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11-03-11 19:37 #1080
Posts: 89The happiest days of my life happen like this:
It's 4:30 am and you're woken by the Provodnitsa knocking on your kupe door,"dvadsat minut" she says. You stir and jump down from your bunk trying not to disturb the sleeping passengers in your compartment. You look out the window and see the lights in the distance of your approaching destination which is a provincial city deep in the heart of Russia that you've chosen to visit purely because you think no other foreigners would. It's black outside and snowing hard. You fold up your 'roll' on the bunk and get dressed in the warmth of the compartment. As the train nears the station you get your bag and move out into the corridor where other bleary eyed passengers stand with their luggage, boxes, kids. The train pulls to a stop and the Provodnitsa dressed in her long coat opens the door and drops the steps. We all shuffle along to eject ourselves from the womb of the train and out into a cold that will momentarily shock you as it hits you, like jumping into the cold pool after a banya. Taxi drivers in leather caps will surround you asking you where you're going (how do they instinctively know you're foreign?). You'll look at your Provodnitsa, the only link to civilization that you know, a surrogate mother who fussed over you on the journey and you'll want to get back on board the train where everything is warm and orderly. But you don't, instead you wish her "Vsevo haroshevo" and head off with the others over the tracks and to the terminal building. Inside is a sea of bleary eyed people and cold stares, men asleep on top of heating vents, a family surrounded by stacks of luggage. You go out into the cold to find a taxi. The best are not the touts but the quiet guys who wait patiently in their cars at the back of the car park."Gostinitsa" you say and negotiate a price, which is made difficult by the fact you've no idea where you are or how far you're going. Eventually you arrive at an old Soviet monolith in the centre of town and realize that the taxi driver didn't rip you off at all, you're definitely not in Moscow anymore. You go in and enter another world from the one you left behind in London just a few days ago, you're back in the 1970's, no 'remonted' lobby, just a big marble clad monstrosity. You walk past the two security guards in their black suits and study their faces trying to decipher if they will be 'girl friendly'. At the reception you will meet your first devushka, she'll be happily surprised by the presence of a foreigner in the hotel. You try not to register the shock of hearing the rediculous price for a room and hand her your passport. As she fills in a form you'll notice two clocks behind her, one showing local time and one showing Moscow time and you'll know you really are somewhere in deepest Russia. As the pretty receptionist gives you your key and explains the times of breakfast you know you'll have to make a play for her at some point in the trip, it's what you do. You get to your room and open it with trepidation: inside is a noisy fridge, threadbare carpet a hard looking bed and t. V. $80! You'll think. You have a wash and crash out to the sound of Russian MTV.
After a couple of hours you wake. You flick on the kettle and open the curtains to a snowy cityscape of kruschovka apartment blocks, kiosks and distant power stations. There are a few cars slowly navigating the icy road, people wait for a trolleybus in long leather coats and hats. It just looks so unwelcoming, the people so cold, the atmosphere so brutal compared to home. And then it begins, the first doubts, the first questions "what am I doing here on my own?","why did I come?","what if I don't meet anyone?","what if the women are unresponsive?","why didn't I stay in Moscow?","why did I come to Russia?" It's classic fight or flight but these are the moments you live for on these trips. And as you take your first sip of coffee you scan the city view again and remind yourself of a few facts. You remind yourself that you've been in these situations before and succeeded, that there is a city of stunning women waiting to be charmed by you, that the devs here have had the fantasy of being whisked away from it all by a dashing lothario since they began msturbating and you're here to full-fill that fantasy. You remind yourself that after your first approach all the nerves will dissipate as if by magic only to be replaced by the familiar excitement of meeting women of incredible beauty. It's time to go to work. And so you blast out the MTV and prepare yourself, shower, dressed, shot of vodka.
You descend in the elevator to the hotel lobby. As you approach the reception you notice that the pretty receptionist from earlier has been replaced by an even hotter one. She smiles warmly, she knows who you are, she's been told. You smile and as you hand in your key you engage in small talk, asking her about the town, what to do, where to go. And then as you say bye and turn to leave, U-turn back to her as though you just remembered something as an after thought and deliver the line you have used time and again,"why don't you put your number in my phone, just in case I get lost or something". She will smile knowingly then take your phone and insert her number. You've just number closed the first dev of the trip and it feels good. As U-turn with a smile of satisfaction the security guard will give you an unfriendly look which says "I've been trying to get her number for 6 months motherfucker". You walk outside and the town that an hour ago seemed so intimidating is now a town of friendly possibilities. You are in 'The Provinces'.
