Ghana
September 2014 we started getting all of our documents together so that my SO could apply for a 4-week Schengen Visa to come and see me at the beginning of February. We needed bank statements, a declaration of obligation, invitation letters, birth certificates... the list goes on. Finally we had everything and made an appointment with the German Embassy. My SO handed in all of his documents and was interviewed. He was able to answer all the questions and they asked him to come back a week later for the decision.
While he was there he met a young couple that had also come for the interview. The guy was a Ghanaian student and his wife was German, but living and working in Ghana. They wanted to come to Germany on holiday for one month to visit the lady's family.
A week later my SO went back for his passport. I was so hopeful because we had handed in all of the required documents (and even more) and my SO's interview had gone well, but he was denied, because they didn't think he would come back. I feel like they didn't even look at his documents.
The young couple was there too. The lady's husband also got denied, BUT they are married!
They told my SO we had 30 days to file an appeal. By then it was already April so we used the 30 days to gather more documents, anything really to somehow prove that he will return home. We also wrote a two-page letter explaining why they had made the wrong decision.
Finally when my SO handed it in, they told him it would take at least another 4 weeks to process the remonstration. I was fed up at this point, because month after month was just passing by and it felt like we weren't getting anywhere. Plus, by that time my semester break was over and I was back at uni.
Anyway, after two weeks a miracle happened. I was in a lecture when I got a very excited text from my SO. The lady from the embassy had emailed him and told him to bring his passport for his visa, because the appeal had been successful! It felt like a huge weight had been lifted off our shoulders. After over three years, he was finally coming to visit me in Germany.
Germany
On the 18th of May he finally landed in Munich early in morning. I was waiting at arrivals with a huge smile on face and just couldn't wait to see him. After about 30 minutes, I finally saw him come out, but my heart dropped when I saw a young police officer walking behind him. This could not be happening! I walked up to them and the police officer asked me if I was here to pick this guy up. He then asked me something about the declaration of obligation to make sure the correct dates were printed on it. I explained everything to him and he finally gave my SO his passport back and left. After waiting for a hug for 8 months, it was ruined by this officer who wanted to show off how important he is...
That was the only incident for the next 4 weeks though. We had a lovely time. I showed him around the town I'm currently living in, he came to uni with me once, we went to the park, we went to restaurants, to a fair, had typical Bavarian food and he loved all of it. Before he came I was worried he would have a huge culture shock and not like it here. While I think he did have a big culture shock at the initial stage, he slowly got to know everything. What stood out to him the most was the green landscape, the traffic and the food.
I was so happy that he was also able to meet my close friends and my family for the first time. We were both quite nervous when it was time to meet my grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins, who all came to see us at once, but they loved him.
In June, it was his birthday and we celebrated by watching movies during the day and then going out for dinner in the evening. After that we went to a bar and had some birthday cocktails. It was a great evening!
Canary Islands
After three weeks in Germany, we spent his last week on the Canary Island. Thank you, Schengen Visa! My parents moved there last year and they really wanted to meet him too, of course. It was such a strange feeling when we went to the airport and we didn't have to say goodbye. Travelling together was so much fun. We were most nervous about meeting my parents. They had heard so much about him and talked to him on the phone occasionally, but that was it.
It went really well though and they loved him from the beginning, even if my dad only really admitted to it after a few days
He helped a lot around the house and when we went out he always pushed mum around in her wheelchair. I'm so happy that they get along well.We spent our time relaxing, eating seafood, looking at the sea and going for walks.
On the 13th of June we flew back to Munich and decided that I wouldn't be worth going all the way back home because he was flying back on the 15th early in the morning. We spent the last two days at a small hotel in the area and on Monday morning I took him to the airport at around 5am.
Saying goodbye was hard, as always, but we knew that it wouldn't be that long until our next visit.
Since then we've been planning and I'm actually going to visit him next month. The time between visits has never been this short and most likely never will be this short again, so I appreciate it a lot
And now... picture-time!
Relaxing at the park
First time on a train
Bavarian food
Canary Islands
Like the others have said, you look lovely together!