what are these 'big cultural differences?'

[Ryan]

... in response to hmmm a WHOLE ten days?, posted by KenC on Dec 19, 2001

Well thank you Ken.  Well put you read my past posts well.  However I do see a way that I can make some difference and I am quick learner.  As for the woman not wanting to be in the same room or have a relationship is more my business but yes I did give that impression in earlier posts.  Ulia her family and I speak on the phone quite often we both realize now that things were off on the wrong foot.  No I am not sending money anymore but if I did that would be my business as I know first hand how they live and what they deal with.  

Since my major is in E-Commerce I might as well put it to good use.  It will be a collaboration of a number of peoples experiences maybe you will have some constructive input?  Ok the pimp thing was a little heavy but I am corresponding to women that have some of my same feelings.   Getting creative coming up with improved methods of correspondence could do no harm…  Who's the Joke old man?

[KenC]

... in response to Re: hmmm a WHOLE ten days?, posted by Ryan on Dec 19, 2001

Ryan,
The "privacy" of your business evaporated when you told your story on a public forum.  As for being a "quick learner", you still are clueless that you are just another American money machine for a poor struggling Ukrainian family.  Hell, send me $4K and I'll accept your calls too.  LOL  As long as you PAY for them!

You have no experience with agencies and yet you think you know enough to slam them and worse yet, try to lead some newbie down your path of failure.  There are many good agencies that deliver EXACTLY what is promised.  Many here swear by Jack at Firstdreams and from what is said here, the praise is well deserved.  But he is just a "pimp' in your book.  Jack has forgot more about the pursuit of FSU women than the total of your vast experience.  If you would have spent only some of the $4k you pissed away with Jack (or a good agency) you might have something more to show for it than Western Union receipts.  LOL.

I have always told my kids that there is no harm in making mistakes, the harm comes from not learning from them.  You are not smart enough to know you made a mistake, let alone learn from it.  That may be an "old" concept for you, but I call it experience and maturity.  Some of the guys here need a little "hand holding" that a good agency could provide.  I sure would never recommend you as a good source for information regarding FSU women in any regard.
KenC
ps (On your website are you going to recommend crying for sex like you did on your trip?)

[Ryan]

... in response to Re: Re: hmmm a WHOLE ten days?, posted by KenC on Dec 20, 2001

You just read my words then make up your own little fantasy.  I have never said that I am the know it all or that I have all this experience to lead people the correct way but when the agencies gouge people in this process I think that yes I can make comments on that matter.  I have said collaboration in every post putting together the good common since information that can help others make wise decisions.  You like to attack me on a personal level but you address nothing of the fact about how your agency people gouge others for a profit.  I realize that is board is filled with people of your writing style and “Agency views.”  There are also enough here to realize what I am saying make since. Some examples:

SOME examples For Men looking:
You can place adds in newspapers for $8 including a picture that run for a week.  Put an E-mail address in your add and wait for the letters to arrive.  Use online translators or convert from Russian if need be.

You do not have to send some agency up-words of $60 for an invitation to travel in their country.

Paying for your girls English lesions through an agency is simply crazy where there are far cheaper avenues for Russian women to learn to speak and language with much more professional teachers.  (The whole issues of getting these lesions can be debated)

Paying to have a car and driver by the hour while you are in the Ukraine is silly.  Walk, ride subways like everyone else you get to learn about the cultural and see some wonderful things.

Placing adds in men’s catalogs need to be debated and researched

Getting a hotel room in Ukraine can be expansive it is best to find a flat.

SOME examples for the women:
Use the Internet café’ exclusively when available.  Have a person call you and get their E-mail address and forget the agency.

Educate them on the signs of picking out men that have bad intentions.  (Free information)

Use only certain type of agencies that do not charge you for posting your add.  Educate the woman on all their options. (Yes more research will have to be done) Teach them how to pick out the bad agencies.  

Educate the women about cultural differences in a straightforward manor.  Lead them to support groups on the Internet and in the U.S.A. etc.

Ryan

[KenC]

... in response to Yes we all know your a jerk KenC, posted by Ryan on Dec 20, 2001

Ryan,
There are good agencies and bad ones.  To paint them all with the same stroke is foolish.  How can your information regarding agencies be the least bit credible when you have never used one?  I did use one and I would recommend them to others.  They did exactly what they promised.  I had a driver and interpreter meet me at the airport and they both were available to me 24/7.  My flat was pre-rented and they set up my appointments just as promised.  The agency was a perfect match for my experience level at the time.  Did they "gouge" me, as you suggested? No  They charged a fair rate for services rendered.  Could I have done the same things cheaper on my own?  Not at the experience level I was at the time.  The hours of phone calls I had with them prior to my trip was priceless information that I desperatly needed.  To sum up my agency experience, I would say they were a bargin.

