Barranqilla/Cartagena TRIP REPORT - APRIL 2011

[CalifSur]

Very good report, CalifSur! One of the things I was curious about was the large number of women that you did not find attractive. Do you have a type and these women don't fit the type? I have a definite type and if a woman is not that type she had better be absolutely stunning for me to find her attractive.

In reply to UC & Flash:  Yes, UC that does describe me to some extent.  My "type" is typically dark, petite Latinas.  So what might look like a "plain girl" to some guys will look pretty hot to me if she has those features.

Yet, these are guidelines not rules for me.  For example, the girl I wound up with is petite but not dark by Costena standards. So I am flexible.  Mostly, I just like very attractive LATINAS of all types and hues.

The selection process at International Introductions goes like this (or at least it did for me):
1.  You select approx. 30 girls from the webiste that most interest you (and within that group you pick your TOP 5 or 10 that really stand out).  The agency e-mails these girls to see if THEY want to meet YOU.

2.  The agency ALSO sends an e-mail blast to all the girls you did NOT select to see if they would be interested in meeting you.  The agency sends you that list to see IF YOU would like to meet any of those ladies.  These are the 100 plus ladies I was referring to. I had ALREADY passed on them when I first went through the agency's webiste.

Yes, I am a picky or at least very particular.  I do not know how many women are on Jamie's webiste. Let's say it's 300.  After the first 30 ladies I had a hard time picking more.  They just didn't do it for me (no matter what "type" they were).  

But my mind was not toally closed because the lady I did end up with was one of my Top 10 picks. And from her photos I thought she could go either way in person: maybe cute, maybe not.  But I liked some other aspects of her profile that caught my interest.  In this case, she looked BETTER in person, far better.  She was the excpetion to the rule.    

[CalifSur]

Califsurf!  What up!

Loved your trip report, that sucked with your luggage. You had the same translator as me, you arrived the day I left. She is awesome isn't she?!?! You met Auzzie #1 no doubt, isn't he cool or what and he did well with his novia, very nice!

I am so happy you had a great time and I am flattered that you used my day by day approach! You were much more concise than me though, which is good, I tend to ramble sometimes.

Interesting, you had another 100 women that wanted to meet you, how many of those could have been knock-outs and good catches based on your experience with the photos and real life person? Maybe their characteristics were no good for you. Well, you have a nice bullpen to call upon if you need to.

Yeah, that BAQ accent is strong, they have to take it to half speed so the untrained ear can understand.

You found one that you are keeping in touch with, I would say you had better success than me...jejejeje

Isn't so much better when the translator is not around?

What would you do differently if you did it again?

Looking forward to the rest of the trip report!

Dude, I am heading back in July, I gotta have some more, take another look at this thing, do some things a little different, I am a feign though, at least for now....jejejeje

Colgando:  You will rip it up when you go back in July!  You are lucky to live so close to Colombia (So. Fla.). Man I WISH I lived that close.  You are 29 yrs young to boot.  The world is your oyster.  Wish I had discovered this whole universe at your age.  Better late than never!

Yes, we had the same translator. She is GREAT. But I agree once you go on the one-on-ones it is best to go it alone.

You had group sessions of up to 13 ladies!  I don't think I ever got close to 10.  But yes who knows how many gems are left in that list of 100.  You never know for sure until you try.

[CalifSur]

Califsur,

i am glad your trip went well, i agree with the guys do not worry or compare your trip to other trips.. to each there own...if you enjoyed your time with # 1 then give her a chance and see where is goes.... remember it only takes one... the fact that you met her family is great. i would keep chatting with her and see what comes of it.. you have nothing to loose and all to gain....if you plan to go back and #1 is not the one then at least you have a trip under your belt and then next time around you will be a lot more prepared for the things to come...... all in all i think you made a great chose in life to make your 1st trip to Colombia....

Best of luck to you in your future endeavours

Ray

Thanks Ray.  You've been an incredible resource.  Nothing better than hearing it directly from a guy who was there before me!

[CalifSur]

DAYS #6 & 7:  CARTAGENA

-Cartagena for two nights with Latina #1.  Before we left she invited me to her house in Barranqilla for a quick lunch (which she cooked).  The lunch was great. She lives with her prima and her prima’s husband.  I met the husband.  A very nice guy who spoke very slowly and clearly for me!  I had an actual conversation without having to say, “Otra vez, por favor.” 

