I'll give you guys some feedback based on what I experienced in russia

[Misha]

I've had men invite me for some drinks and to hang out with their group several times.

I have no problem believing that. It is generally the rule that the person who invites pays.

Two said it was because they invited me on the date, I didn't invite them. Does that count? You seem to not believe that women here would offer to pay for anything. These were well travelled women with high paying professions. You can call them "Westernized" if you like. I didn't let them pay.

No, I just don't believe that a Westerner traveling to Russia will be treated at a rock star with women flocking around him, taking photos with him and the women buying him drinks... Will he get more attention that a local? Sure. But not quite as much as some are portraying IMHO.

Clearly, you're not someone who goes to clubs regularly. If you did you'd know a lot more wild things go down that what AmericanBoy has posted here. I've seen it and I'm not a player or heavy partier. I just like to dance. 

Actually, I have been to more than my fair share of nightclubs over a decade 

[mendeleyev]

Tyumen has a leading neurosurgery center, one of the best in Russia:

DearJohnGreen, I'm familiar with Tyumen and while the newer medical centre is good, that doesn't mean that residents couldn't get better treatment in Moscow or St Petersburg. Tyumen is an oil town, Luk Oil, Neftegaz, Gazprom/Sibneft and Zapsibgaz are in Tyumen and the trauma centre there is very important.

However with a population just under 500,000 saying that Tyumen's medical facilities rival Moscow's is like saying that the medical centre in Omaha is more modern than New York or Los Angeles.

As for being a Siberian city, it is one of the nicer places especially with the new city centre. There is train service and good roads, such as 351 to Yekaterinburg and Moscow Highway, 402 to Omsk and M51 "Baikal" highway.
     

[Konfushus]

To Misha:

I think you're stretching your imagination. I imagine things as I've experienced them (and I've actually partied with rock stars in both the US and Russia). A group of girls surrounding a guy like him, taking photos (you know the young crowd is constantly snapping pics of everything with their phones nowadays right? A few pics of the American cute boy they met at the club. OMG!) buying drinks (hospitality)... it's just not at all surprising.

I'm more in disbelief that you think he's making this up.

[OlgaH]

Mendeleyev,

 according to the 2011 census the population of Tyumen is 584 766, if you count with rural districts of Tyumen county it is 632,600 (2012 Census). But it doesn't mean you can not get a good medical treatment. 

No, I just don't believe that a Westerner traveling to Russia will be treated at a rock star with women flocking around him, taking photos with him and the women buying him drinks...

I do, especially in Tyumen 

[Misha]

I do, especially in Tyumen 

Then we will have to agree to disagree. Having spent time in the Russian Far East, and remote parts of Russia, I can say that young attractive foreign men do get some attention (and I am not talking about me), but they were not being flocked by women either. So, believe what you will, and I will do the same.

[AmericanBoy]

Konfushus - He just needs to be ignored. He's fighting a battle within himself. After doing a quick skim through some of his post, this behavior is common for him. He says he's too young to be a grandpa and no kids but according to his own writing he'll be 43 soon which is old enough for both. He also said in a post that he's a bit overweight , his hair is greying and he's losing it. Maybe this is an indication of why he behaves this way or why he never received the treatment I got. First he doubted me, then when I gave him proof his argument shifted to "possible but not likely" which is just plain stupid



I remember going out with 2 girls to a beer bar. One of the doctors from the hospital who I had never spoken with paid for 3 beers, 2 mixed drinks, a bottle of vodka, and food for the girls. I told him him " no no no no" but he insisted.

Also, feb 24th? These 3 girls bought a bunch of beer and had me drink with them. They said it was mens holiday. We got caught by security and quickly everyone knew the american boy was caught drinking with 3 girls, even my doctor found out.

Then there's a bunch of stories where people would offer me drinks off a bottle they bought and sometimes become offended if I didn't accept



@ medeleyev. Where or why I went to a specific hospital makes no difference.  I did my research and ended up at one of the best facilities in the world. Again, I'm shocked at why this is even part of the debate.

[GQBlues]

LOL! Women buying men drinks?!? LOL...holy smokes...

It happens in Russia, in Slovakia, Czech, in LA, Budapest, WE, or anywhere there's women....Of course these women had to first find the man interesting enough to say the least...if not, you're out to pasture and the idea of women wanting to buy men drinks must definitely be something that just doesn't happen.

LOL...

[Boethius]

Typically, women do not flock to men just because they are attractive.  They may, but men who have lots of women flock to them usually have an "aura" about them, something that makes them very attractive to women.  They are not necessarily objectively handsome.  I once saw Bill Clinton in person (after his presidency), and understood immediately why all these women wanted to be around him. 


