Where to meet a Russian Woman?

[Basileus]

Since, I am a rookie, unlike some of you fellas, I would like to know what is the best way or ways, to meet a Russian woman through the internet. I mean you see these sites asking for 10 dollars an address which seems to be milking the cash cow from potential suitors. Is there a site like a personals' site, that is reputable where you pay a certain flat fee per month as you would say in a match.com site. I did browse match, they didn't seem to have a quality of Russian women that I was looking for.
So with you, I am looking to do my homework:) So help me out, will ya:) LOL

Basil

[ConnerVT]

Where do you meet a Russian woman? The obvious answer is -- in Russia! :D

But more seriously, that is a question that has generated many megabytes (probably gigabytes) of text on web pages and discussion boards over quite a few years. I'm not prepared to post the syllabus of RW101 -- Introduction to Your Russian Bride, but I'll list a number of ways people have met: Buying addresses from agencies/Internet sites; Free Internet dating services; ICQ and other chat rooms; Full service introduction agencies; Romance tours/socials; Personal ads placed in Russian newspapers; Introductions by friends and/or relatives; and Traveling to Russia and meeting someone.
(I'm sure there are more ways, but this was just off the top of my head.)

No one way is best (although you will find many people arguing that there is!). It all depends on the type of person you are, what you are looking for in a woman, and your preferred method of dating.

Some people like to meet many people. Others are only comfortable with writing/meeting only one person, even before they are in a committed relationship. Some people are adventuresome, and ready to venture out in an unknown country with little support behind them. Others like having all of their logistical issues (housing, interpreting, etc.) already arranged.

My suggestion is determine who you are, and what works best for you. Then, decide what traits and qualities the person you wish to meet should posses. After answering those two questions, you will find that the method in which you meet is not all that important.

[Basileus]

Sean, I know what you mean. I mean 30 bucks on a few addresses for women who are marriage-minded, and traditional you do have a decent chance, you might say, better than a girl you would shell out cash for to buy her drinks. The latter is spoiled. Well, I just told this Russian girl I was talking to that I told her we shouldn't continue talking. She went too fast for me, and wanted to see me after a few e-mails and talked about how she was unhappy in Russia, and wanted to get married and have kids. It seemed too desperate for my blood. Anyway, now I am talking to an Italian American who seems really sweet, that might be a little better though I have had a very good experience with one Russian girl who I would have married if the time was right.

[CHORNYVOLK]

Russian women are all over the world.
Seek and you will find one.

[Marcdej]

There are several websites that charge less than $ 10 per address. Some agencies work with memberships. You pay $ 20 or $ 30 per month. For that sum you can correspond with all ladies that are on the site. It's a rather cheap option, but beware of scams: some agencies answer the letters themselves. The agency is more trustworthy if you have access to the full address database. A few agencies that are recommended can be found here:
http://www.honestmarriageagencies.com





------------------------------------------------------------
The Free Russian Women E-book
http://www.russianladiesagency.com

[ConnerVT]

I am familiar with the sponser of the above site. Kevin seems to be a pretty straight shooter, and may be less driven by profit than most of the people in the introduction industry (I avoid the MOB term as much as possible). Kevin is attempting to establish his own network of "honest" agencies. But then, much depends on each person's individual experience to make such a judgement.

I believe men spend too much effort on the HOW to locate their special woman, and not enough effort on WHO that special woman is. Perhaps it is a Y chomosome thing. The method of the search overtakes the reason they began the search in the first place.

There are less expensive (and more expensive) paths one can take. But the least expensive one is to know who you are looking for before you start looking! For unless you are one of those professional searchers, your major expense won't be what you pay for introductions and addresses -- it will be of airfare to return again and again, immigration expenses, wedding costs, building your family, etc...

[datastream]

Basil,
I did a little research, not too much, when I started looking around. All the sites I came across were what you talk about with paying per address or per reading and writing email.
Then I came across this site here (Russian Meeting Place) Photo Personals.
It is a flat rate site that has a decent amount of selections but not a load of constant new entries, which is good and bad...

I have had a pretty good response rate with the women on here and only ran into one or two who said differently than what their profile said.
The search is open and free so you can see what matches for you before deciding to put out money for a flat contact rate.

I have to say it is the only place I have paid for, but I do not think it is worth it to me to pay for every contact.
In my opinion, I think that just means those sites put as many people on there as possible and have them send emails just so you pay...

[Basileus]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by datastream


Data, I took your advice and you gave me some good advice, I think and the answer I was looking for. The list of women on this site are actually interesting and the service is reasonable. I mean I heard of many pitfalls of paying for all these addresses. I want to make direct contact with the girls and feel that the service is real....

Basil

[Redriveroutlaw]

www.date.com is a site I have been using for quite a while. Use your common sence when using an internet site. Most of the girls I have come in contact with have been honest and sincere. You can easily pick out which ones are fake and who is genuine.

