another anono TR

[anono]

now that i'm home, i'll ty and write my latest trip report.

i left borispol, bound for JFK, new york. the airplane was packed with orthodox jews. that's another story...

the flight was uneventful. i arrived at JFK with just enough time to go through immigration, grab my luggage, go through customs and give it to the connecting flight with delta, the domestic carrier.

i was quick to get off the flight and beat the crowd to immigration. there are many booths and being fluent in the local language helped matters. customs was also a breeze and off i went to my flight to st. louis.

i had to go to another concourse. even with no language problem, it is still difficult to know which "airtrain" to take. one takes you to the next stop, which is the domestic terminal. take the other airtrain and you end up at some platform in new york. talk about strange looking people! all races, all nationalities..  it sure is different than back home..i started feeling out of place..

this domestic flight to st. louis was on a regional carrier but i arrived in st. louis in the evening. i had a friend of mine who i knew from previous trips to the USA pick me up and take me to the home i rent from the bank about 20 minutes from the center.

one of the first things i noticed once i arrived at JFK were all the fat people. the women !!  good god!! what are they thinking???  they need to take better care of themselves. i might have to make this trip a short one, i begin to think. the women back home are far superior in appearance at least. a lot more of them also.

another thing that hit me is the lighting. it's everywhere!  no dark stairwells. they say you can drink the water from the public water supply but i prefer my bottle water so i didn't test it.

once i got situated, i made a few calls, made contact with a few people i hadn't had contact with in months. then i went right to bed..the worst thing about these trips abroad is the long flight.

the next day i looked for some local agencies but there aren't any.

so..i wondered..  what am i going to do for the next five weeks?  the only comforting thing was knowing i know the language..there  isn't going to be any communication problems so obtaining the things i need to survive the next few weeks will not be a problem.

then i decided to look in the back of a local paper and check out the escorts..just in case... i mean, from the looks of the women at the airports and on the the airplanes, i figured i better have some back-up.

i began wondering..why did i come here anyway??

next up..  a stranger in a very strange land.....

[anono]

one of the first things i noticed is the weather here. damned if there isn't a tornado here, a hurricane or ten there...

this place, florida..i think i will stay away from there..one hurricane after another..

then, just in the neighboring state, a tornado in some place called evansville..very liitle warning.... this place seems to be a natural disaster!

and it seems the government is very slow to react. in fact, it seems as if they are asleep or preoccupied elsewhere. it is a real shame to see how they let their own citizens suffer. i doubt you would ever see this type reaction or inaction in a country such as germany or sweden..

people drive everywhere. i  rarely see anyone walking. things are even more expensive than home! the way the girls dress..very conservative..or very casual..hardly a high heel anywhere..

 

[Bruno]

Trip report to USA ... a very good one :D:D

[Dutchy013]

Anono,

This is why I prefer FSUW, they still know how to dress like a woman

Keep us posted!

[Albert]

Yes, I always go though a period of shock when I come back to USA.  The fat women at the shopping mall really gross me out.  But, its great to be able to drink the water from tap, not be looking for places to exchange money, not worrying about getting ripped off by taxi driver (only because I have own cars here), putting up with smile-less service, etc.

[groovlstk]

Robert, you could have saved yourself a lot of grief by having an  agency send someone to meet you at JFK. NYC natives can be an ornery  breed and the taxi drivers love to rip off foreigners.

[Photo Guy]

[size="3"]A reverse trip report to the US?[/size]

[color="darkred"][size="3"]I agree- it's a great idea. At first I was confused, but then definitely amused.
I applaud your creativity.[/size][/color] :P:D

[aikorob]

Very Interesting TR!

How are you getting around? I have heard there are very few places within walking distance.

What about food? Are you able to find any foods with mayonnaise?

[Aventurero]

Yea... But are the people as nice and helpful as everyone claims? How much does it cost to get a hamburger vs. a real meal in a restaurant?  I've visited there a couple of times myself and getting out of the airport is a real challenge.

As a matter of fact, there are reports circulating around my apartment building that NYC got as big as it is because there are plenty of signs leading into the city but nothing posted to get people out of the city.

The "fat" thing is also a big thing in Western Europe. I heard that the television programming is set up to remind people to eat every 5 or 10 minutes. I'm glad that we don't have that here in the FSU. Man could you imagine?