 

 
 

[OlgaH]

Then we will have to agree to disagree. Having spent time in the Russian Far East, and remote parts of Russia, I can say that young attractive foreign men do get some attention (and I am not talking about me), but they were not being flocked by women either. So, believe what you will, and I will do the same.

it also depends on looks and personality  I don't need to believe it I saw it: good looking young foreigners and young girls in my city.

[Darth_Budda]

it also depends on looks and personality  I don't need to believe it I saw it: good looking young foreigners and young girls in my city.

That works in america also,,, Just remembering High school...
Good looking foreign exchange students got the guys fighting over them!

I had the pleasure of dating a girl from Finland she was great.. We had a lot of good times snowboarding and other stuff,,,, 

[mendeleyev]

AB, it is not part of the debate. By reading the thread you'd know that I simply responded to another poster.

Perhaps you missed this a ways back:

AB, I hope that the treatment you found there was helpful. Tyumen is a bit out of the way for complex medical services and most local residents would be chaffing for the opportunity to travel to more sophisticated medical centres but that is not always how the current Russian medical system works. But if you were able to find the treatment you needed there, God bless you and I hope it was helpful.

Perhaps you also missed me asking you about other aspects of Russia besides the girls? You know, the question about travel, food, music, language, architecture, etc?

[Eduard]

Also, feb 24th? These 3 girls bought a bunch of beer and had me drink with them. They said it was mens holiday. We got caught by security and quickly everyone knew the american boy was caught drinking with 3 girls, even my doctor found out.

You prolly mean Feb. 23d which used to be the holiday dedicated to Soviet Army, then in the recent years they just made into "The day of the defenders of fatherland" and now it's more like a men's day.
When I was about 17 I had to stay at the hospital for a while. One of my girlfriends at the time visited me regularly and we made out on the stairway.  One night she and I sneaked out from the hospital and went to see a movie. I missed the head count that night and next morning they threw me out of the hospital! My mom wasn' happy!!!    (I was the horse in this picture and that's my mom with the round face)
I still remember that girl well... she stood out because she was bi and liked girls too. Occasionally she would bring one of her girlfriends so that the three of us could "talk" )) That was prolly 1977 and young people were pretty wild in those days and very sexually active, just as AB is describing today's younger crowd. As I mentioned before, a foreign man in his 40s and average in looks will probably not have the same experience as AB. On the other hand I've met Russian guys in their late 40s and 50s who still partied like rock stars with young pretty girls ( and they weren't skinny either). But as said, they had an Aura...

[OlgaH]

Mendeleyev, sorry, if I missed your post. I just made a correction on the Tyumen population as it  grows  Regarding treatment If I knew several places with the same good service I would choose one that would fit my budget.

I noticed you asked about other aspects. My comment about girls wasn't a reply on any of your comments.

Sorry for misunderstanding.

[mendeleyev]

Olga, I didn't even notice a misunderstanding. 

I was too busy publishing a recipe for Salad "Neptune" (Салат "Нептун") and that was making everyone here argue about how much salt to add. You know how wild these RW can be, especially when there is more than one in the kitchen!

[calmissile]

You know how wild these RW can be, especially when there is more than one in the kitchen! 
Now that's a problem I could deal with.   

[OlgaH]

Olga, I didn't even notice a misunderstanding. 

I was too busy publishing a recipe for Salad "Neptune" (Салат "Нептун") and that was making everyone here argue about how much salt to add. You know how wild these RW can be, especially when there is more than one in the kitchen!

Poor guy! 

take all suggestions on salt and divide into number of women in the kitchen, then write in the recipe add salt and pepper to taste 

[Misha]

As I mentioned before, a foreign man in his 40s and average in looks will probably not have the same experience as AB.

I presume that is a jab at me. However, when I was in Russia in the 1990s in my 20s (pretty much the same age as AB), I can say that I met normal women. They were kind, there were hospitable, but I wasn't being mugged either by them either in streets or the discos 

[mendeleyev]

Doug,

  I meant that "tongue in cheek" of course but glad you got it.

I've found that the easiest way to direction attention away from yourself or something you've done, is to start an argument amongst the ladies about exact specifications of something Russian, and a recipe is a good as any.



Olga, thanks for that suggestion!

In our house of course we observe the 4 Russian food groups:

- Mayonnaise

- Sour cream

- Meat/fish

- Beets


If you ever try to make a pyramid out of those 4, make sure you don't put the meat or beets at the top...else the pyramid will collapse! 
                     