[vincent]

Basileus,
I can only speak from my own experince. I found a very nice Russian women at svetlansbrides.com I visited there in May this year. Her rates are very low and I found her (the owner Svetlana) a very honest women. I run short of money while I was there and she loaned me some and told me to pay her back when I got home. She treated me as her son and made sure my every need was taken care of. I would highly recommend her to anyone who was looking for a bride.
Just my opinion
vince

[Basileus]

Originally posted by Redriveroutlaw
www.date.com is a site I have been using for quite a while. Use your common sence when using an internet site. Most of the girls I have come in contact with have been honest and sincere. You can easily pick out which ones are fake and who is genuine.

DATE.COM? Is that a site that is good for seeking out Russian women? I will take a look at it. I mean match for example is a bad site in my opinion for Russian women that I would be looking for.... So you are in southern Oklahoma?
I just recently started looking at the personals on this site. I guess I would like to speak to more than one Russian woman before I make up my mind.


Basil

[Pablo]

What do u talking about ?? i look that u speak about women...... And as to you Russian women..... I lived with Russian woman in Russia.... But then we have sworn :(

[Basileus]

Originally posted by Pablo
What do u talking about ?? i look that u speak about women...... And as to you Russian women..... I lived with Russian woman in Russia.... But then we have sworn :(


Pablo, non peudo entender ... Pueda expliquar mas?
So you had a bad experience with a Russian woman. I had a good one so far, with an ex-girlfriend. As far as Vincent, the Svetlanasbrides site looks to be interesting so far.

Basil

[Pablo]

Originally posted by Basileus
Pablo, non peudo entender ... Pueda expliquar mas?
So you had a bad experience with a Russian woman. I had a good one so far, with an ex-girlfriend. As far as Vincent, the Svetlanasbrides site looks to be interesting so far.

Basil

que no comprendes....? i wrote that i lived with russian girl in russia... and i quarreled with her

[OlenkaKyiv]

Originally posted by CHORNYVOLK
Russian women are all over the world.
Seek and you will find one.

But the most part of them are in Russia ;)

Go to Russia

Olenka

[Skooter]

Try this one its good
http://freepersonals.ru/

[Basileus]

Originally posted by Skooter
Try this one its good
http://freepersonals.ru/

Skooter, Euxapistw Filamou.... Ti Kavete? So you are in Greece. I checked out the site, it is very, very nice. You know curiously two of the girls I am writing to wrote me first, they found my profile. The second one is a doctor. One thing to take into consideration is whether a girl or woman can stand on her own two feet or you have to take care of her on the long-term and she would take a while to work here. What do you think, bro? For me, like any guy, I think about looks, but I guess you have to put many factors together and looks as long as they are at a certain point and the person has stellar credentials, I guess you go for that. I am getting more experienced at this stuff, I think.

Basil

[Skooter]

Basil
On Freepersonals alot of the ladies don't post studio photos, so from my experiense they actually were better looking than the pics.
Alot pay themselves to be put on site, so they are serious about about finding a partner, I found by writing, less asking for help or money than from any other site.
Just with the good looking ones, be prepared to visit fairly soon, there is plenty of competition out there, thing that I did was write then visit within 3 months, the good lookers are gonna have plenty of guys writing and promising, but 'he who dares wins'

[Basileus]

Originally posted by Skooter
Basil
On Freepersonals alot of the ladies don't post studio photos, so from my experiense they actually were better looking than the pics.
Alot pay themselves to be put on site, so they are serious about about finding a partner, I found by writing, less asking for help or money than from any other site.
Just with the good looking ones, be prepared to visit fairly soon, there is plenty of competition out there, thing that I did was write then visit within 3 months, the good lookers are gonna have plenty of guys writing and promising, but 'he who dares wins'

Skooter, I admit I sure would like a pretty cute wife. I am not necessarily looking for someone who is really good looking, as long as I think she looks good to me. I understand they want someone to visit them in three months. That might be easy for some folks who live in Europe or are businessmen who can just take a vacation. I actually have my summers off as a teacher. What do you do? When do you get time off? And why didn't you hook up with any of those cute Russian dames you met?:)

Hope all is well, Skoot:)

Basil

[Skooter]

Basil
I'm not saying you have to be there in 3 months, just realise the goodlooking new ladies get chased pretty quick.
I work in restaurant business which is seasonal, so I have winter free.
I found writing for more than 3 months boring, difficult to keep the correspondence interesting, so I wrote to some from september, then did the visit fairly soon, the ladies I met hadn't met foreign guys before, so they were untainted from bad experiences.
Hey if you are good catch they're gonna wait, me I class myself as pretty ordinary, so I wanted to get in before the stampede.
I met a great lady in Tashkent, I'm going again in 4 weeks and probably again in March.
Like Vincent says, I also heard good reports about Svetlanabrides,
Be careful some of the babes out there are cuye but they make a career out of this business, and its got nothing to do with marriage.

