Belarus

[Stillkatn]

Okay gang, I'm back.  Been watching from the weeds and quite frankly, just didn't have anything substantial to say or add.  You could say I got a little miffed after getting the "Dear Ivan" from my Ukrainian Princess.  Oh well...

Now then!  Back in the saddle, but there is a twist (there ALWAYS is).  This time we are talking Minsk, Belarus.  Anybody have any experence there?  How does it compare to Kiev?  Being the reluctant traveler, I spazzed over Kiev, now I feel comfortable there - so I have to go somewhere else.  I would be interested to hear personal impressions of what Belarus is like.  Do the same general rules apply?

[Turboguy]

Your post has been up a while and no one seems to be answering it.  I was in Minsk one time a long time ago.   I did not spend that much time there but went on to Vitibisk.  It seemed much the same.  A lot more drab than Kiev but the people and the psychology is much the same.   My understanding is that the prosperity level is actually a little higher there and they have less freedom there but all in all it is not that much different than the other cities in the FSU

[Stillkatn]

Thanks for sharing Turbo - I don't expect rapid response, I haven't been around much.  More drab?  eeech....

[corp]

IF I am not mistaken, Belarus has out-lawed dating (international) agencies.
anyone know the status on that turn of events?

[RussianGal]

..This time we are talking Minsk, Belarus.  Anybody have any experence there?  I would be interested to hear personal impressions of what Belarus is like.  Do the same general rules apply?

Well, as a Belarussian who studied in Minsk for 4 years, I can say it`s a beautiful, safe, easy to go around place. Same general rules apply.
I can`t compare it to Kiev since I have not been there yet, but my husband and some foreign friends enjoyed their stays in my country, so I guess you will too. ;-)
If interested, you may want to read about Belarus here.

IF I am not mistaken, Belarus has out-lawed dating (international) agencies..

 This Belarussian agency in Minsk seems to be working just fine:
http://www.all-russian-girls.com/letters.shtml
 Anyway, you can find Belarussian ladies`s profiles in many dating agencies, regardless if they are located in Belarus or not.

[Stillkatn]

Thank you Russian Gal!  As with most of the FSU, any information from the "traditional" sources may be tainted with propaganda.  I appreciate and value your input.

Tom

[TheHorseman]

Your post has been up a while and no one seems to be answering it.  I was in Minsk one time a long time ago.   I did not spend that much time there but went on to Vitibisk.  It seemed much the same.  A lot more drab than Kiev but the people and the psychology is much the same.   My understanding is that the prosperity level is actually a little higher there and they have less freedom there but all in all it is not that much different than the other cities in the FSU

I have to agree with Turbo,,,, It is a lot more drab that the Russian cities I have been to.  their roads are much better though.  I was there in November of 2003.  I only passed through Minsk,  The airport is about 40 km outside of the city.  It was like a tomb.  Nice Big airport, No people.  The train station pretty nice.  I spent most of my time in Gomel.  Again a drab setting. 

If you start dating over there watch out for a gal named Alla ******** in Gomel.  I am not sure what the rules are in here about talking about women, but she is posted on several Agencies.  I can give more info as needed. In my opinion she would be one to stay away from.

[RussianGal]

..It is a lot more drab that the Russian cities I have been to.  their roads are much better though.  I was there in November of 2003.  I only passed through Minsk,  The airport is about 40 km outside of the city.  It was like a tomb.  Nice Big airport, No people.  The train station pretty nice.  I spent most of my time in Gomel.  Again a drab setting...

A drab... Really?  May be if you had more time to spend in Minsk you would not say that.

I totally agree about our airport - big and.. empty. Rail-way station is huge too, public library is a giant... Looks like B. president is obsessed with size.

[TheHorseman]

A drab... Really?  May be if you had more time to spend in Minsk you would not say that.

Ok,,, maybe if I saw a bit more of it I would change my mind... Most of what I saw was in Gomel.... But Gomel was pretty drab.  It could have been because it was in the winter though.... I will say that.

Maybe he is trying to over come a short coming. 

I like your picture under your name.  I have a picture I made up for my book.  I would have liked to put it on the profile, but it would fit.  I would post it in here, but I can't figure out how to put in a picture on the post..

[Admin]

Ok,,, maybe if I saw a bit more of it I would change my mind... Most of what I saw was in Gomel.... But Gomel was pretty drab.  It could have been because it was in the winter though.... I will say that.

Maybe he is trying to over come a short coming. 

I like your picture under your name.  I have a picture I made up for my book.  I would have liked to put it on the profile, but it would fit.  I would post it in here, but I can't figure out how to put in a picture on the post..