-We went dancing our first night in Cartagena.  Latina #1 can DANCE.  She had other Colombianas pointing to her on the dance floor.  She is that good.  I’ve picked up some Salsa and Cumbia the past few years but she just blew me away!  Of course, Latina #1 quickly pointed out that my Cumbia style is Mexican Cumbia, NOT Colombian.   

-We did have a few disagreements. There was an even a red flag or two that I’d rather not air here.  Let’s just say I was able to nip that in the bud.  I am also prepared to walk away if those red flags resurface.

-We had a wild cab ride to make it to Playa Blanca (the beautiful beach directly off the coast from Cartagena). One of those adventures you laugh about later but at the time was pretty stressful.  We slept too late to make the early boats that leave for Playa Blanca.

-So we jumped in a cab with some guy who told us he could take us to another dock outside the city but closer to the island.   We drive through some sketchy looking areas on the outskirts of Cartagena.  We finally get to the other dock and there were NO boats, NADA. 

-So we hopped a ferry with the taxi across a short channel.  We were told Playa Blanca was a short 15 minute ride up a dirt road.  But we spent the next 30 minutes in the taxi on this isolated dirt road passing by little settlements and stray cows.  The scenery was at times BEAUTIFUL with sweeping coastline views and rolling hills and trees. At other times, you could see the SQUALOR that many Colombians must endure.  The cab driver had to keep stopping to ask people if we were still heading in the right direction.  We ended up at this opening to a narrow pedestrian path (far too small for a car to enter). The locals (who were all very nice) tell us yes Playa Blanca is a short 5 minute walk down that path. We pay the cab driver and walk to the beach.  Plenty of people on the beach and several boats docked for us to get back to Cartagena.  Stress is gone and we enjoyed a few hours at the beach before heading back to Cartagena by boat.

SAYING GOODBYE:

-Latina #1 and I said our goodbyes at the Barranqilla Airport.  At this point we agreed this was a process and getting to know each other better is the next step.  The plan is for me to visit Colombia ASAP, but probably not before July.

[Jeff S]

Sounds like you had a successful first trip. Thanks for the great report.

[sticky2]

Nice report, Califsur.  I'm a little concerned about the lack of response and the poor quality of the girls.  You look like a good looking guy in your avatar, but it sounds like you said your first pictures you sent weren't very good?

I noticed a lot of the profiles of the young hot girls at Jamie's have a max age of 40.  Did Jamie's staff say anything about age, or maybe another reason possible for the lack of response?

Did you tell Jamie you spoke spanish before he sent out your info?  That's important to many of the girls.

I'm dying to know what the red flags were during your night out with Latina #1.  When you post stuff like that, but then won't elaborate, the imaginations of the us readers can run wild.  Like, was she flirting with other guys? Did she drink too much? Did she pull out a bag of crack cocain?  Haha, I hope it wasn't any of those things!

Sticky

[dennislevy]

Very good reporting.

Kudos, sounds as if you had fun and yet exercised very good judgement.

it doensn t sound as if any of these girl knocked you out enough for you to show up BEFORE July. 

 

[CalifSur]

Nice report, Califsur.  I'm a little concerned about the lack of response and the poor quality of the girls.  You look like a good looking guy in your avatar, but it sounds like you said your first pictures you sent weren't very good?

I noticed a lot of the profiles of the young hot girls at Jamie's have a max age of 40.  Did Jamie's staff say anything about age, or maybe another reason possible for the lack of response?

Did you tell Jamie you spoke spanish before he sent out your info?  That's important to many of the girls.

I'm dying to know what the red flags were during your night out with Latina #1.  When you post stuff like that, but then won't elaborate, the imaginations of the us readers can run wild.  Like, was she flirting with other guys? Did she drink too much? Did she pull out a bag of crack cocain?  Haha, I hope it wasn't any of those things!

Sticky

Hey Sticky: Thanks for reading my report.

You were at Jamie’s a few years ago, right? I would imagine the quality of ladies is about the same today as it was then.  I guess it is up to the taste of each guy to decide.

-AGE:  Yes, you correct that many of the ladies on Jamie’s site have an age cut off at 40 years.  Jamie stated that is a “guideline” and not a rule for many of these ladies.  I agree with him but I am SURE it does HURT on some level if you are OVER 40 (like me).  

-PHOTOS:  Yes, the photos that were used in my profile were NOT the best. That was a mix up I do regret. But they were not horrible either.  

The one in my avatar I had taken AFTER the fact precisely because I was concerned the ones that were sent were NOT great.  But the “new and improved” photos were not sent out to the ladies until the week PRIOR to my visit (if they got sent at all).  The damage was already done.  Definitely spend the cash for a good photographer and do NOT hit the SEND button until you feel comfortable the photos reflect you in good light.      