It is curious at best that now you are preaching to everyone here how to save a few dollars on ads, invitations and such, when you were so out of control with your money before.  With a phone call to a good agency, they probably would have saved you a considerable sum of your expenditures.  I know Jack would have slapped some sense into you for free.  Your obvious mistake was over estimating your own abilities before, and you are doing it again now.
KenC

[LP]

... in response to your selective thriftiness is amusing, posted by KenC on Dec 20, 2001

.......easy buddy, you're gonna blow a gasket! lol....

[Ryan]

... in response to your selective thriftiness is amusing, posted by KenC on Dec 20, 2001

Your negativity only serves to push myself on further.  I thank you for this.  My expenditures in the past were little and most because of my big heart.  I did make some great friends in the Ukraine and they continue to be my friends even to this day.  I do not send anymore help to them as my money is short right now as I am completing my BS degree in Electronic Commerce yes in encompasses all aspects of conducting business on the Internet.  My first will be a non-profit driven service.  I want to inform and educate by leading everyone to the good guys and dispelling on the myths on all sides of this issue.  Keep it coming.
Ryan

[Mark H]

... in response to A good lesson for new guys searching, posted by Ryan on Dec 19, 2001

Ryan,
I have to disagree slightly with your statements as they are very GENERALIZED and opinionated. I agree with your feelings about alot of the agencies, however one must realize that agencies are like car dealerships. There are good ones and there are bad ones. Unfortunately the bad ones far outnumber the good ones. As in anything, you must take your time and utilitze the resources of good people...regardless if they are citizens or agencies. The plus of a good agency that you are missing is in logistics, ease of life, and opportunity. I don't own an agency, don't have anything to do with an agency...everyone knows I'm in Anesthesia. Marriage agency is not my bag. However, I have done it your way FOUR times. I leave sunday on my 5th trip. 3 to Russia and now a second to Ukraine. The previous 4 I wrote to girls on the net for free. I NEVER paid a dime for any correspondence costs. I met some great girls and had some great trips but was basically disappointed FOUR times. Now, with Jacks help I have planned one heck of a trip. To be honest, the logistics of the trip would be a nightmare without his help and precious time wasted would be the ultimate cost. Personally, I enjoy subcontracting to Jack or anyone like him to handle the logistics of this trip. Not to mention the 20 plus girls I have lined up to meet on my two city excursion. Just my two cents, ride the pony for what it's worth. Ryan, I think you'll do just fine but remember, what seems RIGHT to you may not fit others. To each his own and be careful with ABSOLUTE statements and generalities....they don't always fit.

Mark H.

[NK]

... in response to Re: A good lesson for new guys searching, posted by Mark H on Dec 19, 2001

...I know, I know -- I should talk LOL! I haven't posted here much myself anymore -- I've settled down a bit with my new Chinese-Canadian girlfriend (second generation) so the RW pursuit has been abandonned. But I've still been lurking quite a bit and I wondered what happened to you. Weren't you planning going to go live in Russia for a year or so to complete some of your (nurse/anesthesiology?)studies at one point? I guess it didn't pan out, huh? But hey it's good to see you're persistent, you're obviously taking a totally different approach and aside from that you're one of the few guys here AFAIK that has the good sense not to go chasing  after women who are 15-20 years younger than yourself.

Which reminds me:

Gotta to acknowledge KenC -- you're the only regular poster here now whose name I recognize. While overall, I think that anyone who marries someone with a significant age difference is asking for trouble, there are I admit exceptions to this rule and you're obviously one of them. How long have you and Lena been married now? -- 4 years? A pretty good length of time and you and Lena are obviously happy -- all the best to you both, you've earned your happiness. This board is a lot like the cast of Saturday Night Live -- gradually the people change over the years but the origninal veterans are always the ones you remember best. On that note -- do any of you know what happened to these guys: JohnCC, DaveTheKiwi, WmGO, DanM, and Porsche?

And a word of thanks to our board moderator (or janitor, as he calls himself ) Patrick -- the user registration system was a very wise move indeed and I think I speak for everyone when I say your hard work is appreciated.

