Moscow, Baby

Just a few weeks ago, we submitted our "Basic Registration" packet to CHI to be forwarded to Russia. There, they told us, it would be translated and the team there would select from the 16 possible regions the one that best suited us. And Thursday we received an email that told us that region was Moscow City :-). Below is the email directly from Anna, our CHI case manager, explaining the pros and cons of this region:

Dear Gregory and Jessica,
I have received information from our chief representative in Russia regarding the region for you guys. She has recommended Moscow City Region (now this is different from the Moscow Region) J When you travel to Russia – you will arrive in Moscow and you will remain in Moscow for the rest of your trip.
Moscow City is a very good region with established and clear requirements (so far we never had a judge ask for any additional documents on top of what’s on the list). Here are few details about this region that you will need to know, so you can make your decision if you want to go to this region.

The positives about the region:
* Shorter time in country.
* You don’t have to travel within Russia , so you save money on not having to buy any more tickets. Which can be $500-$1,200 per person per trip.
* You don’t have to have in-country medical (you definitely save money here, which can be $750 per person + blood work and chest X-rays).
* Moscow City normally issues a referral about 1-3 months after the registration
* There is normally only 1-1.5 months between 1st and 2nd trip

The down side of the region:
* You stay in Moscow where the hotels can be more expensive then in smaller towns
* There are no first trips during summer months
* There is additional fee of $X for orphanage donation and transportation (this is something that applies only to this region and Nizhny Novgorod region).

Hope this makes sense and helps you make a decision about the region.
Please let me know if you think this will work for you or if you think of any questions – I’ll be happy to discuss them with you.

Anna

As you see, we do have the option to decline this region recommendation and have another one selected for us however we intend to move forward with Moscow. It is our understanding that the orphanages in Moscow City (versus the Moscow region, another option) tend to be more financially stable thus the children are generally thriving. Now, we begin the second massive load of paperwork with the hope of getting it submitted in time to possible get a referral and make a first trip before the summer starts (ambition!).