Trip of a lifetime!!!
(Late post due to problems with forum. Got back 5/24/07)
I just returned from Taganrog and 1st face to face with my lady. She fulfilled my expectations of her with much the same result of a person trying to take a sip of water from a fire hydrant. She knocked my socks off and rocked my world!
Taganrog is a cute town of a couple hundred thousand on the Sea of Azov. Weather turned unseasonably warm during my visit leaving me stuck with cold weather clothes. Mosquitoes were awful. But I live in Florida so not too terribly different than what I was used to. Except the traffic. Reminded me of Mexico City.
Her family and friends were the best people. All very down to earth and pleasant company. Had a great time and wined and dined like a king for very little money relative to me. Yuriy the translator and agent was the best and always at hand. Used the Ectaco Translator for private discussions and that worked out very well. Had several "Yuriy Free" days so we could tell if we could do it on our own.
Interesting thing about our situation; we spent the first months of our relationship writing to each other at great length. Some of you feel this is a negative thing but if you can maintain a written relationship without other "encumbrances" then you have established a foundation of communication that is of the first magnitude. Everything else is icing on the cake. We communicate very well and we fell in love with each others thoughts and emotions rather than physical or other attributes.
As a matter of fact, things went so well that she said “Da” and we have her family’s blessings to proceed with plans for marriage. (Mike, she is amazing! I know this is not your style but I can live with it.)
Had a romantic day in Rostov and went on cruise of Don River and ate at nice restaurant on banks of Don. Her close friends are photographers and donated 1 day to following us around recording our “moments”. A priceless and generous gift. We now have photos of those precious moments that would have otherwise been unrecorded. I would recommend hiring a photographer or at least a person to take photos during your first meetings. Develop them later if you desire but they are priceless memories. I am trying to set her friend up with a location on FlickrLeech to display their work as repayment for their generosity.
My feelings of success on this trip were confirmed when at SVO2. Russian Inspector found the 4 bottles of vodka bestowed upon me by her father. He said I must have really impressed someone as this was the good stuff. He did not keep any for himself nor ask for a bribe. Very nice man!!!
SVO needs to come out of dark ages. Big international airport with no adequate transportation between the international and domestic terminals. And no A/C. 5 hour layover really sucked!!! Aeroflot bus driver lied about his route. Said to take different bus but then appeared at SVO2 when I was getting out of taxi. Don’t believe the damn Yuriy!!
Bottom line: It was a very good trip. All expectations from months of letter writing confirmed or exceeded. Marriage is on. Visa application in process. Taganrog very nice place with plenty to see and do. She is a woman of high moral standards, impeccable grace and beauty, character, class and intelligence. I hope I can live up to all of her expectations.
I will say that I have been very lucky in my search for the right person. I am not even sure if I made a decision or if this whole thing is simply fate or destiny. There have been too many coincidences that have brought the two of us together to say that fate did not play a role. But the relationship appears sound and has solid foundation and we are confident that language will not be an issue. I am now paying for her English lessons and may send her to the Language Institute in Tagarog if she says she is interested. There is now a period of time where she may benefit from full time English instruction while the visa process progresses.
Thanks to all of you who have been instrumental in our developing relationship. Each of you has played a part, in some small way, in our finding happiness. I thank each of you out there and wish you the same success.
Bill
p.s. On a negative note, I witnessed a man in Atlanta bragging about this being his 3rd trip to Russia and not having much luck. He was trying a lead in Kazan this time. He was wearing what looked like knee length black denim shorts with black socks and brown loafers. He had on a tie-died t-shirt and an old green fatigue military shirt unbuttoned over the t-shirt. Now I am no clothes hound. I was traveling in blue jeans and a pull-over golf shirt and tennis shoes for comfort, but if you are going abroad to “strut your stuff” try to look a little like a peacock and less like a pig. The ladies do their best to look good for us. Spend a little time and effort to dress yourself up a little. God help the women of Kazan
Congrats are definitely in order for your trip. !
I corresponded with my fiance for 12 months, had a lot of dialog concerning just about everything and that took a lot of stress off of us for the first meeting and a week together in her apartment.