-LANGUAGE:  Yes, you can state clearly in your profile that you speak or don’t speak Spanish.  YOU write your profile, NOT Jamie. His staff translates it for you.  I did say something about it in my profile but looking back I probably would have stated more clearly that I have basic conversational Spanish abilities.

-RED FLAGS:  No, they were NOT drug or alcohol related at all. She had maybe one glass of wine the entire time I spent with her (which was A LOT of time).  Not related to flirting with other guys either. She gave me her undivided attention.

[Colgando]

Colgando:  You will rip it up when you go back in July!  You are lucky to live so close to Colombia (So. Fla.). Man I WISH I lived that close.  You are 29 yrs young to boot.  The world is your oyster.  Wish I had discovered this whole universe at your age.  Better late than never!

Yes, we had the same translator. She is GREAT. But I agree once you go on the one-on-ones it is best to go it alone.

You had group sessions of up to 13 ladies!  I don't think I ever got close to 10.  But yes who knows how many gems are left in that list of 100.  You never know for sure until you try.

Thanks Cali, I got the first time WOW factor out of my system...I least I hope so......jejejeje 

I hope it is another good trip for me, I lost all my expectations though, I am going again to take another look, I do not like the way things ended with my last trip, so I am compelled to take another look, satisfy my curiosity. Depending on how this trip goes in July, I may or may not go again this year. I need to head over to Africa for a couple of weeks which would use up the rest of my vacation time. I would gladly pass on the Africa trip if I had a sweet, sexy Colombiana that I wanted/needed to go back and see. Absent that, I am heading to Africa 4th Quarter 2011, got some business I need to do there, but it could wait.....we'll see!   

Def keep us posted on your relationship with Latina #1, I am very curious how it plays out. That is so smart and wise of you to meet the family so quick, and you also got a number walking to the store, well done, well done indeed. I like how she offered for you to meet the family, that is a good sign! My best to you Cali!

[flash]

Again, great conclusion to your report. You know, you are leaving us all guessing. PL is something of an "air all the laundry" site. But I can understand your resistance. You seem to have your head screwed on real tight, so I'm sure you handled your business.

[flash]

Question about the pictures. Do you recommend using an "in your face" close up, or will a distance shot like your avatar suffice?

If anyone else wants to chime in, please do. I'm thinking about crossing over the great divide this summer. And I'd like to stack the deck in my favor as much as possible.

[CalifSur]

At International Introductions (Jamie's agency) I believe they include about 3 photos in the profile they send to the ladies. So I would think a mixture of close up and farther away is good.  If you have blue or green eyes (or otherwise interesting eyes) a close up of some sort could be a good idea.

I'd also look at the photos of the girls on Jamie's site.  I would think replicating something similar in terms of shots and angles and distance would sufffice as well.  Most of those seem kind of medium range shots.

Best of luck if you decide to take the plunge!

[CalifSur]

Thanks Cali, I got the first time WOW factor out of my system...I least I hope so......jejejeje 

I hope it is another good trip for me, I lost all my expectations though, I am going again to take another look, I do not like the way things ended with my last trip, so I am compelled to take another look, satisfy my curiosity. Depending on how this trip goes in July, I may or may not go again this year. I need to head over to Africa for a couple of weeks which would use up the rest of my vacation time. I would gladly pass on the Africa trip if I had a sweet, sexy Colombiana that I wanted/needed to go back and see. Absent that, I am heading to Africa 4th Quarter 2011, got some business I need to do there, but it could wait.....we'll see!   

Def keep us posted on your relationship with Latina #1, I am very curious how it plays out. That is so smart and wise of you to meet the family so quick, and you also got a number walking to the store, well done, well done indeed. I like how she offered for you to meet the family, that is a good sign! My best to you Cali!

Best of luck in July but I don't think you'll need it!   

[Colgando]

Best of luck in July but I don't think you'll need it!   

Thanks Cali!

Wish me good fortune and favor! 

   

[flash]

I agree with you, Col will be fine. On his next trip he needs to let them know that he's the fish and they're the bait. Thanks for the advise. You seem to have fared well despite the pic issues.

[CalifSur]

Yes, Colgando will dominate on his next trip. If I had half his brains at age 29 I would already be married to a Colombiana!

[JaxPaul24]

Great trip report Cali! Sounds like you prepared as well as you could and stayed on track while you were there despite some things happening that were out of your hands. 

