... in response to Re: Re: Colombian Sweethearts, posted by Payton on Dec 27, 2004Hola Payton,
Being able to spend a month in one location has many advantages in my opinion. On the other hand, if you just want to use this time as a vacation or use it on a recon patrol and decide later what city/country you want to focus your attention and energy on for future visits that is great too. You are a young man at 28 and have lots of time finding a special lady and I wouldn't be in a big rush to get married. I'm glad that younger men like you have found out about other options besides AW.
If it were me, I would be studying Spanish or Portuguese if you are going to be in Brasil. If your trip won't be until next year you will have lots of time to become conversational at least. I would also concentrate on one city but not spend the entire time at an agency. Other accommodations are available that might be better and cheaper. I started out using the agencies but find that most of the ladies in any given city won't consider using one. Still, there are plenty of attractive and sincere ladies associated with them as well as the occasional scammer. Keep your radar up and look for those red flags along the way and you'll do well.
Emailing women beforehand is a mixed bag. IMO it's best to visit these Latin American countries rather than a large email campaign. It's so much better meeting someone and spending time with them in person, seeing if there is a common chemistry and interest in furthering the relationship
Remember, concentrate on learning the foreign language and don't let some prissy AW steal your heart before you get here. Once you know what these LW are like there is no going back. A cautionary word though, it's not an easy undertaking and it can take a lot of time, energy, commitment, and money in this process. All in all, well worth the investment.
Pablo