I'm with you on all the lighting.. that's great!!! What about the heating? I heard that people are paying as much as $300/month just to heat their apartment - is that true? How can they afford to live there?

 

[Photo Guy]

[size="3"][color="darkred"]What does a foreigner see when they get here? TV advertisements for drugs to treat the symptoms of over-eating.
[/color][/size][/b][size="3"][color="darkred"]ie Nexium for treating acid reflux 'disease'[/color][/size].

[size="3"][color="darkred"]And then they'll look at the ingredients in a typical loaf of supermarket bread, and see a list of 30 ingredients which are mostly cheap forms of sugar and also preservatives, and artificial flavorings -chemicals you can't even pronounce.

There's an abundance of food here. Bad food. And an abundance of expensive medications to treat the symptoms of eating bad food.

Hey, I should mention here that we often do have freedom of choice. ...Eat healthier organic food. Drink kvas.[/color][/size][/b]

This message was brought to you by the Skinny People

[anono]

yes, fast food restaurants everywhere..

since i usually return to the same region in the middle of the country, in what amounts to a small village, there is little to no public transportation. in the larger cities i did see some evidence of public trans.. certainly in new york there is a subway and other types of tranportation such as the "airtrain" i mentioned above.

i had to arraign for a pickup at the domestic airport at my final destination of the mid size city of st. louis missouri. this was due to the fact that the "metro-link" they have is very new and as limited in range and destinations.

taxi's are nearly prohibitivly expensive, and i think they charge the same to foriegners as well as locals. at their rates, this i understand.

st. louis is on the banks of the mississippi, much like kiev on the dneper. the rivers are similar but i see much more barge traffic.  the river is managed by a system of locks and dams. it is not left to flow freely like our dneper.

again i am struck by the diversity of people, white, black, and in the larger cities i see what i think are hispanics, orientals and , well, people of all colors..

again, the women!  they forgot how to dress, they all seem to have no care at all about their apperance and then, those that do take care of themselves, they seem as if they think of themselves as something unigue and desirable..and considering the rest of the women around them, i can understand why. problem is, it seems even the fat and the ulgy women here think they are desirable...very strange place...

i have yet to see a high heel..i think i am getting homesick already

another big problem!  no taxi's! forget the metro..no taxi's!  maybe in the big city but out here in the boonies, you can stand on the side of the road ALL DAY and not see one taxi...

the food...as i said above..i think this is why there are so many fat people in the USA..everywhere you look, even in the small villages..fast food..

there are good restaurants, you can find, in the cities, food of every variety..  and here is the catch..the good burgers, as omeone asked about above..well..they ar very good in most restaurants, much better than those found at the fast food joints. you can get a good burger and fries, but like everything else, it is more expensive ..but a real american burger is a trea..you just do not find these back home here in kiev..

 yes, the heating bills are up to the indivdual here..in most places anyway..there is no central hot water distrubution system..  public buildings are well heated or air-conditioned..

seems if you get pulled over here, be careful not to try and bribe a cop. apparently they make just enough to live on and it is rare to find a cop who will take a bribe, especially one who will take $2. i think it's best to just take the ticket and find a traffic law place.. sounds like a drag but i understand they will arrest you if you offer them cash, even if it is the local currency.

i know a trip report should have something to do with how wll i am doing with the women, but i am just..well, i just do not know what to think..i mean..one day, it's like a dime a dozen.... beautiful, exquisite women just about everywhere to this....  well, this void....  seems there is no shortage of men though...

and the women i have met! i have yet to see one i find even physically attractive....  still no agencies..  i keep thinking, "what the hell am i doing here???"

[Bruno]

and the women i have met! i have yet to see one i find even physically attractive....  still no agencies.. 

always ready to help : http://www.singlesonthego.com/st-louis/

Good luck :D:D:D

 

[Dutchy013]

Go home

I lived myself for 3 years in the US, did not mind to leave again.

Although I met some good friends overthere, we are still in touch.

