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Is there anyone who can give me some general constructive advice about the best way to end up happily married to a beautiful Colombiana. I am an Australian, and everything I find is targeted at the American man. Do Latin women even consider Australia as a desired destination? Any sort of response regarding any related issues would be much appreciated ... and any information about Australia! ... just ask.

muchas gracias
Martin

... in response to Australian connection, posted by Martin T on Apr 7, 2001

Hola Martin,
A lady just wrote to me last week from Barranquilla, Colombia. She stated her daughter married a Australian and move to Australia.
The next time I write to her I will ask her for the details and let you know.
Later,
Lonnie

... in response to Re: Australian connection, posted by Lonnie on Apr 9, 2001

Your man Lonnie just killed any excuse you had in "NOT" going east to find & be found by love. Start doing your homework & get cracking...No worries, aye mate?

We're here to help.....Hoda

... in response to The ball is now in your court Martin...., posted by Hodajr on Apr 10, 2001

Yes, the ball is now my court, but can my throwing arm hoik it half way around the world? It's a long way, and it doesn't look any better in kilometres, let alone Ausdollars, but I'm starting to do my homework now. Thanks for the encouragement... and just some curious questions, I have been informed that there are very suave yanks (no offence intended) who have apartments in Cali, speak fluent Spanish, and I guess, engage on an ongoing basis in what I would call sexploitation. Is this common? Is this the type of competition I am up against? If so, I can see the reputation of the sincere foreigner eventually being irrevocably tarred with the black brush, so to speak... and are Colombian men really that lousy, or is it just the desperation in the country that leads to an apparent desire for mass female exodus?

... in response to balls and curiosity!, posted by Martin T on Apr 11, 2001

G'Day Martin,

Just read a story on the migration of Colombians out of the country. Most are making their way to the U.S., but many have been casting sail to Australia. I don't know what city you're from, but it might be in your interest to find out what city these ex-pats are making home. Yes, there are some Yanks with apartments in Cali, that speak fluent spanish. No worries mate, their numbers will not have ANY influence on the number of ladies for you to meet. On the contrary, you can make the fact that you're from a country, many in Colombia know very little of.

The Colombian men are part of the equation that have a small, but significant number of woman seeking makes elseware. Be forewarned, just because the economic & political situation leaves much to be desired, coupled with the fact that you come from someplace else, doesn't guarantee you success. Don't underestimate these ladies in a good or bad way. By this I mean, if a man is a knuckle-head at home, he'll be a knuckle-head in Colombia. Many of these ladies are very intuitive at judging a man. The clear majority will not leave Colombia, just for the sake of leaving.

Peace.....Hoda

... in response to Re: balls and curiosity!, posted by Hodajr on Apr 11, 2001

Thanks Hodajr for your insightful response ... On to the practicalities of personal displacement. I can't sleep on planes so after 14 hours getting to LA, I was hoping for a direct flight to Colombia without an internal to Miami. Is this an option, and are there flights that then continue from Bogota to Cali without changing aircraft? The travel agents here are not very inspiring when it comes to South America. They seem to choose the easy option, for them, not me.
Martin

... in response to Sydney -  LA - Cali, posted by Martin T on Apr 12, 2001

A question...why would you go from Aus to the US to Colombia ?  Unless that is the only way you can get there you are going about 10,000mi out of the way. Seems Aus.-Peru/Chile -Colombia is a lot more direct isn't it ?

Houndog

... in response to Re: Sydney -  LA - Cali -question ?, posted by Houndog on Apr 13, 2001

Well you're right Houndog, but there's not a great deal in it. US route is 17664km and the Chilean route is 15641km, or a couple of hours difference (by crow airlines anyway). The top route maybe much more direct, I don't know! Sydney to LA direct?, change to a Avianca or some other airline, then to Bogota and then Cali?, that's my question? The bottom route stops in New Zealand and changes aircraft, then stops in Tahiti, then to Santiago and change again, then to Bogota, change again, and then to Cali. You'll be wiping me off the tarmac after that lot. I'm sure I can fly LA to Cali, right?
Martin

... in response to a long way whichever way you look!, posted by Martin T on Apr 14, 2001

**I'm sure I can fly LA to Cali, right?**

Actually I don't believe you can. I think the flight south from LA stops in Mexico City and/or Panama City.  Then to Bogota, some chance of a plane change, then Cali.  Actually, it's not simple for us to get there either. From Miami is simple.  And getting to Bogota is getting easier with more cities having direct flights ......however other cities in Colombia usually require a change.  With Meddillin and Cartagena(daily direct flights from Miami, no change) the exceptions, I think.