[frankFrank]

I used Crimealife Connections, it wasn't as expensive, but they have not a lot of women, $15 for a month, then I cancelled. Plus they delivered flowers, which were a big hit.

[Skooter]

sean
Congratulations and good luck, I hope I follow in your footsteps, maybe we''ll marry in about a year, funnily enough my lady's name is Svetlana as well, also pretty similar looking, but not the same gal.
I thought Tashkent was a revelation as far as the women were concerned, I don't know why more guys don't go there, its worth a couple of extra hours flying.

[COCOCHA]

Originally posted by Basileus
Since, I am a rookie, unlike some of you fellas, I would like to know what is the best way or ways, to meet a Russian woman through the internet. I mean you see these sites asking for 10 dollars an address which seems to be milking the cash cow from potential suitors. Is there a site like a personals' site, that is reputable where you pay a certain flat fee per month as you would say in a match.com site. I did browse match, they didn't seem to have a quality of Russian women that I was looking for.
So with you, I am looking to do my homework:) So help me out, will ya:) LOL

Basil
Question to you: what qualities you are talking about???
shy, modest,miserable, able to survive on 20 $ a year???
What was wrong if she wanted you to visit her right away???
That meens she is serious about her search...
My husband came to visit me after one month since our first e-mail, but he planed his trip after a few e-mails....so see the result.
Those who were afraid of " rushing in", well, they are still in deep ...you know what

[Basileus]

Originally posted by COCOCHA
Question to you: what qualities you are talking about???
shy, modest,miserable, able to survive on 20 $ a year???
What was wrong if she wanted you to visit her right away???
That meens she is serious about her search...
My husband came to visit me after one month since our first e-mail, but he planed his trip after a few e-mails....so see the result.
Those who were afraid of " rushing in", well, they are still in deep ...you know what

Cocoocha, I suppose if you understood the situation, then it would be different. For many people, Russia is far away. You are not going to fly all that distance unless you feel rather close to a person, it is not like flying to Philadelphia when you are in say Kansas City, so you have to feel rather confident about a female before going all that distance, and I do not mean just feeling you can trust the woman, but to feel there is definitely a lot of compatibility. Your husband is not the typical case. What qualities am I looking for? Someone intelligent, modest, kind, warm, able to hold a good conversation, a communicator, someone who likes the small pleasures of life like nature, meaning she doesn't mind some of the bustle of the city life but likes quiet moments sometimes. No one can survive on $20 LOL.
Anyway, school teachers make around 40 K. I don't think I need to rush, I am 31. I want to do things right in life which means emotionally, financially or whatever domain in life.

[ConnerVT]

Originally posted by COCOCHA
Those who were afraid of " rushing in", well, they are still in deep ...you know what

To quote the early 18th Century English poet Alexander Pope -- Fools rush in where angels fear to tread

I find your comments interesting, for they are contrary to most of what I've experienced or have read. Most Russian women I've met feel that we Western men are already a bit foolish for traveling so far to find our other half. They appreciate it and accept it, but still think it a bit foolish. They seem to get over it as the relationship develops.

Not speaking of your husband (for I never have met him), but wouldn't a RW think if a man is willing to drop everything and fly half way around the world to meet a woman he has known for only a month, he may be prone to do so again if he finds another woman who strikes his interest? Wouldn't a woman feel a man was irresponsible with his money and resources, to quickly jump to such quick decisions without thoughtfully looking at all the details? Wouldn't a Russian woman feel that she could find a foolish man like this in Russia?

I must agree with Basil. My experience is that my fiancée is glad she has found a man who is both passionate and responsible. I am strong in my convictions, I make my decisions based what is best for my new family, and shower them with my attention and affection.

I have posted this thought many times before -- Falling in love is easy. It is staying in love that takes effort. It is important that a person takes a step back and uses his head as well as his heart to make the correct decision.

[COCOCHA]

Well, different ppl -different opinions
Just take my advise: if you are interested in someone -make her think you are planning to visit her soon, otherwise she will forget about you fast and you will wonder for a long time why did she stop replying to your e-mails

[ConnerVT]

Take your advice... I look at advice as being as worthy as the person who offers it to me.

I agree that you should not have a long, drawn out time between the time two people develop an interest between one another and when they meet. But then, there are many people who express an interest in meeting, and only a limited number that are worthy for each person to meet.

Where that line is for each person if for them to decide. If it isn't the same for two different people, perhaps they were not meant to meet. Destiny plays a big part in everyone's life.

[Basileus]

Originally posted by ConnerVT
Take your advice... I look at advice as being as worthy as the person who offers it to me.