 

[SgtFlame]

lol, great read... for your next trip, I'd try some of the online services... Stay away from AdultFriendFinder.com because I think it's a scam, but eHarmony.com and LoveHappens.com seem to be pretty good. ;-)

[anono]

thanks bruno, i tried a couple of the online agencies. problem is, there are very few attractive ladies and no one below 35-40 will consider meeting a man my age.

those older ladies that do respond, well..  um...  mom said if i cannot say something nice......  well, to hell with that.

first off, it has been suggested to me several times that i could be an "ax murderer" or a serial killer. i have never heard this with the ladies back in kiev or all of ukraine. then, when they find out i own a video production company, again, i am accused of being a pornographer.

when i challenge the, er, ladies, they act or say the were "just kidding". but, the damage is already done. i am not used to this type of incivility. i am sure if i were to "just kid" them about possibly being prostitutes or mock their education and/or profession, or worse yet, suggest to them they could be killers, it would not go over very well.

after talking with a few of the local men, i have found that many of these women, all out of shape, all with multiple children, most without a higher education and even those that do, seem to wear their dysfunctions on their sleeves, as if they are proud of it.

i was told of one lady, who, when she arrived 30 minutes late, proudly announced she is "never on time" and went on and on about how you will just have to get used to it. this is just one of many examples. it seems with the easier lifestyle and economic conditions in this country, these people have more time to become very dysfunctional. drugs like prozac, (i'm having a brain-lock on other drug names) seem to be common. seems everyone has a huge set of problems, mostly psychological in nature. some of the richer folks have what is called the "family psychologist".

anyway, back to the ladies. i think most of the women online here in the states are there for what i call "validation" they get the attention they want online without ever stepping out of the house to actually meet anyone.

one story i know, this lady was divorced with 2 kids. she explained she never did love her husband. she wanted to get a divorce, but at the time she had one child and wanted another. she said she wanted 2 children but did not want the age spread between them to be too great. so, she became pregnant, had the child and divorced her husband six months later.

i  am fairly sure, had she shared this plan with her soon to be ex, he would not have agreed to be on the hook for yet another child with a woman who wanted to leave him anyway...

seems due to the divorce laws in most of the country, there is not real advantage of any kind, at least financially, for a man to marry. the cards seemed dealt to favor the women very heavily.

also, i have seen a level of political correctness to the point of absurdity....  i'll try and go into this more in a future post...

and then of course, there is are the local television programs...  good god, what is wrong with these people?

 

[Aventurero]

anono.. I think I met your brother on a flight from LA to Moskow last  year, or maybe early this year... can't recall... but he was on his way  to kiev to meet up with his brother... your mention of the video thing  cleared the cobwebs..

[anono]

hmm..maybe it's one of my clones...))

out of my four brothers, not one of them would come here..  which is OK by me!

[Photo Guy]

[color="blue"]

[size="3"]Anono wrote: ...also, i have seen a level of political correctness to the point of absurdity.... i'll try and go into this more in a future post... and then of course, there is are the local television programs... good god, what is wrong with these people[/size]?

[/color]

[size="3"][color="darkred"]I look forward to the PC topic. Should be interesting.

Television? When she arrives and sees the crap on our televisions....Yikes! I've been looking around me lately, at the US, and wondering how an outsider would view this society. Sure there are negatives, but I like certain things too- like how people in public are generally more 'outgoing' than the folks in Kiev. I often chat with cashiers here and many are generally friendly. (Actually friendlier than back on my old home turf of Long Island) I found the public social mood in Kiev to be very quiet. ...The youngsters out on the square at night were a little more lively.  Some of the public facade here is superficial/fake, and some of it is genuine.
Public chatter is noisier here (New York is even noisier) and I like that. Comparing Kiev with the US is a mixed bag.  -doug
[/color][/size]

[anono]

Yikes! I've been looking around me lately, at the US, and wondering how an outsider would view this society.

when you say things like this doug, it reminds me that you are not completely clueless about some things at least.

yes, i think the same thing when i visit the states and the contrast becomes sharper each trip.

i used to think the smiles meant we are a more open type of people and while this may be true, i also think we have more layers to go through to get to the real person. just how genuine are the smiles? are they just something we learn to be easy with? i have seen some ukrainians mock our smiles as proof of how fake we can be.

 

[Admin]

i used to think the smiles meant we are a more open type of people and while this may be true, i also think we have more layers to go through to get to the real person. just how genuine are the smiles? are they just something we learn to be easy with? i have seen some ukrainians mock our smiles as proof of how fake we can be.