Re: Picture in the post. Depends on whether you intend to attach it to the post (and upload it to the site), or leave the photo hosted somewhere else. Most people opt to simply attach the photo - which requires you to expand the "Additional Options" (reference attached screenshot 01), and then browse to your photo (reference attached screenshot 02) and upload the photo to the post.

Let me know if you have any questions.

- Dan

[RacerX]

Minsk is quite lovely, it’s no Petersburg  but the relaxed setting on the river makes it a nice place to visit.  The lighting at night is spectacular. Not too much to do compared to most Western-FSU cities, though.

The roads are far superior to anything I’ve seen in RU and the airport has been remodeled to where they now use all the levels.

Their El Presidente has made sure law-and-order is the rule of the day, but for a tourist it means an impeccably clean and safe city.

Oh, and did I mention - the girls are incredible!!

[Stillkatn]

I'm feeling better already 

[TheHorseman]

I agree the women are first class.  I stepped on my tonge everytime I turned my head. 

Ok I got the picture thing down ,,, thanks Dan

[RussianGal]

... But Gomel was pretty drab.  It could have been because it was in the winter though....

Could be. Take a look at my Hrodna pictures taken in the fall:

[RussianGal]

...Ok I got the picture thing down..

Nice pic!!! 

[pitbull]

RussianGal, Hrodna IS the most beautiful city in Belarus. Officially. And I agree with this.

But  love Minsk more because I'm a patriot of my home city....(well, and it's a great city indeed).

[Patton]

I am curious about Belarus too, since I have been to Ukraine many times and I get a strong feeling the ladies there are getting more spoiled each time I go. However, I could be wrong about that. 

[RussianGal]

...I am curious about Belarus too...

And what exactly to you wonna know, Paton? If our girls are less 'spoilt' than the rest of FSU? May be, however there is no guarantee you won`t pick a 'bad' one over there either.
In general, the odds to find a nice lady in RB are pretty high. Let`s take a look at my home city (Hrodna): I`m the only one among all my friends who is married to AM!  Many lovely women are still available, still looking . 

[Stillkatn]

Same feeling here Patton.  I was getting the distinct impression that is was like "so what" from the UW.  Not that there is anything wrong with their independence, but I can get dumped on here and save the airfare...

[jj]

Thanks for Belarus women website RussianGal.  I already sent out an email to a lovely looking lady. from Minsk.  jj

[RussianGal]

Thanks for Belarus women website RussianGal.  I already sent out an email to a lovely looking lady. from Minsk. 

Welcome and good luck! 

[Patton]

Stillkatn, your funny! Yes, I agree! What's the sense of traveling thousands of miles and wasting a bunch of money on airfare, apartments, dinners, taxi fare, etc. etc. I can get treated like crap here at home. Frankly, I'm getting REAL tired of the FSU marriage industry. I think the best way around this is to live in the FSU. 

P.S. RussianGal, thank you for your post. Maybe there's hope for me after all.

[mischief]

Minsk is a very nice, safe and incredibly clean city.  If you go there for sightseeing, you’d better off in St’ Petersburg or Kiev… but if you go to find a nice girl and have a good time, Minsk is certainly what you need.  Besides, people are much friendlier than in Kiev. The food, taxi and entertainment are cheap.  If somebody is interested I can give the list of must-see places…
For a little preview what the girls in Minsk are like, here is the link to pictures of the night life in Minsk : http://mixtura.org/minsk/photo.html  (on the left of every picture there is a date and Слайд-шоу  = slide-show, press there!)

If somebody is planning to go there in August, let me know… Me and my son will be there for three week…

[dfb]

Here are a few of my tips and experiences with traveling to Minsk.  I haven’t been there in a few years, so things may have changed.  Based on conversations that I have with my mother-in-law (who is staying with us for the summer) and brother-in-law, things have not changed much for the better.  Anyway, my wife was from Minsk, K-1 visa immigrant.  Her mother and brother still live in Minsk.  About 6 years ago, I travel 3 times, approx 2.5 wks each time, to Minsk.  We traveled together three years ago for 2.5 weeks to visit her family in Minsk.  Between the 4 trips to Minsk, believe I covered each season.  As a tourist, in my opinion, there are no bad seasons to visit Minsk.  My wife was from the city central area, so that represents most of the experience that I have. 

The city is clean, and law enforcement was visible.  The streets, market places, public places (theaters & museums), and parks were safe to walk day or night. 

Public transportation was cheap, reliable, and readily available.  During my last visit, Public busses were just being introduced in addition to the subway, trolleys, and cabs.  Be careful of people trying to run their own cab service, and always watch the meter.  Car rental came at a premium because of taxes (taxes include health and collision insurance).  My wife knew where to shop for the car rentals; I do not recommend renting a car without local help who understands the laws and the prices.  It was not legal for me to drive my brother-in-laws car.  The road signs were easy to understand and follow.  The city was easy to navigate, and traveling outside of the city to visit the castles was also easy to do.  The fee to visit the castles was different for tourists; also, there is a fee for foreigners to have a camera.  Caution about KGB, be prepared with cash on hand to pay the KGB fines for traffic violations.  Fine rates are published, and field adjustments to published fines are usually very steep to foreigners, don’t expect a receipt either.