I agree that you should not have a long, drawn out time between the time two people develop an interest between one another and when they meet. But then, there are many people who express an interest in meeting, and only a limited number that are worthy for each person to meet.

Where that line is for each person if for them to decide. If it isn't the same for two different people, perhaps they were not meant to meet. Destiny plays a big part in everyone's life.

I understand both points of view. But relationships where two people are not married, sometimes either one has to be prepared to walk out and say no deal. If it happens to be the Russian Woman or the American man, i.e. she cannot wait longer than three months and he wants time to get to know her and then if she is fabulous he will get on a plane and for many people that takes easily 3-4 months depending. Of course, it is not cut and dry, or black-and-white. It depends on the two people.

Basil

[COCOCHA]

The " advice " was for Basil, not for spiky ConnerVT...:p
What I was trying to say is that it is very expensive for common russian woman to go to internet-cafe and keep sending messages to unknown person in USA who isn't sure when he is coming to visit her, if he ever comes at all.
Second, interest dies after a while...

[ConnerVT]

Gee... I've been called many things before. But I've never been called "Spiky". :D

I don't think anyone was promoting the idea that spending a long time corresponding without meeting was a good idea. Long engagements (or courtships) are pretty uncommon in Russia. People can not truly be sure of one another until they meet. And your also correct that many guys are "Keyboard Romeos", who are willing to write, but are never willing to actually travel to Russia (or anywhere else, for that matter). A man isn't really considered "real" or completely sincere until he has made the trip to meet the woman.

But I can't agree with you 100% on everything you write. There are more ways than one for a woman to correspond with a man. The image of long lines of woman heading to an Internet café is too stereotypical for me. In 21st century Russia, many woman do have access to computers -- at school, at work, and at home. There are a few couples here that have used Internet voice and video conferencing. There are also a sizable number of women who receive email through reputable agencies (including translations).

If the expense is high for a woman to use an Internet café, how great is the expense for a man to travel to the FSU to meet a complete stranger? Without spending a single kopeck when he is there, he has dropped about $1000 between airfare and visa. Contrary to the stereotype, not every American is rich. I will be leaving soon for my 4th trip to Russia this year. It has cost me nearly 1/4 of the income I've made in 2003. But I am fortunate, for I found my special woman early in my search. For her, I'm willing to make sacrifices. But it is unrealistic to suggest that everyone should do so, without at least getting to know the woman he is going to meet first.

[Basileus]

Bon Soir, Good Evening.... How are y'all? Ready for 2004. It is very true, many Russian women have internet access without having to resort to internet cafes. How do I know? I have several Russian penpals and we do not discuss amorous feelings between us. The only close to that was a woman who wrote me and is looking for someone, but even she has access through her bestfriend. But, of course, for the majority access to the internet is limited, but for some of the middle class, many do have access. I am not sure what to think if someone is spending way too much of their income writing men. It is like gambling with a big portion of your money.
Of course, in that scenario the woman cannot afford to wait, literally. Yet, as you said Conner the ticket alone to Ryssia is 800-1000 dollars alone. Marriage and relationships are investment and people want the emotional and psychological return on both sides. Of course, I don't mean to make this sound like a transaction, but it is an emotional, financial, psychological one. No doubt about it. I frankly am not into playing around with women's feelings, so I don't lead them on. If I feel I cannot visit someone in the future, I am clear on that. They make their choices. I want to have a clean conscience.
This is not to say, if I felt it were really worth it, I would put a time-table and fly all that distance. It sure would be an adventure:) Sometimes you have to be conservative, but in the end nothing ventured, nothing gained. I think those two sentences sum up Conner in this thread, at least:)

Basil

[frankFrank]

Originally posted by frankFrankwww.crimealife.com
I used Crimealife Connections, it wasn't as expensive, but they have not a lot of women, $15 for a month, then I cancelled. Plus they delivered flowers, which were a big hit.

[frankFrank]

The address was www.crimealife.com

[ConnerVT]

And besides being a satisfied customer, how else are you associated with this agency? For in 6 of your first 8 posts to this site, you have been able to mention either the agency's name or URL.

This is a non-commercial forum. We try to avoid mentioning a business directly, unless it is integral to the discussion.

[Skooter]

Frank
Instead of plugging the agency like this, why don't you write a trip report, so that people can judge for themselves if this is the type of agency they wish to use.
Just because its run by some ex pat, ( who cares? )you haven't really told us much about why it is good compared to other agencies yuo may have used.

[COCOCHA]

"If the expense is high for a woman to use an Internet café, how great is the expense for a man to travel to the FSU to meet a complete stranger? Without spending a single kopeck when he is there, he has dropped about $1000 between airfare and visa. Contrary to the stereotype, not every American is rich. I will be leaving soon for my 4th trip to Russia this year. "

Not to promote anything , but expedia.com or travelocity.com

406 $$ return trip to Moscow Finnair