Trusted/reliable agencies (?)

[isamu]

OUCH!

[Mike78]

Guys,

So far I've only been hitting the free sites, but I think I may be missing out a lot for a small price to pay. Recently I've discovered russianeuro.com and there are tons of girls from the cities I'm interested in (I'm planning a WMVM trip to Moscow and SPb this summer). This website is only about $20 a month, BUT what I like the most is the fact that there are very, very few guys on there under 35! I'm 31, very tall, very good shape, decent looking, smart and fairly succesfull career. I also understand/speak some Russian. Based on these facts I should be a rockstar on this website...

So anybody has any experience with this web or any other matchmaking site that has tons of girls for a massive shotgun approach? How does it work with contacting the gals? I would like to get private email/Skype/phone number as soon as possible, so it is very important to me that the web doesn't prevent me to do that...

BTW, Elena's Models - what exactly is so cool about this website? It doesn't even allow you to search by city as far as I know, and it is relatively more expensive than others... I've also heard they don't have that many girls. Am I missing something, could you explain what excatly is so awesome about EM (besides you having m,et your wife there

[isamu]

Guys,

So far I've only been hitting the free sites, but I think I may be missing out a lot for a small price to pay. Recently I've discovered russianeuro.com and there are tons of girls from the cities I'm interested in (I'm planning a WMVM trip to Moscow and SPb this summer). This website is only about $20 a month, BUT what I like the most is the fact that there are very, very few guys on there under 35! I'm 31, very tall, very good shape, decent looking, smart and fairly succesfull career. I also understand/speak some Russian. Based on these facts I should be a rockstar on this website...

  Nice to see you Mike78, you know I have been asking that question (russsian-euro) too, but...

BTW, Elena's Models - what exactly is so cool about this website? It doesn't even allow you to search by city as far as I know, and it is relatively more expensive than others... I've also heard they don't have that many girls. Am I missing something, could you explain what excatly is so awesome about EM (besides you having m,et your wife there

What he said

[hemingway]

You can search by city on EM if you use the "keyword" option with the search.

[camachinist]

What agencies do you find the most reliable, honest, sincere, helpful? The best options for short.

This may sound backwards, but I did it over a decade ago when I was traveling to the FSU/CIS....

Back then, I found a couple places (different cities) where the combination of potentials (ladies) and culture caught my interest and sought out interpreter/translator/driver contacts through the ad-hoc group known as the Russian Women's List. I then made contact with a couple of ladies in each city and, if they showed interest, made them aware of my travel plans. I spent two to three weeks in-country, and just let things happen.

I found, retrospectively, the clearest and most present contributor to a safe and memorable journey was having an interpreter and driver who looked out for me. I can't say enough about that. If you don't read Cyrillic and have a good command of the spoken language, you'll be overwhelmed. Obviously, more English is spoken there now but, get away from the large cities and it'll be like an alien world.

My driver clued me in on many things, from police extortion to crooked agency owners to scammer women (we met a few). Even though he spoke little English, he talked a lot with his expressions and eyes.

So, perhaps not answering your question clearly, when I begin to travel there again, I'll do the same thing. I still have few friends there and will make associations through them and find trustworthy interpreters and drivers first. With those people on-board, it's merely a matter of contacting local agency owners and 'meeting' some of the clients introduced prior on the internet.

FWIW, I met two agency owners personally in my travels. One, a Ukrainian in Lviv, was an honest businessperson and very straightforward. The other, an American living in Odessa, not so much. My driver felt the same way. He was always giving me this 'look' in Odessa.  As is the way of things, neither are in the 'agency' business anymore. IMBRA and the economic realities changed a lot of things.

Good luck 

[Whynot]

I met my fiancee through RussianEuro - there were many genuine women there and a few scammers but they were relatively easy to spot.

Good luck!

[edu]

Russian Euro is fine with good looking ladies and some scammers as well.  So is Ukrainedate.com  I think they are owned by the same company.