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11-03-11 17:24 #1079
Posts: 88Originally Posted by CanadianBoy [View Original Post]
As to the Russia / Ukraine people from the Russian border towns with passports will drive to Ukraine just to do clothes / grocery shopping since prices are about 50% what they are in Kursk for example. The biggest reason these girls are interested in us is money and the promise of a better life and some excitement in their boring lives.
As for sponsorships, I think you might have it backwards. Girls in Ternopil will almost certainly be living with their parents, and will be reluctant to do this kind of thing. Your best thing going for you is the many students in Kharkiv that live in dorms / shared apartments and have the freedom to spend the night partying late, or spend the night over with someone. They have more possibilities but little personal spending money. These are perfect for sponsorships. I think the right approach in Ternopil is cafes and daytime meetings, and trying to bring girls back not to spend the night but in the evening so they can be home to mom and dad later. This is the small town vs. cosmopolitan city dynamic you see everywhere, so the strategy in the two places will be different. I would think classic one night stands would be easier in Kharkiv (pulling a girl from a club and having her spend the night).
Anyways good luck mate. I'm traveling to Ukraine soon and going to some smaller towns so I will post here again with some thoughts afterwards.
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11-03-11 07:03 #1078
Posts: 249Kharkov
Originally Posted by CanadianBoy [View Original Post]
The problem with Kharkov, or so I have read on this site, is that the girls there seem to be similar to the girls in Belarus: conservative and not as apt to find a sponsor like in Kyiv or a much poorer Ukrainian city like Ternopil. However, I have also read in numerous posts here on ISG that the women in Kharkov are mostly students and absolutely beautiful. However, I don't speak Russian or Ukrainian but I do dress very well, have a trusting personality and am not afraid to spend money. So, I have a tough decision to make. Kharkov could be very rewarding or an absolute disaster. I do like your idea of contacting English departments especially since I was once an english teacher in Budapest and I am educated. This could be a valuable tool, indeed! A plausible excuse to be in Kharkov is easy, how about 'I have a Canadian friend who is married to a Ukrainain woman from here in Kharkov and she wanted to be with her parents in Kharkov for the delivery. I came to visit them and celebrate their frist child'? I like it! Sound good?
Anyway, I am not leaving until early April so I have some time and hunting on dating sites to meet some women between now and then. Once again, any thoughts or advice is not only welcomed but encouraged.
Thank you!
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11-03-11 03:19 #1077
Posts: 88Originally Posted by CanadianBoy [View Original Post]
I prefer the Russian-speaking cities since I think the women are a little easier and less prudish than in Western Ukraine (but this could just be my luck of the draw) and I speak Russian. So cities like Lugansk, Sumy, Kharkiv. Eastern Ukraine is more industrial and feels more "Soviet" if you know what I mean. Although there are nice cities in there too. I would probably pick Poltava or Chernigov if you wanted a smaller town (these are more Central than Eastern). The disadvantage of course is these cities are much uglier and more expensive than Western Ukraine, which is actually pretty beautiful in terms of nature and the cities have nice centers.
I guess if I had a month to do reading/writing and wanted to focus on just a couple women (1-3) I think a Western Ukrainian city would be perfect and you could do it for very cheaply and with minimal logistic hassles. Language is an issue, but certainly in Lvov for instance that can be easily overcome.
I haven't been to Nizhniy but it does have some reports here. I think it's probably similar to other volga cities like Kazan / Samara / Volgograd although Nizhniy is the biggest / richest out of those. To be honest I would prefer going to Dnepropetrovsk if you want that river / embankment atmosphere in summer and a decent sized city. Will still be much cheaper than Nizhniy, and no visa / registration hassles. Nizhniy is a former closed city so it's harder to get registration there than in other cities. (Not at a hotel, that's easy, but private registration is harder)
Basically my experience has been that Kiev is on par in terms of costs with major Russian provincial capitals like Novosibirsk or Nizhniy Novgorod. Things like transportation and accomodation might actually be cheaper in Kiev. For instance a ride on the Kiev metro is cheaper than a marshrutka ride in Samara, Russia. Once you go outside Kiev costs are lower than in any major Russian city.
Just as an example I did some searching just now and it looks like in Dnepro you can find okay cheaper evro-remont apartments for $30 a night, whereas in Volgograd they are $50+. So you'll pay about double for accommodation. I'd expect monthly rents to be about double as well. I know for instance in a city of 1 million in Russia the cheapest one-room apartments will be $300/month or so, and a decent apartment with cosmetic remont will be $450/month. Ukraine is definitely cheaper. Of course these are for extended stays, so for a single month you will pay more. In Kazan for instance if you wanted a euro-remont apartment somewhere in the center for just a single month I'd expect to pay $800 or more. I bet you can find that in Ternopil for $400 ($500 for sure). Don't use one of the daily apartment agencies, instead find one of the listings and contact the owner to negotiate a monthly rate. Use Google translate if you can't speak Russian or what I have done in the past is find a girl who will negotiate this for you on your first day there and pay her a fee for her help (say $50).