The low turnout was surprising to me, no reason you should have had that low of a response in my opinion.  That's where I think Jaime needs to compromise and refund the client a few hundred dollars because of the low turnout.  Your suppose to meet a minimum of at least 30 to 40 women of your choice. When that's not happening then you shouldn't be charged the full price.   

Two things that may have had something to do with the low turnout:

1.  You being 44 years old and you not selecting any women with children I'm sure had something to do it.  I can understand your preference and especially so because you yourself have no children but really what are the chances of men our age finding compatible women that are OVER 25 -27 years of age and they don't have at least one child? AND that's in Colombia where we can possibly and successfully date women 10 to 15 years younger than us.  In the states, late 20's, early 30's for me and 90% of those women will all have a kid or kids!  Anyways, I'm sure they are some Colombianas out there in their mid to late 20's but man that's tough.  Out of the women I got close too during my trip, 4 out of the 5 had a child and believe me they were just as beautiful if not more beautiful than one's that didn't have any children.  They were also more mature and independent and seemed more prepared for a life outside of Colombia.  BUT, I don't blame you for wanting to find a woman with no children because that would be the easier route to go for me as well but you'll need to be patient because I would think that most women in our ideal age group will probably have a kid or two. 

2.  I still check out Jaimes profiles every now and then to check out the newer girls because I plan on going back to Colombia in June and maybe someone will catch my eye.  I'm not positive but I think most of the time when a girl gets contacted for intro's and/or dates their profile somehow gets updated. I have only seen a few of the girls that I met who's profiles show a recent profile update.  I can actually go back and find most of my favorites and they show a last login date from the time I was there. So I'm thinking it's quite possible that maybe you went at a bad time.  I mean when I was there one guy was leaving, 2 guys were there at some point during my stay and one guy was on his way in when I left for Cartagena.  That's just from my time there, we know guys came after me and before you. Like I said in another post, most of the girls I met/dated had minimal experience with the agency and many had new pictures taken while at the office because it had been so long since they were last there. I just don't think from having been there recently that these women go to multiple intro's and on dates with different men over the course of a few weeks.  We already know that Jaime only has so many 8's and 9's and the rest are 5-7's.  I really think by the time you got there, many of the prettier girls had probably been to a couple of intro's and possibly a date or two over the last 2 or 3 months and were not interested for that reason.  I'm not sure man, but when you said you had a low turnout and the ones that did show up did not appeal to you at all, that was surprising to me.  I thought 90% of the girls I met were attractive, maybe not knockouts but definitely attractive.  AND for me personally, just about everyone of them looked even better in person then they did in their photos.  That too was surprising to hear that it was the opposite for you.  Either way, Jaime should have hooked you up w/ some kind of refund if you only met a handful of women and most had not been selected by you.       

Anyways, sounds like you ended up meeting someone special and ultimately that's all that matters.  I'm glad you had the cajones to go and do it! It's an exciting experience and I can't wait to get back! 

Good luck man and thanks for sharing!   

[CalifSur]

Hey JAXPAUL.  Good to hear from you!  Your report was epic.

Yes, you make some VERY good points.  No doubt you are correct that my "no kids" preference made it much more difficult. If I were to go again, I would definitely rethink that.

My biggest disappointment was only getting to meet 3 of my top 10 picks. And I am telling you 2 of the 3 were just NOT anything like their photos.  Luckily, 1 was BETTER in person.  I think if I could have gotten 1 or 2 MORE of my top picks in the door to meet me I would have been more satisfied. Because the odds are I would have ended up really liking at least ONE of them. That would have given me more options to explore and get to know.  As it went down, I do feel a bit like I drove off the lot with the first car I test drove!  Terrible to put it that way.  But for the time and money invested it would have been nice to feel there were more options.

Kudos to you and Colgando for getting back down there so quickly.  Best of luck when you go!   

[Researcher]

   Hey Califsur, don't worry about the over 40 rule some of these chicas have. You are 44, have hair and are in shape. If you are interested in a woman send her your profile and let her decide.I bet you will find many women who will make an exception  to that rule. I never let that stop me

       Sounds like you had a good time and came away with a couple of prospects.What more can you ask for. You learned alot and will be better prepared next trip.

       Researcher.

[CalifSur]

Researcher:  Thanks for the input.  But that is a hair piece I have on!  Just kidding.  No doubt I agree and many girls do and did break that no guys over 40 guideline.  I did learn a lot and also met a very sweet girl.