Regardless of which agency you use, don't be talking to her for months without a visit.  It'll get expensive for you and boring for her.  Remember, you are not the only one talking to her if she is a catch.

[kievstar]

on EM use the advanced search option.  You can do this without being a member. 

Searching by city and last on line is a good indicator.  The women in Kiev who tend to be on everyday and very good looking tend to be the non serious ones who are hookers or just dating.  After spending 6 months on EM you will get a feel that the real serious good catches in Kiev are on EM less than 2 months and gone.  Need to move fast.

You will also see women on and off.  Mainly because they maybe have become serious and than things fizzled off and they joined EM again  Which is a good sign of a serious woman who does not jump at first guy she commits to.

Above is based on Kiev.  I have no clue on other cities. You will find that EM has thousands of women.

[IAmZon]

Anybody want to add some comments ... all insight would be very appreciated.

After a week and a half, I am communicating with one girl off line at Elenas. She seems to be very nice and smart, but there is no special romantic chemistry.   I do not find a ton of women that fit my criteria.  (I am much more tight on my search than I deserve to be.  This reflects my preference, and I am in no particular hurry).  I just re-activated an existing - old - membership which may explain the rather poor results thus far.

I enjoyed the process so much that I joined RussianEuro too.  The results have been much much better for me so far.  But, again, at this time, I do not know which correspondence is real and which is fat yuri.  There seems to be a fast, current practice by all ladies to request my real email fast (which gives me nausea wondering if it is just a spam technique).  I have a good blend of hope and skepticism.

Anybody have any other recommendations.  I do not like (actually I hate chat with strangers).  I strongly prefer filtering through letters.  What is the current importance of CHAT? It is easier just to get all this crap out of the way in one heap. Once, a long time ago, I had to check the bat header to calm my suspicions.  Anybody  remember the exact technique?

Lastly, Russian ladies outside Moscow and St. Petersburg SEEM to be the kindest and most innocent

[IAmZon]

Okay, well here we I go...   Feels like looking for a needle in a haystack.  I could have gotten some advanced certification in something; or read War and Peace TWICE ... but instead, I have become re-acquainted with dating sites.

Anybody, have any comments regarding profile with NO PHOTOS? 

I assumed they were not serious, but I may be wrong.

[Faux Pas]

Okay, well here we I go...   Feels like looking for a needle in a haystack.  I could have gotten some advanced certification in something; or read War and Peace TWICE ... but instead, I have become re-acquainted with dating sites.

Anybody, have any comments regarding profile with NO PHOTOS? 

I assumed they were not serious, but I may be wrong.

I highly recommend updating your profile with recent pics and add a few lines with some resolve as to why you are searching again. Or perhaps do an entirely new one. Old profiles seem to pull a negative trigger and some serious ladies may not be taking you serious after having a profile un-updated for so long.

Personally, I never gave a moments thought to a profile with no pics or one with pics and little to no info.

[IAmZon]

Well, I think the painful part is almost over.   It's a lot like going fishing with a friend who is an EXPERT fisherman.  There is so much work in preparation and fishing that it takes the fun out of it.   So, I kept my focus tight and realistic, and we will see how generous the Gods will be to me.

Until I get ample verification, I assume the worst.  There are glamor shots that make your heart pound, then the secondary photos look like a the mother's version of the original.  Can't get excited by photos.   I think it is about a 35% effective way to meet and identify, and that is about it.  Better than nothing, but just by a little.

And if that is all IT is, why would sites that aggregate like F I A N C E . Com and RUSSIANLOVEMATCH.com NOT work again?  I realize that there is much smoke, but I think there is smoke everywhere ...

[Chicagoguy]

I have recently seen some profiles where the Moscow ladies are looking for men younger than themselves. So there must be a lot of fish in the barrel.