Godo luck on your journey....you may want to visit visajourney.com now and join the Russia threads with the ones of us doing the K-1 & K-3.
Navarreman1, nice story. we nock the woodn, and keep our fingers crossed so everything works out fine with your fiance. which web site did you meet you lady on?
I have been to visajourney.com. Wonderful site. Very informative. K1 is in process but I am waiting on paperwork from her side. Background, biography etc. Hopefully all will progress smoothly and it should be done in 4-6 months.
I can recommend no web site more than visajourney.com for anyone who is trying this. It is a huge clearinghouse of information and experience with excellent flowchart and instructions and tips. It would be nice to see some of the dating sites have direct links to visajourney website. HINT HINT!!!
Were any men wearing shorts in Taganrog during the heatwave? When I went to Novosibirsk in June 2002, it was hot over there. None of the men in that city wore shorts, so I left mine in the suitcase. That wasn't fun. I guess that's one difference between Russia and the USA. I LOVE wearing shorts if the temperature is above 68F (20c). Congrats again!
I left before it got really hot. Younger men would wear shorts or some of the older guys (30-50) would if they were going for a walk by the seaside, but in general all working type dudes wore long pants. I received an e-mail Saturday saying the temperature had reached 100 degrees. I feel certain that more folks were wearing shorts. I knew things got hot while I was there but I never imagined how hot!!! LOL
Whew!..I just got back from Moscow a couple of weeks ago and it was COLD and raining and some snow showers! When we were in my fiance's city it was the same weather....she would say tomorrow hot...I found out what she was telling me Hot meant the sun was going to shine !
Good to see its working for you bill --iam retiring from russian birds after last trip not negative just had enough mate ive had my 8 years -
I see yours is great mate i wish you all the best - mate iam spending next 3 months with the manager going to do a book on russia / girls etc / trust / you know all the up's and downs .
iam afraid mate ive lost trust so much so i think id near quirie the milkman ay now.
sad but what do you do !
IVE ENDED relations with mine to much barbed wire ! too many things ones ive been with just dont add up .
to me mate as you know from day 1 every word from woman must be absolutely correct - and no even though ive lived the life of playboy for 8 years , ive made some new rules after last trip mate . the dawning you know -happens to us all .
new rules ok
Any bird this world asks me for sixpence she's out the gate no if's but's !
life has to be a two way street she has to go 50/ 50 with me in everything from a toothpick to a light bill ---------if she cant do that she's in the wrong house with me .
I won't give an inch now -not an inch - not an excuse from her no - fair go you of all know my situation .being a nice guy seemingly dosent work with em they exploit it !
There will be no more pressies to birds from me --------as once someone tells me a lie well its an open book to more fibs if they tell you 1 they'l tell you 50 .
so true .
new rules HMM bird has to be there in life just for you if you got $2 or 200k - it cannot ever be a factor in any equasion of relations - you can't measure love in $$$ .
I recall 20 years back in aussie if a bird liked yu you had zero she'd sleep under a gum tree with you and share lifes grief .
Why not now?? $64.000 dollar question ay ?
il never have the answer to it !!!
Ive learnt a couple of things in russia il never tell anybody again iam a well off bloke as they see it as an open door to decieve .
Next bird i meet may be russian i dunno iam having a rest from em - but she's going to have to have some very special internals to be with this duck
(A no interest in money whatsoever
(B not a career nut
(c not interested in westernising ( that alone i'l send you broke)
when she asks me what i do il reply i work for the govvy = yeah bum on the dole ! never again will i turn up silk shirt 2000/ 3000 euro hanging out of pockets havana cigars i love a havana -
il display everything that appears opposite to wealth no basterd il ever know again ive got a quid .
they can back that right in to 4 to 1 favourite .
I think yours is ok bill iam speaking with Yuri nightly sorting out the loss fugg sake what a loss !!!!