According to the link below average salary in Nizhniy Novogord was $650/month in 2009, and that was after the crisis. I'd expect it to be up to $750/$800 a month now. So young professionals while not rich won't be hard on cash for going out at night (keep in mind most don't pay for car/health insurance/housing). That's probably similar in terms of disposable income to many lower-class people in the USA. Compare that to Ternopil where average salaries were $200 in 2009 and $250 now. Once you take food/clothing out of that budget there's not much left.
(http://r52.ru/index.phtml?rid=12&fid=325&sid=44&nid=34136)
Here's a link to a Nizhny Club:
http://ztopclub.com/
Just browsing there I see that entrance to a concert in 2009 was 600 rubles ($20) to enter. I'd expect beers to be about $3-4 and cocktails $5-7. Slightly cheaper than a medium-sized US city, but probably not more than 25%. A night out at a club like that will run you easily $50 if you're drinking lightly and invite 1 or 2 girls for a cocktail. Not to mention taxi costs which after living in provincial Russia for six months I know in my city they were standard at about 100 rubles in the center. That's $3.50. In Ukraine they should be about $1 in a smaller city (10 hryvnia). Not a big deal if you are just going to one club, but taxis and cover quickly add up if you are club hopping to find the best party. When it's $20 for cover/taxi for each club, switching venues suddenly gets expensive. In provincial Ukraine it's just $4-$5 for cover+taxi charge, so going to 2-3 clubs a night is no big deal.
For an extended stay these are all good options, I think you will have success with freebies anywhere, so I would recommend the place with easier logistics and lower costs. While Russia seems more "distant" and remote it's actually more expensive and less comfortable than places in Europe like provincial Ukraine or Moldova. Still by all means try Nizhniy if you want to, I'm sure you won't be disappointed. You will be more exotic in Russia since there are fewer foreigners, but you will be much less impressive in terms of money/wealth (unless you really are wealthy, even then Russians will only believe it if you spend and flash your wealth). Remember the recent statistics that while in 1995 a huge percentage of single Russian women said they would marry a foreigner and emigrate to the West, the figure now is only something like 5%.
Also keep in mind it's my experience in terms of pros you will almost always do better in Russia than in Ukraine (Kiev excepted).
I fully understand that many on here are more constrained by time than prices. Saving $1000 doesn't matter when you are spending your 1 free week a year partying and wanting to bang hot model-quality girls. But for those of us that have lower incomes but more flexible schedules I think Ukraine is the much better value proposition. The fact that there's no visa requirement or registration and other red tape is easier is just the icing on the cake.
Since you don't speak Russian (I assume no Ukrainian either?) you know you could target Kharkiv since the number of students is insanely high and you will be there while it's in session. It's kind of the Boston of Ukraine in that not only is it a pretty big city (second largest in Ukraine) it has a very high percentage of population made up of students. You could go partying at clubs every night of the week and find girls celebrating birthdays, etc. even while school is in session. It looks to be only slightly cheaper than Kiev though, so probably about the same as Nizniy Novogord (slightly cheaper).
You could aggressively contact English departments (search their websites) and say you are offering English language lessons with a native speaker in return for being shown the city. Send your email and then don't respond to guys and friend the women on vkontakte first. Meet up with the best 5-10 prospects in terms of enthusiasm/looks. You will need a story as to why you are in Kharkiv, so figure something out that is plausible. The advantage to this strategy is you are targeting girls you know what to spend time with an English-speaker. In Ternopil there's no way you could date 10 girls simultaneously because of the anonymity issues.
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11-02-11 16:05 #1076
Posts: 2306Originally Posted by Latexian2 [View Original Post]
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11-02-11 08:24 #1075
Posts: 249Originally Posted by Latexian2 [View Original Post]
I hope you don't mind me picking your brain once more: any other smaller cities in Ukraine you might recommend? I have been flirting with the idea of visiting Nizhny-Novgorod, Russia. What are your thoughts on that city? Keep in mind I do not speak Russian. Again, thank you for your time and expertise.
