Heading to El Paso

Time's been flying like a Concord. Visa papers are trotting down the paper trail, and we're looking forward to the Big Day, namely: The Day Juan and I Live In The Same Country. Come October 31, El Paso will be living up to its name, big time.

Some background: After submitting our papers for Juan's K1 Visa back in April, we received our NOA2 (second Notice of Approval) from USCIS on July 11, giving Juan until November 11 (a 4-month window) to complete his (open appointment) interview in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico.

Oddly, Ciudad Juarez is where ALL Mexican K-1 Visas are processed nowadays-- as in the ONLY place in Mexico. So very convenient for someone living, oh, in The Rest Of Mexico. (For those of us in the US, going to Juarez for a visa is like having to fly to Newark to get your passport renewed... even if you live in, say, Modesto, California.)

Juarez is far away from Merida in every way, so we're going to combine it all into one big step: visa approval (at the US Consulate) and visa activation (at the border). The plan goes something like this:

Oct 29- Juan flies to Ciudad Juarez, and I fly to El Paso TX (just across the Rio Grande from Juarez). I cross the border to meet up with him.
Oct 30- We dedicate our day to the requisite medical exam for Juan. For some reason, they call this part of the process "biometrics". The US Consulate lists exactly two approved medical offices in Juarez where the exam must take place, and you must have the exam (and get a certificate) *before* going to the interview at the Consulate. From what I've read, it's definitely a two-day process.
Oct 31- we dedicate our day to Juan's K1 interview at the US Consulate. He'll wait in the consulate (possibly all day) and I'll wait outside. I hear they rent chairs across the street (sunblock, anyone?!), but I've also read that there are several close-by restaurants where you can camp while you wait. I wonder: What are my chances are of finding free wireless internet while I wait? Assuming all goes well, Juan will walk out of the Consulate with his K-1 Visa in hand sometime before 5 p.m.
Oct 31- under a Halloween moon, we'll activate Juan's visa at the Point of Entry (POE), probably at the Cordova bridge between Juarez and El Paso. In spite of the date, we're hoping the border agent won't be scary.