In fact, one of the more common advertising ploys for the dental community in Ukraine is to promise, "An American Smile." It is only a compliment in the most superficial of manners.

- Dan

[Photo Guy]

[color="darkred"][size="3"]Here in Phoenix,  I notice both types of smiles. There are the fake ones and also the  genuinely nice types. Back on my home turf of Long Island, I didn't see  too many 'fake' smiles.
But I also saw a lot of people in a bad mood there, and they didn't  cover it up much. In Phoenix it is not as socially acceptable to reveal  a bad mood, so you get a fake smile or neutral exterior.  In NY,  in a store you can say something negative and say it loudly, like 'Do  you believe this (crap)?!'
People may look at you out of curiosity.
Do that in a Phoenix store and most people there will think you are  acting 'badly'. So in NY, people are more straightforward AND more rude  at times. The people in Kiev did not have those fake smiles. They  appeared to communicate in a direct and straightforward manner. In  public, people seemd to be subdued or quieter than strangers are in the  US, whether it's Phoenix or New York.[/size][/color][/b]

[Aventurero]

[user=134]Photo Guy[/user] wrote:

Here in Phoenix, I notice both types of smiles. There are the fake ones and also the genuinely nice types. Back on my home turf of Long Island, I didn't see too many 'fake' smiles.
But I also saw a lot of people in a bad mood there, and they didn't cover it up much. In Phoenix it is not as socially acceptable to reveal a bad mood, so you get a fake smile or neutral exterior.  In NY, in a store you can say something negative and say it loudly, like 'Do you believe this (crap)?!'
People may look at you out of curiosity.
Do that in a Phoenix store and most people there will think you are acting 'badly'. So in NY, people are more straightforward AND more rude at times. The people in Kiev did not have those fake smiles. They appeared to communicate in a direct and straightforward manner. In public, people seemd to be subdued or quieter than strangers are in the US, whether it's Phoenix or New York.

A friend and I had a conversation this afternoon over lunch about the American Way of Life. It got kinda heated since we both spent a long time in the military and have traveled quite a bit. He spent much of his time in South America, whereas I was in Europe for mine. I also lived in New York for a number of years and in the southwest of the US. Two totally different lifestyles. Laidback in the SW, and totally agressive in NY. The term "a New York minute" has a lot of meaning.

My personal observation on this is that in order for anyone to be able to experience the American Phenomena is to go away for an extended period and then return.

That is why consultants are paid... they are able to come into a company and "see" things that the layers of management are blind to. That's because they don't "live" with the company. As a result they can stand back and pick out things in a very short time.

In general, Americans are "nicer", but as the Germans say, "Americans have a tendency to speak through the roses", or, they just aren't straight forward. But, Americans are also very sly business people.. how do you think they got that way?

If I want the truth on a matter regarding my person... I'm better off speaking to one of my German friends. If I want a good reference, I'll stick to my American friends. "Nothing personal, just business".. how many times have you heard that?

Kind Regards

[anono]

good grief..here i am agreeing with doug!  (just poking at you doug). it is different depending where you go.

i have been telling ukrainians that just about everywhere you go, it is different from where you left. it is like a bunch of different countries with a common language. chicago is different than new york. LA is different than both. where i (used to) live, in the middle of a transition from farms to a middle size american city, is vastly different than living in a similar area in arizona. the people are just as different.

the usa is one crazy place!

[Photo Guy]

[size="3"][color="darkred"]Robert,
Where are you nowadays? US or Ukraine? You jump around so much that I lost track. :seething:


What can you tell us about shooting video in Ukraine? Is it tough to transport video equipment? I can envision all sorts of interesting:) video scenarios over there. Any opportunities?  -doug[/color][/size]

[anono]

hi doug..i am in kiev.. 

yes, lugging video equipment around is the worst part of video..

people, whenever you watch rockclimbing, skydiving, scuba diving, safaris, always remember what you are looking at is being filmed by someone..to hell with the guy they are taping, the real hero is the guy doing the same thing while filming it all..AND you are not even aware of it..now that is remarkable....

i have thought about getting into something here..and i understand you can get used sony beta equipment here on the (relatively) cheap...

anyway, this is my last post..i am not going to go into the reasons, let's just say the RWD is not a place for me anymore.. the environment has become downright hostile..  just like the righties who run it and post here....  most just do not deserve my time...

later!