... in response to Thats the one. Any more information wel..., posted by Antonua on Nov 29, 2002I don't use agencies anymore either. I'm not actively searching at the moment. But when I was earlier this year I searched on free sites and Russian only sites. But back to my "dear" friend Vadim in Volgograd.
This all started in March of 2000.I spotted my first RW girlfriend on East European Connection website. It's a free listing for the ladies. But most of the girls on this site are posted there by agencies. After my first letter I was informed that I was dealing with an agency and would have to pay for subsequent letters. Jenya wrote back to me and said she was interested. I'd only been writing to RWs for a couple of months and wasn't worried about spending a little money in communicating. Their rates were $45 for 2 months of unlimited e-mails and translations photos included. That was way cheaper than the only other agencies I'd seen up until then.
So Jenya and I wrote to each other for 8 months, averaging 3-4 e-mails a week with many photos. Finally got my act together and planned my trip to Volgograd. But I needed an apartment. Jenya told me approximately what it should cost for things there. I was also writing to Vadim about apartments. He said that he had a very good one for $300 for my 3 week stay. Jenya never did answer me about whether or not she could find me an apartment. Then about 10 days before I was supposed to leave Vadim contacted me and said that he would need additional money for helping me get settled in. Jenya had been out of touch for a few days. I smelled something fishy but sent the money. This was my first trip to Russia and I didn't want to be totally abandoned by my only contacts there.
Then I got a phone call from an old Russian woman. She said that it was very important and that I should call her back at a number that she gave me. So I did. She was Jenya's English tutor and Jenya was with her. Jenya and I had talked twice over the phone before this with the help of an interpretor. Jenya wanted to know why I hadn't talked with her about apartments. She said that she had talked to Vadim and she didn't trust him. When she found out that I had already given Vadim way more money than an apartment was worth she was very upset. I told her to not do anything until we met and then we would discuss it in person.
So now I was heading to a foreign country wondering what in the hell was going to happen to me. My mother knew about my trip and as she is very paranoid at the best of times she was continually telling me wonderful stories of how I could end up dead. This was also my first trip outside of Canada and the US. Everything went fine until I transferred airports in Moscow. The agency had a driver meet me there and he helped me out a lot. He was an older guy and he talked to me a lot about what to watch out for in Russia. He said that he didn't know the director(Vadim) but to not trust him. After Slava(my driver) got me through airport security I was on my own. My brain kicked out for awhile and I was yelled at and pushed through the various sections of the airport until I checked my backs and found my waiting area.
When I arrived in Volgograd Vadim, an interpretor, Jenya and Jenya's sister met me at the airport. The interpretor explained that Jenya had found me an apartment and that there were tensions between her and Vadim. She asked me which apartment I wanted. I said go to the one I'd already paid for. Vadim and I chatted through the interpretor but Jenya was pretty quiet. Then she leaned up against me and said, "It is him I not trust. That why I not talk now." We got to my apartment and Vadim wanted to know what I wanted to do about apartments. I told him that I'd stay there for now because I hadn't slept in 2 days. It was a very good apartment and is still the best one I've lived in while in Russia. Jenya and her sister left at the same time as Vadim because I couldn't get them to stay and talk. I'd had about 5 minutes alone with Jenya and still didn't have a clue about what was happening.
After about a week in Volgograd Jenya and I were communicating okay even though we each only knew a little of the others language. The lady that Vadim had rented the apartment from visited with us and Jenya asked her how much Vadim had paid her. When she found out that I had paid twice her rate she was very upset. She(the landlady) told me that I should get my money back. Jenya and I decided to cut our connections with the agency. We talked to Vadim one day and he told us straight out that the overpayment was for the ride to my apartment and his time in setting up everything for me. The apartment cost $250 a month. And I'd paid over $500 for all the "services" and apartment. The agency continued to check on me ocassionally and asked how things were. It was always one of their interpretors that I talked with and not Vadim.
Jenya removed her profile from the agency and to my knowledge never dealt with them again. I never saw Vadim after that and only talked to his interpretor Irina. I went back to Volgograd a couple more times to see Jenya and her family. Over time more and more things came out about what had happened. As far as we know our original interpretor was honest and our letters were translated and forwarded okay. But once I started talking about apartments. Vadim brought in a different interpretor and our letters got subtley edited. The information that Jenya had tried to give me about apartments that she had found for me was cut out of her letters. My questions to her were cut out of my letters. We wrote very long letter to each other and the bulk was translated and passed on just nothing concerned business.
After my relationship with Jenya died I posted an ad on Absolute. A couple of ladies wrote to me and when I answered I got the standard, this is your first free letter and you need to pay for the rest, message. I asked the ladies for adresses, telephone numbers alternate methods of continuing the correspondance. That was the end of all of them because they replied again.
The rest of this is mostly hearsay but it did come from a lady I'd trust with my life. Jenya had told me that the girls paid Vadim to have their ads put on his website. They could also write to men they saw and liked but they had to pay for it. And the men were always hit up for money whether or not the ladies asked. Jenya said that her profile that I had seen wasn't what she had written. The agency enhanced it to attract a larger audience. The agency was angry with her(I had this confirmed) because she never wrote to anyone except me. Although she was very beautiful they didn't make much money off her.
The girls at the agency were real as of a year ago but there is so many other things wrong there that I wouldn't trust them. When men asked me about them I said to use them as an initial contact but cut the ties as quickly as possible. I liked the staff that I met and talked with but think that Vadim is scum. Jenya agreed with me. I haven't looked at his website for a very long time but the last I knew he was also running a nude modelling service.
My experiences are what convinced me that I needed to know Russian if involved in this pursuit. I don't trust interpretors and agencies anymore. I even had problems with a very good interpretor. She liked me and my lady and tried to get us hooked up. She enhanced the things we said and gave both of us false ideas about each other. Too much help is as bad as no help. Now I try to use a network of aquaintances and friends for my support in Russia. This message board has been priceless for that. I'll use travel agencies but not marriage agencies.
What is the URL for this agency now? I want to take a look and see if I know anyone listed there.