Gotta go

Happy Holidays to y'all and see you in 2002 (maybe)

Regards,

Niall

[Mark H]

... in response to where the heck have YOU been, Mark! :-), posted by NK on Dec 20, 2001

Niall,
Good to hear from you as well. I was going to try to study language a bit in Russia but passed on that when I realized how much money I would be losing each month I'm away from my work...don't want to do that. SO, I'm still looking and having a ball. I get teased alot around the hospital because I travel so much, known as a international man of mystery type. Hmm, whatever. As for Ken, all we can keep trying to do is emmulate the man and talk with him. Maybe some of it will rub off. I haven't posted much in the last 6 months or so because I tired of all the whining and trolls. The information is pretty much a rehash, any post you see is a post we've already seen over the last 3 years. The veterans who hang around are the serious ones. We keep taking trips, keep learning, etc...

As ryan talked about, on my four previous trips I always stayed with the girls and their families. I got a ton of exposure to this "culture" he speaks of. Also, I will say that all 4 were different, so his ideas will change also as he makes more than one 10 day trip. He's on the right track in most respects but I think his "let's save the girls" attitude will head him for trouble. That's the common mistake among alot of american men...."these girls need to be saved.....". BS. They do just fine on their own and will eat and spit out the most savvy american male if they wish. So, you must be careful....who is saving who?

SMiling,
Mark H.

[KenC]

... in response to where the heck have YOU been, Mark! :-), posted by NK on Dec 20, 2001

Niall,
Thanks for the nice comments.  I hope everything works out with your new woman.  The important thing is to find the right woman for you, not where you found her.  LOL.   JohnnCC is in Moldovia right now with his girlfriend.  Things seem to be pretty serious for them.  Wmgo is still posting and looking for love in the FSU.  Porsche is long gone.  I don't know if DanM is Dan that is now married and still very much posting or another Dan.  Dave the Kiwi drops in every now and then under DTK name.  Best of luck to you and happy holidays.
KenC

[KenC]

... in response to Re: A good lesson for new guys searching, posted by Mark H on Dec 19, 2001

Mark,
Buddy, have you been sniffing into your mask lately?  The gas getting to you?  The Mark H I remember wouldn't sugar coat his opinion so much.  LOL  Where's the ball bustin Mark H I once knew?
KenC

[Mark H]

... in response to is this the REAL  Mark H?  LOL, posted by KenC on Dec 19, 2001

Ken,
THe ball bustin Mark H is on vacation. After the fourth trip in October, and alot of other hindsight, I realize the real truth behind these pursuits. NO time to worry about the other fellas and their "good or bad strategies". I just don't care anymore. I have to do what is right for me, not anyone else. ALso, It's fruitless to try to talk to anyone who is set on something. SO, in the end...offer your advice and move on. Period. How's the weather in SD?

Mark H.

[KenC]

... in response to Re: is this the REAL  Mark H?  LOL, posted by Mark H on Dec 20, 2001

Mark,
I know that you are right, but I still try to help in some way.  Even if it is only to expose misinformation.  Some posters here are so caught up in their fantasy world that they start to believe their own BS.  That in itself is fine, but when they start advising others while assuming a position of knowledge and experience, well, I gotta bust em a bit.  LOL.  
Best of luck to you on your next trip.
KenC
ps (It was 76 yesterday)

[Ryan]

... in response to Re: A good lesson for new guys searching, posted by Mark H on Dec 19, 2001

If these so called agencies were really on the up and up.  Do you think they spend as much time with the women getting them fixed up as they spend with us men?  I think we all know that answers there.

Someone needs to step in here and start helping out these women and not just being pimps.  Yes they are poor little money but they have a number of options.  The Internet is everywhere even in the Ukraine.  The industry is getting a bad name and a bad rap not because of just agencies screwing the men out of money but by exploiting the women.  We need some creativity and some compassion.  In the end the scamming women will be left sitting in the agencies

[Ryan]

... in response to Re: A good lesson for new guys searching, posted by Mark H on Dec 19, 2001

Point well taken... For those that want to spend more money and less time yes...  But will they learn about the culture things?  I guess in time it will come.   Jack has been a great help to lots of people here he has also help me in more of a reassuring way as I was scared on my first trip but I didn't use any of his services.

Yes you are going to play the numbers game and it has been proved to work well.  Get out their meet as many women possible and try and get some sleep in the mean time.  Stay sharp and eat lots of small meals to keep energy up.

I would like to have a web site that took into consideration all the different approaches.  You have to know yourself and pick the best for you.  If your ugly to average or great looking etc.  My thinking was also an approach that would educate the women of the Ukraine about options that they have.  I think many of them get sucked into the agency world and don't like what they see.  They should know all their options as well.

Good Luck,
Ryan