During visits, we used a train to visit her summer home.  While traveling on the train, my wife cautioned me about speaking English or German, we were outside of the protection Minsk law enforcement, “rich foreigners with money in their wallets”.  For our last trip we traveled overnight train from Warsaw to Minsk; the flights were cheap from JFK to Warsaw.  Add on the cab price from Warsaw airport to the train depot and the cost of the train ticket, the savings become marginal for an individual but worthwhile as a couple.  The cab fairs between the train station and airport are published by the government, and good luck trying to find a cab who will actually take you for the published price.  My wife’s brother always drove me to/from the airport.  During my first trip, my wife told me how recently a “chartered bus/van” of Americans was robbed in route from the airport to Minsk by several men with AK-47’s.  At the airport, the KGB will search your luggage at least once on the way in and on the way out.  On the overnight train, the train will be searched at least once by the KGB (I recall a search at Brest).  A coach attendant may ask you to help with declaring 2 cases of cigarettes (individual limit) for resale in Warsaw.

I found women in the city central are very pretty, well dressed, polite…the list goes on and on.  My wife’s closest male friends were decent people.  People in general, dressed more upscale in the city central area for all types of events, business casual was the minimum.  Traveling outside of the city central, the women are not as pretty and well dressed, but just as nice.

The first trip I stayed at the “Belarus Hotel”, it is know by a different name to the locals.  The hotel rooms have their own shower, and the hotel served a very nice breakfast buffet on the top floor.  Each floor has a hall monitor who keeps track of who is in each room, and to enforce a curfew (no guest after xxx pm).  My wife warned me about the adjacent disco called “West World”, the local men have been know to get rough with foreigners.  Because of the disco, I recommend packing a set of earplugs if you’re staying at the “Belarus Hotel.”  I visited the casino once with my wife, an hour of gambling to break even; it’s just like a casino you could find anywhere else.  There was a crackdown on prostitution just before my first visit.  Just a few months prior, my wife had business associates staying at the hotel who complained that the phone rang at least once an hour all night long by a prostitute, the hall monitors were in on the deal by giving out the room numbers of foreign men in single rooms.  The hall monitors usually run a laundry business on the side.

Stay away from any kind of rally.  Information on upcoming events circulates among the locals as to when and where a political protest will occur, and the KGB treated protestors harshly.  I do not recommend even risking going anywhere near a rally; there is “guilt by association” with being near a rally point (before, during, or after).  In addition, there is no forgiveness for foreigners for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. 

Get your visa in order, I recommend using a travel service with a contact in the Belarus embassy to walk it through for stamps.  In Minsk, a hotel will arrange all of the fees and stamps for your visa.  Otherwise, it took a full day (10 hours) to travel around Minks to pay all of the fees and get the necessary stamps and paperwork, and obtain them in the correct order.  The laws and requirements for foreigners were known to change frequently.  Before a visit, my wife would spend many hours calling and visiting each place to verify the necessary documents and the prerequisite documents; otherwise, the entire trip could have been spent just trying to get the proper paperwork. 

Caution on the FOOD and WATER!  During my visits, I drank bottled or boiled water, and ate food purchased at restaurants and market (cooked at home).   Keep in mind that most of Belarus is an agricultural region and was/is contaminated by fallout!  See the World Health Organization recommendations for living in Belarus for short term (and for long term – gives you an understanding of what kind of problems your new wife could face a few years down the road).  In addition, research the fallout areas to determine if you want to risk traveling or staying in those areas. 

Until recently, Belarus was to import all of its food.  I was always suspect of the food while I was there, my wife was confident that all food was imported.  I was more confident of the fruits imported from the Mediterranean area.  Recently, the president of Belarus declared that there is no longer a problem with any meats or product (mostly economically driven); therefore, it is now impossible to distinguish imported food in the market place.  I recall Lukashanko had a spat with McDonalds a few years ago.  McDonalds was importing its entire meat selection, and Lukashanko tried to strong arm them into using Belarus meat; this maybe one of the few occasions that Luka lost a pissing contest.  The restaurant food was outstanding, and the prices were reasonable compared to the US and much greater than what the average Belarusian could afford.  I did not have a bad dinning experience in Minsk!

Good luck with your travels.  Hope some of this was useful.

[happyguy]

If somebody is interested I can give the list of must-see places…

I will be traveling to Minsk next month.What are some of the must see places?