Thats why I thought Chile/Peru might be more direct or maybe a shorter overall trip. Sometimes catching connecting flights can really be a hassle and occasionaly fall apart. Especialy flights leaving Colombia as they can be several hours behind schedule sometimes. My last trip home my flight was late leaving and I missed my connecting flight home.

Anyway...some food for thought.

Regards, Houndog

... in response to Re: a long way whichever way you look!, posted by Houndog on Apr 14, 2001

Thanks Houndog,
I'll do some homework with the airlines. Maybe the southern route is just as direct, and I know it's cheaper. You're a very good doggy!

... in response to Australian connection, posted by Martin T on Apr 7, 2001

Thanks to everyone who responded to me, and thanks for your honesty and best wishes. There are some obvious obstacles for me, but I have learnt basic Spanish already, so that's a good start. It may surprise some of my American friends that there are Latin Americans here. It was the Aussi bricklayer nearby with the goddess wife from Medellin that first inspired me. Would you believe, he met her in London, and he hasn't even been to Colombia! Also, my brother-in-law is a Chilean, but when I asked him what he knew of Colombia, he shook his head with a worried look on his face, at least he is amused by my Spanish baby talk. Can anyone recommend any agencies that offer good value and service? or even advise me which ones to avoid? I have been curious about a couple for a short while now ... am I allowed to mention them by name? They are both in Cali and offer live-in accomodation. Any further particular advice is very welcome either by the message board or personally.
thanks in advance,
Martin

... in response to Australian response, posted by Martin T on Apr 9, 2001

Martin,

There are only two places that I would reccomend if you're considering live-in a necessity. Those agencies are the Crystal Palace aka Latin Love & Norms Place. I stayed at the Palace. You can read my "Adventures in Caliland" by clicking the trip report selection on this site. I met Norm during my stay at the Palace. From what I've been told, Norm offers a good service. You can split your time between the two agencies. Best of all, neither agency will charge you a "MEMBERSHIP FEE". Very important to your pocket, unless you have really don't care about money. About the safety issue in Cali. Keep your tail out of the mountains, don't wear hundred dollar bills pinned to your shirt & you'll be just fine....

No Worries.....

... in response to Australian connection, posted by Martin T on Apr 7, 2001

But if you are successful, the rewards can't be counted in Dollars or Pounds. Personally if I was you, I would write  to as many women, as you can handle. You have many miles to travel to travel back & forth, unlike myself. You'll need to educate the ladies you communicate with about life in your country. Send photo's and/or postcards of Australia. Introduce them to Australia.com if there is such a site. They can run it through an online translation site, to get a feel of the daily happenings.

Forgive me if I sound naive, do they have any clusters of spanish speaking people in your city? I ask this because, many of these will be studing english for the first time.
Getting adjusted to the english spoken here in the U.S. will be hard enough. Getting used to the accents of your countrymen will compound that difficulty. Oh excuse me, I've just be reminded by an English friend that we speak "American" not english! What can I say, he's an Arsenal fan.

Anyway mate you will need to check out your countries immigration laws regarding your future (think positive) Colombian lady. Is there an Australian Embassy in Colombia or in another country in this hemiphere that can/will assist you in getting your lady home. Feel free to post or ask privately. Check out the the gentlemen from Texas trip report. His journey took him, from Texas to the far east.
Not exacly around the corner.