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11-02-11 03:12 #1074
Posts: 88Originally Posted by CanadianBoy [View Original Post]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...ries_by_salary
I think it would be a great target if you're looking for freebies, but I wouldn't be surprised if you don't find any pros. Taxi drivers are your best bet there, but you might strike out. Looks like an apartment can be had for $20 / day:
http://doba.ua/cities/Ternopol/1063093840/flatinfo.html
It looks like great budget destination. If you have okay looks, some Russian / Ukrainian language skills, and time I think it'd be great for freebies. And you could target freebies on a budget of less than $50 / day including food and accomodation. You could probably entice a girl to be "sponsored" for $100-$200. It seems that there are eight clubs, although some might be more like restaurants with a dance floor:
http://nightlife.tochka.net/clubs/ternopol/
(Here is the webpage for one club I found just searching online, looks like beer is $1 and entrance under $5: http://www.riverpool.com.ua/?menu=home)
And it has the advantage that if things really suck you can always just bail and go to Lviv which is just a few hours by bus.
I would only go to such a place if you have at least 1-2 weeks (a month preferred) and you have a few girls lined up online before you go. Also it does have 3-4 universities (VUZ's) so your'e better going while school is in session. The reason is these are like lowest-class universities almost, so girls from even smaller/poorer towns go here (as well as local girls) whereas the girls who are from the local elites are probably going to Lviv/Kiev/Kharkiv to study. That means that at the beginning of summer many girls from small villages will leave the town for summer and only a few will arrive to take their spots, but from the big cities (much harder to lay).
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11-01-11 11:05 #1073
Posts: 249Ternopil?
Originally Posted by Latexian2 [View Original Post]
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10-07-11 01:12 #1072
Posts: 720Yaroslavl
Yaroslavl, or Yarik as they sometimes call it. I didn't care for the city much. Stayed at Utah hotel, clean, basic hotel for about $100 a night. We just spent 2 nights there. Went to Korol' club the first night, it's a huge place, nicely decorated, about half empty, and it turned out mainly visited by people on drugs. Went to Med club the next day and selection and quality / ratio was much better. Picked up a freebie. Other than that not much to report. Doesn't seem like much to do there, only a handful of clubs and food was so so. You might have better time if you have a local to show you around and or if you have more time on hands. I would say fly further east to a bigger city if you venture out of Moscow / Spb.
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10-06-11 15:46 #1071
Posts: 6Originally Posted by Dogger862 [View Original Post]
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10-05-11 19:46 #1070
Posts: 75Originally Posted by Spanish Main [View Original Post]
Certainly there could be experiences to be had for less than 2500 / hr, but that would depend on a few variables, such as language ability, perserverence, will & time. I was just trying to give a general indication.
500 RUR for mutual massage and HJ at an advertised parlour in Moscow. Not that I know of, but I don't monger much in Moscow itself.
Cheers,
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10-05-11 14:22 #1069
Posts: 301Amazing
Originally Posted by Dogger862 [View Original Post]
Surely some lovely privates are available much cheaper than 2500R.
In Moscow a couple of years ago I had a daily mutual massage and HJ for 500 R with a variety of good looking young girls. It was a proper parlour advertised in the paper. Is that impossible now?
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10-05-11 11:47 #1068
Posts: 75Originally Posted by Mohab [View Original Post]
I wouldn't necessarily recommend Vlad as my number one provincial destination in Russia. If you want to go to the Far East, try Khabarovsk, in my opinion far better than Vlad. You could always fly into Vlad, check it out and then overnight train to Khabarovsk.
Other options that I think are better than Vlad in addition to those already mentioned are Irkutsk and Krasnoyarsk. Depends on how far you want to go and what else you want to do there.
Whatever city you choose, it's hard to go wrong in the provinces.
Cheers,
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10-05-11 11:41 #1067
Posts: 75Originally Posted by Guido88 [View Original Post]
I see Strav has already helped you out, I'll just add that while I didn't look for a tochka or go to a salon, I would be surprised if there were not any available. I went with a sponsorette and we had some contacts pre-arranged through Mamba. But what I saw in the clubs and on the street was promising. Your driver should be able to help you out.
Pricing should be cheaper than Moscow or St. Pete, as it usually is in the provinces. As a general guide, and again I'm a bit out of touch as my stable of sponsorettes keeps me busy and satisfied enough, you'll probably be looking at 2500 R an hour (?) , although others may want to chime in.
Cheers
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10-02-11 10:18 #1066
Posts: 402Originally Posted by Wallyally [View Original Post]
Its good my pm was useful. From someone whos been there, it is pretty good.
Also check out taxi drivers, they will all take you to a lineup.
I'll be flying accross soon myself. Cheers Nickc