[IAmZon]

AGE GAP OBSERVATION:  As we all know there is an OVER PREOCCUPATION on the issue of AGE here on this board stemming mainly from the member's insecurity on the issue (sorry chaps that's the truth).

I have seen women more attractive at age 33 than many women who are 23.  The same is true for men.  Younger does not mean more beautiful ALL the time - maybe most of the time - but not ALL of the time:)

For what it is worth, I have noticed tighter age gaps tolerance with communication with FSU ladies in the past two weeks than that which I had grown accustom to living in Colombia.   Age REALLY is NO issue at all in Colombia (as far as a "limiting characteristic" for the man).  So, being a man and thinking often with my little head, the age group of my dating pool tended downward over the last couple years. I find myself adding 5 - 8 years to my searches nowadays (which is fine with me.) 

STUPID QUESTION:  I don't want to trash the entire board with stupid questions and observations, so I will just do it in this one thread.   IS IT HARD TO GET A RUSSIAN VISA FOR A WEEK OR SO?   Anybody got any helpful links? 

[Markus]

STUPID QUESTION:  I don't want to trash the entire board with stupid questions and observations, so I will just do it in this one thread.   IS IT HARD TO GET A RUSSIAN VISA FOR A WEEK OR SO?   Anybody got any helpful links? 

rivardco, it's actually quite easy to get a visa. Click on the full visa service on this site: http://www.gotorussia.com/index.htm

[isamu]

Hi people, me again, been browsing here & there. Thanks for the previous suggestions.
Now, if you don't mind me asking...What do you think of FIANCE.COM??? Any experiences?

[SFandEE]

I don't see AFA/LoveMe.  I took their tours last year to Ukraine after several tourist trips to FSU.  I have tried to read more about them by searching and it seems the major issue is that they operate in cities where they do not have a base, thus relying on smaller agencies with dubious intentions.  This is truth to me.

Still I find the core group nice, low pressure, and helpful.  It is not a high end experience with many issues that come up, but I am curious about Elena's now and also more committed to better planning next time I go over.  I think that the only valuable agency for me in making cold introductions would be an agency that knew me well, knew their women well and would actually play a role of matchmaking.  I know of no one who is offering this level of service.

The women that I wrote to through AFA were real, had read my second or third letters and were really nice people to meet.  There English wasn't always as good as they said, some smoked even though they said they didn't, others were more interested in a nice evening than getting to know each other better.  Some of them just hadn't taken foreign dating really serious and I think now that I have more information on how to screen myself I will better be able to do this.  I still wish these experts were experts at screening not creating huge databases of women.

[rambler]

Am I missing something, could you explain what excatly is so awesome about EM (besides you having met your wife there

ummmmm.... I met my wife there,  what else do you want?!  .....  she was the second girl I wrote to.  I also met the first girl I wrote to, both were stunning and clever.

But not only that, I met 3 girls there that, although I'll never know for sure because I didn't propose to them - I think would have accepted if I had put in the same effort as with my wife.  2 were already living in Europe, so don't forget to search European countries. They were both Siberian, blue eyed blondes, gorgeous & living with their mothers who had already married and moved to Europe. What a coincidence.  I also met a girl in Ukraine who actually brought her mother with her....

Regarding girls in Moscow Vs girls in the countryside.  The phrase I heard says it all.  "Yeah the guys in Moscow, they tried to use us, so sure,  we tried to use them too" Make what you like of that.  The girls come to Moscow after university and I am sure it hardens them to a degree but I'm not sure it makes a big difference. But Moscow girls do say other Moscow girls are spoiled. There are a lot guys with money there, but they treat girls like throw away items, and get away with it, so it works both ways, spoiled maybe but unlikely to find Mr Right.

BTW if a girl says she has a university education don't take it at face value. I met a girl who when pressed told me she had a university education to become a shop assistant.  Several seem to say economist or psychologist  or teacher but on closer questioning that is highly debatable or unsubstantiated.

