RWD Ceasing Operations in January

[TwoBitBandit]

I started a new thread since commenting isn't allowed in the Announcements section.

Thank you, Dan, for running this site for so long.  (Or whoever is running the site now, if it's not Dan)  It's a kind of a thankless task with not much upside.

I remember when this site became the main site on this topic after Planet Love shut down.  I've had my account since 2005 and I registered not too long after it started. Twenty years is a very long run for something like this.

The decision to shut down makes sense.  These types of fora have been losing ground to other sites like Reddit for a long time.  And the whole game has changed a lot: back in the early 2000s going abroad to meet women was much more difficult.  Now there's lots of information everywhere: you can find all the information you need on the Internet.  There's no longer the need to rely on sketchy sites and people and agencies.

Certainly, the war has put a damper on things.  Twenty years ago, there was hope that Russia would become more free, but it's gone in the opposite direction.  It's become more similar to North Korea every year.  Ukraine is trying to escape their orbit which has made it into a war zone.

There have been some awesome participants here over the years, and it was a pleasure to meet them in real life.  I still keep loose touch with Jooky.  I had the pleasure to meet 2tallbill, perhaps I will again.  And I knew several other people from the SF Bay Area who no longer post here.

Everything in life is transient.  I'm sad that the board is closing, but I haven't really participated in a long time.

Going to Russia and marrying an RW changed my life.  I want to thank everyone here that traveled with me along the way and exchanged so much information, stories and feedback.