direct flight from/to LA is not to be sneezed at for the lack of a few croissants.

And finally! We pulled into my driveway here in Alaska. Oh, first I pulled into the driveway of a broken down shack where one of my neighbors stores his commercial fishing gear and said "Welcome Home!" She sort of gulped and said "How natural..." Hehe! Then began hitting me and laughing as I smiled and drove away.

But now we're home. Shopping and exploring our small town on Monday and then a drive out into the boonies on Tuesday to see wildlife and take pictures. She loves it. You can't help but love a place like this.

So now we can begin stage two of our journey together.

Posted by: sidney

Glad to heat that all is progressing well. I liked the fishing shack part. My kind of humor. Good luck and we wish you the best.
Sid

Posted by: Ade

Hi Keith,

Congratulations to the both of you, I hope the settling in period is as painless as can be hoped for, and that the two of you are happy.

All the best,

Adeski

Posted by: Chrismc

Good story Keith

Quote:

I went to the Embassy and was admitted to the Consul and Immigration section after being anally probed and poked with magnetic sensors at the entrance.

Is this compulsory though?? or do you just enjoy it he he

Chris

Posted by: DocSpooky

Oh you two will certainly have a LOT of fun!

You are a lucky man!

Posted by: AkMike

Congratulations Keith and Kat !
I loved the part about the shack alot!

Tanya didn't though.. My brothers pulled a similar thing on her right after we landed stateside.

Hey the next time you come thru town stop by! We're 10 minutes from the airport.
I'll pm you the number.
Mike and Tanya

Posted by: Mr.Humble

haha...good ending and interesting new start....

Posted by: Meico

Glad to hear everything worked out Keith, even though it was down to the wire. Good luck to you and Kat.

Nataliya and I landed in Dallas on 2 March. All went well for us. The weather was a little if'y the morning we left Kiev.

It was easy to forget the -15C when we stepped out in Dallas to 75F.

Posted by: searcher

Congratulations!

I'm glad things worked out for you!

Now you have me wondering, her interview was in Kiev?

I hope the embassy in Moscow has better service, etc.

Posted by: skinsfan

congrats, and best wishes to you both !!

Posted by: Keith In Kodiak

Thanks all!

The interview was in Moscow. The embassy was quite helpful once I found the Citizen Services section.

Posted by: obx2005

Keith and Kat,

I couldnt' be more elated for you both...All my best wishes and hopes for your future...I'm on the east coast but if I can ever do anything for you, plz let me know...

Jeff

PS: Welcome to the states Kat...

Posted by: yodaamnot

Congratulations and all the best for the future!!!

May the force be with you...

Posted by: maybejustmaybe

Great story! Good luck to you both for your future together :-)

Posted by: bobjf

hi keith & kat ,great to see it worked out for you guys.
we wish well
bob & natasha

ps don,t forget were your keyboard is lol

Posted by: Keith In Kodiak

Oh, I wanted to mention a nice restaurant at the same metro stop as the Embassy (Krasnopzesnenskaya). It's called "The Real McCoy" and has some of the best Tex-Mex food east of Albuquerque. I found that weird, but.. there it is. A nice dinner is about $10. Kat had never tasted anything like it and just loved it! A real treat for a Russian gal who has never tasted anything spicy.

You'll also see a place called "Cafe Cum Cum" - and no it's not a whorehouse, it's a very good Georgian restaurant though quite a bit spendier than The Real McCoy.

Since you'll all be in this neighborhood (if you haven't already...), you might want to check these out.

Posted by: Chuckles

Quote:

Originally Posted by Keith In Kodiak

Oh, I wanted to mention a nice restaurant at the same metro stop as the Embassy (Krasnopzesnenskaya). It's called "The Real McCoy" and has some of the best Tex-Mex food east of Albuquerque. I found that weird, but.. there it is. A nice dinner is about $10. Kat had never tasted anything like it and just loved it! A real treat for a Russian gal who has never tasted anything spicy..

That's great !! I love Tex-Mex and would love to share the experience with my fiance next time I visit.

Quote:

You'll also see a place called "Cafe Cum Cum" - and no it's not a whorehouse

That's too bad

Posted by: AkMike

So? How does Kat enjoy the Emerald Isle so far?
How about a quick up date if you get time.
Best Wishes to you BOTH!

Posted by: duplantisjj

Congrats Keith and Kat,

Looks like I'm not the only Alaskan here. Nice story about the pulling up to the shack....That's one to remember for my future lady. Of course in Anchorage I was thinking it would work by pulling into a trailer park....

Hey, since you mentioned spicy food. As a newlywed gift, let me know when you guys come to Anchorage, dinner will be on me at my restaurant Little New Orleans. Just let me know ahead so my staff don't look at you like you're nutts...

Just PM me.

Good Luck!
Johnny

Posted by: AkMike

Now with you here that makes 4 Alaskans here, includeing Tatysik, my wife.

Posted by: Keith In Kodiak

Update...

Well, I set up my computer with a separate log-in in Russian language for Kat. And of course she has a calling card that I keep charged. She's been making good use of these and I think that helps her to feel closer to her friends and family.

She really loves the island! She loves to go for drives and take pictures of the wildlife and scenic views. It's too muddy yet to really go on any nature hikes.
Kodiak was for a time the capital of Russian America and home of the "Lord of Alaska" Alexander Baranof. There is an old Russian building dating back to 1800 that houses a museum of that time and we went there just the other day. I don't think she appreciated how Russian Kodiak really is until then.
She was amazed at a little coffee house the other day when the clerk recognized her as Russian and began speaking to her in the mother tongue.

A long way of saying she feels right at home in Kodiak!

On the home front we've been taking turns making Russian and American dishes. I'll make a rib-eye and corn on the cob and she'll follow up with blinis or borscht or what have you. She still has a real love of Mexican food and we've been to the local Mexican joint several times.

I'm happy, she's happy and everything is going very well!

Thank you all for your interest and welcome to the forum Chef Johnny!

Posted by: yodaamnot

Thanks for the update, keep it coming.

Posted by: Keith In Kodiak

Oh, and one other thing!

I had wanted to treat Kat to something special when she arrived and so looked into buying some caviar... and of course the prices are insane, and really since all three types of caspian sea sturgeon are endangered I couldn't see myself going there even if the price was reasonable.
However, I found that farmed American sturgeon caviar is quite inexpensive even if it's not quite up the standard of the caspian sturgeon. And there is another American fish called the paddlefish (a relative of the sturgeon) whose roe is so good it can fool experts into thinking it is caspian sevruga caviar.
These American caviars go for about $15 an ounce vs $100 to $150 an ounce for Russian or Iranian caviars.
I ordered 4 oz of American sturgeon and 4 oz of Paddlefish caviar. I've never had sturgeon caviar, but I found these delicious and well worth the money. Kat has had caspian sturgeon caviars on special occasions all of her life. She could not tell the difference between the paddlefish and Russian caviars. She said the American sturgeon caviars flavor was too mild to fool anyone but she enjoyed it very much.

So... if you want to treat your Russian love to some luxury, try these out! I used an outfit in California call 911caviar.com and was very happy with the service. There are dozens of caviar dealers across the country, just google up "American caviar" or "paddlefish caviar" and start shopping.