Peace....Hoda

... in response to Australian connection, posted by Martin T on Apr 7, 2001

hi Martin,

Well being english I kind of understand. I have also wondered if England was also a desired location with seemingly 99% of people going to colombia being american. I  know an Australian from a salsa club here in London whose wife is I think colombian, next time I see him I'll ask.

cheers

Rich

... in response to Australian connection, posted by Martin T on Apr 7, 2001

Hey Martin,

There are some good points made by the other guys. Your biggest problem is the distance and the cost for the flights to and from Colombia. In my opinion, you will need several trips to Colombia to meet someone and develop a relationship. Once you are sucessful and marry a beauty, you must plan for a trip home for her at least once a year.  If she is one of the good ones, her family is very important, not seeing the family will be a problem. Keep in mind for most of the women, when they get married it is the first time they have lived away from home, so the transition will be a challenge.

From the States it is relatively a cheap flight to and from Colombia.  Writing only letters and emails will also put you at a disadvantage to the guys who can show up regularly.

The price of lots of international phone won't be cheap either. There are lots of Yanks in Colombia these days, so it may be more difficult than you expect.

I live in Denver and there is quite large group of Colombians, so life will be a little easier during the first few years.

I 'm not trying to discourage you, but your are better off knowing the facts.

I also suggest that you find out how difficult it is to get your lady into Australia, both tourist visa and other visas.
The large problems in Colombia have alerted immigration folks, and they may make it very difficult for Aussies like it is for the Yanks.

good luck,
mike

... in response to Australian connection, posted by Martin T on Apr 7, 2001

Welcome aboard, Martin.

I don't think the ladies will mind receiving letters from Oz (suprized, perhaps, but not annoyed). True, the USA gets most of the exposure, but the majority of the ladies (at least in my opinion) care more about the man's character than his homeland.

In certain parts of the USA (notiably Texas, California, Florida and New York) there is already a vast hispanic infrastructure in place, i.e. Spanish TV, radio, newspapers, Spanish speaking lawyers and doctors etc. which will greatly help the ladies in their transistion, but the ones I have talked with seem to be unaware of this circumstance. It turned out to be a great selling point once I made them aware of it, however. Be that as it may, let me repeat that only in certain parts of the USA is this true, in other parts of the USA (particullary in small towns or rural area) she will be the only Spanish speaker in the area, which will probably be her situation in Australia, right?

Anyway, get some suitable addresses from one of the agancies that are listed in the agency section of this board and start writting! And if at all possible, write to them in Spanish so they will understand you, but if you are having the letters translated, let them know, so they won't think "wow, this guy speaks excellent Spanish" if that's not the case.

Another thing to be aware of, the Colombian postal service is MISSERABLE, 2 or 3 months to deliver a letter from Colombia to USA is not unheard of, might even be worse to Australia, so try to find ladies whose profiles say they have internet service. Of course most of the ladies don't have their own computer (too expensive) but some of them have access through their employment and some of the agencies let the lady use the agency computer to send and receive e-mail.

... in response to Australian connection, posted by Martin T on Apr 7, 2001

Martin, My impression is that very few Colombianas have thought much about Aus. For the simple reason that most guys are from the US, Canada and Europe that write and/or visit. The general PR stresses the US or Europe.

But so what. I think you might have some educating to do. And a fair amount of searching. One concern they might have is the distance home to visit family. I think if I were you I'd get some address's and start writing. Many Colombianas are quite smart therefore they could research about Australia if they're interested.

I'm sure that if you devote enough time and effort into your search, that you could find a very good loving woman. It might be more difficult than if you were from the US., but then again you might find someone relitivly easy.

However, just like everyone of us, you'll never know till you try.

Regards, Houndog

... in response to Australian connection, posted by Martin T on Apr 7, 2001

Martin,
There is/was an introduction agency in Bogota run by an Aussie Allan M. and his Colombian wife. The agency name: Affinity/Global. Their web address: www.affinityc.com. Last few times I've tried it the web site has not come up--so may be out of business. Their e-mail: global@cable.net.co

This is informational only, not a promotional statement.

NW Jim

... in response to Re: Australian connection..............., posted by NW Jim on Apr 7, 2001

Martin,
Other ideas. Why not contact the agencies and ask for references for guys from Australia. With the big correspondence agencies like TLC, they have a large base of clients worldwide.

On another forum there was a gentleman Andy G. from New Zealand that posted frequently. e-mail: andy@NAVIGATOR.CO.NZ

NW Jim