[AndyLee]

The "age" discussion comes up from time to time and we can only go by our personal experience but it seems to me, on average, after corresponding with probably 1000 women, that about 1/4 of the girls will stay close to their profile given age range, within a few years. The other 3/4 will stray outside their age range anywhere from 10 to 30 years.
I'm 62 and I still feel a bit weird when I get a "serious" contact from a 30 or 32 year old woman. By "serious" I mean a woman who really wants to talk about something substantial other than her current cash flow challenges.
I will also say, that when I'm active on the Cupid sites I will send out interests to ages from 38 and up IF they have posted their interest as being 50 or up. Out of at least 1000 women only 2 times have I been rebuked for sending interests to younger women. One time the lady sent me an email saying I was old enough to be her father (she was right) and another time a woman sent me a chat message "hola feo" which translates to something like Hello Ugly. That was TWO times out of 1000. The other 998 either ignored me or responded positively. My best guess is that probably 25% responded positively, and about 10% continued into a lengthy discussion over several emails, chats, personal visits.
I arrived at the 38 year age range by dividing my age by 2 and adding 7. I don't know where that formula came from. One source seems to have been Napoleon, but who will ever know for sure.

[Jeff S]

Your formula is an old Arabic saying from the middle east, and is common knowledge in Islamic countries. I suspect it predates Mohammed though and probably goes back to biblical times - maybe even to the Exodus.

[AndyLee]

Your formula is an old Arabic saying from the middle east, and is common knowledge in Islamic countries. I suspect it predates Mohammed though and probably goes back to biblical times - maybe even to the Exodus.

Wow, good information JS, thanks! I did a google a while back and came up with Eldridge Cleaver....so THAT's the connection. (That's where I got the Napoleon info, too).

[fathertime]

Hey JAXPAUL.  Good to hear from you!  Your report was epic.

Yes, you make some VERY good points.  No doubt you are correct that my "no kids" preference made it much more difficult. If I were to go again, I would definitely rethink that.

My biggest disappointment was only getting to meet 3 of my top 10 picks. And I am telling you 2 of the 3 were just NOT anything like their photos.  Luckily, 1 was BETTER in person.  I think if I could have gotten 1 or 2 MORE of my top picks in the door to meet me I would have been more satisfied. Because the odds are I would have ended up really liking at least ONE of them. That would have given me more options to explore and get to know.  As it went down, I do feel a bit like I drove off the lot with the first car I test drove!  Terrible to put it that way.  But for the time and money invested it would have been nice to feel there were more options.

Kudos to you and Colgando for getting back down there so quickly.  Best of luck when you go!   

well califsur, that is disappointing to only meet so few of your favorite gals, i'd be a little perplexed about that one myself...maybe some of these gals were a little young or otherwise not interested or fading out of the agecny scene? I remember when i made some choices on the website for some of the gals that had been on the site for a long time, those were the ones that were less likely to be easily contacted, not always the case obviously but more likely.   

Either way, how is it going with the one contact that you have already established? 

Fathertime! 

[dennislevy]

I m just an old geezer, with no hair and a gut...but if I may.....

for guys who are going to Jamie Morrow s agency or to any agency for the first time.

Ranking girls before you meet them face to face is (IMHO) an exercise in futility. because its a grade based on the guy s fantasy of what he WISHES the girl will be like.

Profiles convey a selective reality, what the girl wants to project. Sometimes, its close to the objective truth, much of the time it isnt. Photos can be deceiving, as we all know. In some photos, blancas appear as trigueñas, or a triguena is a morena clara, etc. Perceptions of weight, and height can al be influnced by the angle and poses of fotos.  

if a woman is lying on her stomach facing the camera, she is hiding her belly and can bet she s way heavier, then the 5 1 and 128 she s listing on her profile. So when you look at a photo, the first question to ask is...what  am I not seeing? Chances are that s what she wants to hide.

So just fnd a pool of women you would like to meet, DON T say to yourself , I really WANT to meet his one. Because if she s got obvious good looks,  other guys thought so too and she may not be availalbe, maybe she so trying to make a realtionship work with one of the prior men at the agency.

And if you are paying Jamie or someone else 1500 for time and and a room and bath, it should be a decent sized pool of women. You should get full vlaue and be busy. 80% of guys want to meet the top 20% of attractive women, but there are always hidden  pearls in the other 80%...be a hidden pearl finder....

No one is ever going to know an agency woman by her fotos and profile....Not until  you get into a woman s home and meet her family...do you have a much better idea of who she is