 

[Eduard]

I presume that is a jab at me. However, when I was in Russia in the 1990s in my 20s (pretty much the same age as AB), I can say that I met normal women. They were kind, there were hospitable, but I wasn't being mugged either by them either in streets or the discos 

No Misha, I wish you didn't take it so personally. This applies to me as well since when I was single and went to Russia I was also in my 40s. I didn't have the same experience that AB had because I'm neither his age or have his looks, but like you I was able to meet plenty of regular nice women. Some guys are chick magnets, they just have the right look and I think AB has it. I don't think he has a problem attracting American girls either. Even when I was a teen in Russia I can't say that I was extremely successful with girls but even at that I always had 3 or 4 girlfriends at a time, and they weren't bad looking either!

[calmissile]

AB,

I would like your opinion to compare my observations in Ukraine with your observations in Russia.

My observations....
Age group of women above 40 yrs.... facial expression of those on the streets and in supermarkets... stern or business like.
Age group of women in 20's and younger.... facial expressions of those on streets and in supermarkets... happy, playful, friendly.
I had a rather limited experience of only about 5 weeks, but this was a general impression I had (in the eyes of a US man).

In general, I was wondering if there is a generational gap in behavior between the young and the older ladies.
Also, I found that you could approach a young lady on the street to ask directions, etc. and they generally were friendly and helpful.  The older ones, generally ignore you and walk away. 
What was  your experience  (non-romantic of course)?

[calmissile]

I presume that is a jab at me. However, when I was in Russia in the 1990s in my 20s (pretty much the same age as AB), I can say that I met normal women. They were kind, there were hospitable, but I wasn't being mugged either by them either in streets or the discos   

Perhaps it was because of your disposition and personality.   

[GQBlues]

Konfushus - He just needs to be ignored...

No, he shouldn't be. That includes you. On this board and others like it, and for the purposes of sharing FSU-related information, you and others that are newly embarking on this adventure can benefit from his knowledge about Russia/FSU. It may not necessarily be in the same vein of your thread, but there are other vital information for Russia that Misha, and others like him, can help people out.

I sometimes give Misha a tough time, but that's to be expected when you have different personalities on a community board like RWD. But that in no measure I mean to disregard his knowledge on most other things. That goes for everyone else I banged heads with. It would behoove you too to understand that.

Bottom line is, this is a community. The more information that can be gathered, collectively, can only prove to be beneficial for everyone here. Ignoring folks for what they can share overall because of differences in personality, or certain beliefs, is not always a wise position to take.

Typically, women do not flock to men just because they are attractive.  They may, but men who have lots of women flock to them usually have an "aura" about them, something that makes them very attractive to women.  They are not necessarily objectively handsome.

There's truth to that. That applies to women, too. I think it's more the *presence* that other folks 'feel'. The stronger the person's presence, the more captivating they become. Sensuality isn't too far behind.

FTR, I'm one of those who fell from the ugly tree and hit a few ugly branches on my way down, but the 'thud' it made when I hit ground zero apparently had a much longer effect as it seem to resonate with every one wherever I went. Like an eternal sonic boom wave, if you will...

 

Man, you really did want to slap me around before? 

[Faux Pas]

I presume that is a jab at me. However, when I was in Russia in the 1990s in my 20s (pretty much the same age as AB), I can say that I met normal women. They were kind, there were hospitable, but I wasn't being mugged either by them either in streets or the discos 

It wasn't a jab at you Misha. Quite honestly, AB has been much more than patient and cordial with your "attacks" at both his story and character. I personally have long admired your knowledge of Russia but, never have I even fathomed that you know everything as you seem to be projecting here. Give it a break.

This isn't the 90's, things have changed since you were in your 20's. There are many subcultures in Russia you know nothing about. Apparently the present club scene is on of them. AB's tale is believable whether you wish to believe it or not, makes no difference. Maybe embellished, maybe not. He's provided ample evidence and yet you still persist. Give it a break.

I'll give you this, you are very dogged and persistent in most every thread that you post. For this one, back off and walk away, you are beginning to embarrass yourself. Things change Misha, your older, accept and embrace it. FWIW

[mendeleyev]

Our youngest is graduating from Moscow State University and naturally I'm proud of our young lady and her dual majors/degrees which she has defended successfully. Thus I think a little education is in order for the OP and it would seem that MGU is perhaps (at least according to this video) a good place for him to consider:

[Boethius]

Congrats, Mendy.  You must be very proud.