THANKS for the tip on him bill capitolist that he is but i suppose he has to make a quid somehow !
well i may seek again ive a few old flames in the book ! but they may be same same leopard never changes its spots -------we'l see -
Iam off on holiday bill thailand june 16th to 26th i need a rest get over the shit ive just been through may just grab a thai dancer and bedroom dance for 10 days .
iVE LISTED APARTMENT FOR SALE IN ROSTOV 4 DAYS AGO il return ( said McArthur )--- when the graft is gone and when the birds all revert to dead honest .
signed ''shaken not stirred ''
Sorry to hear its all turned to custard Mike. You were our great hope from down under, the trail blazer. The one to lead us all to the promised land. I think after you have written your book and had time to reflect, you will look back on your last 8 years and think, "what a ride". Do you honestly think, if you had stayed in Aussie, you would have had even a fraction of the adventure you had in Russia? A woman in any country will spend all you have have and more if you give it, but at least in Russia they are worth having on your arm.
Have a good time in Thailand,
Never say die ))
your right mate what got me in the end though mate was the demands and wroughts for money was so overpowering to me -------well you really had to be thier mate ,
every ten minutes they had the next relative lined up for me to puruse that needed help $$$ of course .
cant really blame the girl as she is indoctrined by the family --pushed the way they want her .
Disshonesty though abhores me ! i can't cope seeing it around me / beneath me / beside me .
Mate if i have to endure that in life with the job i do !!! no sorry mate id rather live 500 miles west of nowhere in a bush hut on my own .
to me nothing is ever a good enough excuse to run a wrought on people .
I dont have to endure it in Australia , new zed , 33 other countries ive been in life -russia / ukraine places as such - everything is built on ''cheat '' and decieve . no not for me mate
girl or no girl --il never need the love of money enough to have to stoop to that .
no way known.
to me everything around me has to be squeaky clean otherwise 1 lie leads to 50 and 50 leads to 500 no mate not for this duck
woman can see me with my 200k plus a year job iam not going to hide it -to me my income / job means a lot -but in respect to what it makes me in dollars --hell i put more precedence on re- reading last weeks tv week -because i know my income is always there so it means diddly to me
To her it has to mean exactly the same --i can go to bed in aussie mate 3k euro under the pillow and wake up with it still there and NO i live old style i dont lock my doors matter of fact ive never had a front door key .
To her its all got to have as much precedence as i put on it ( ZERO ) --------i dont worry about me.
so i dont want to spend my life as a budding detective worrying if she is correct or not .
you get my drift - as present look i think ive got $2500 lazy in the draw id not even bother to count it -----but i dont want a world where iam worrying about what some bird thinks of wealth and assetts NO balls to that --at home i have no worries but bird with me mate -------she has to have same non interest in shit money and things it buys as i do - exactly -or she no good to me!!
i dont want some futuristic bird visions of shops , harods of london , the lourve museum in paris hermitage where i work sometimes st peters .
you know ive done all that to me its a job its a appealing as a fart in a space suit.
ITS ALL BORING NOW
ive still got the bird sortoff ive worded her up the rules
I will not KEEP in any way or form - extended family the guys whom marry russian birds /' marry the family to go with it are MUGS fugg the family they get emselves into shit then they can get emselves out ---fuggem -- we did not make there life horrid so fugg em they can crawl out the pit on thier bloody own .
I will not keep in life ANY PART OF EXTENDED FAMILY OF A GIRL ! no i dont believe in that crap - very few aussies do believe in that !
i give $1000 a year to charity il happy continue to as well - but to able bodied people sobbin victims of system ohh WOE is us ----------hey they choose to live there - you cant expect next johhny to come bail you out -no fugg that .
so yes ADMAN REASON IVE BAILED OUT IS BASICAL 80% she wanted me to not only prop up family ohh but the friends were getting led to front door ----there you go they said ALEX the wallet is first door on the left ( western bloke with the hat )me !!!-----help yourself ! bloody spongers !!!
whom on hear has every been paid BACK 1 DOLLAR FROM A RUSSIAN ??? HMM NO HANDS IN THE AIR HUH ??
thats situation i was in -----------fuggem to much deciet for me mate .
they all survived just FINE before we came alone --fuck em they can survive just as good without bleeding us to death .