Now Russian Vs Ukrainian girls. My impression from 3 trips to Ukraine - Kiev, Odessa, Kharkov and  Nikolayev was that things were worse economically in Ukraine and perhaps the girls were more economically motivated but I only went to Moscow so what do I know. Since then I hear about my wife's girl friends getting laid off. not being paid regularly or being paid only in cash off the books so things seem to be getting worse in Moscow too. Besides which - lets face we are  all capitalists so I don't condemn anyone for wanting  get out of places like these.

Keep in mind that if you want to travel in Russia you have to name every place  in your visa application.  You can't get a visa and declare Moscow and then buy a ticket to St Petersburgh when you get there, the train station won't sell you one.  In the Ukraine - no visa needed anyway. 

So yes EM worked for me. Silver rain stole my profile from EM and put me on their site, an obvious one to avoid. Anywhere that charges you by the letter, just forgetaboutit, you will never know if they are genuine replies or not. Most are obviously letter factories. 

R

[SFandEE]

BTW if a girl says she has a university education don't take it at face value. I met a girl who when pressed told me she had a university education to become a shop assistant.  Several seem to say economist or psychologist  or teacher but on closer questioning that is highly debatable or unsubstantiated.

This has been something for which I have been trying to get a better expertise.  Apart from asking to see the degree for many professions this is less clear.  This is where I wish some of the agencies did better diligence.  Confirming such claims as education for both men and women would be helpful--this also would be a good way to judge character as well.

I just haven't had the nerve to ask to see the diploma and would imagine I would not know what I was looking at anyway.

I can tell an educated woman, but the street smarts of some women from Ukraine is pretty good!

[Al_C]

Elena's Models.

Don't waste your time anywhere else.

[isamu]

Back again guys. After a lil more browsing (and dissapointed of the unnaproved link crap) Im here with a couple more questions for you all concerning the previously suggested sites (hope mentioning'em is approved ) err..lets see. Been at russian-euro. Standard member for a while, browsing around, some girls that caught my attention, HOWEVER, before I go a step beyond and upgrade membership...Could you guys tell me how it is? I mean, one thing I dont like so far (but an important and very basic must for me) is their search engine/system, as a standard memeber I dont get to have access to comprehensive searches and everytime I try to narrow the criteria a lil bit (with the few options available) I always ALWAYS get NOTHING, NADA, ZERO. So, basically I would like to know first, if I upgrade to gold or platinum, will I be able to use a better search engine? Be able to narrow search by race, hair color, eyes color, non smoker etc etc? (not to mention that I would expect to actually find matches with that narrow criteria instead of "no matches found") That would be very important for me. I would like also, to know beforehand if I will be able to get more than the 1000 matches limits i get as a standard member. Other than that I would like to know more about the service, your experience with the site.
The same questions apply to merrydating, if I do upgrade, I will be able to use a better more comprehensive search engine?
That would be all for the time being, hope you guys can give me the answers.
Thanks in advance.

[Voyager36]

Back again guys. After a lil more browsing (and dissapointed of the unnaproved link crap) Im here with a couple more questions for you all concerning the previously suggested sites (hope mentioning'em is approved ) err..lets see.

I used Elena's as well, was happy with service.
I also used Fiance.com and Anna Barmina, both had a lot of contacts, and a good search engine

[Ronnie]

Elena's models is good.  However, this one is has features EM doesn't:

http://www.liliya.w-ru.com

The psychological compatibility testing/matching is something every site should use but I know of none that do, sadly.  There is also a free built-in translation program with the option of having a human translation.  It is a flat monthly fee (very reasonable) for unlimited correspondence.

[isamu]

Thanks for the extra site Ronnie, I'll be checking it.
Now, can you guys answer the last question(s)???

[ECOCKS]

I'm a big believer in EM and don't think the search engine is any different of you are an upgraded memeber or not. Their SE does what you asked about though.

In the end, the best SE out there though is YOU. Search with your mind, not just your eyes.