I know that you have seen the hype and fuss about the benefits of dating a woman from Russia or Eastern Europe. Foreign themed sites point out that you can often find a woman with high education, very attractive looks, and a motivation towards a serious relationship.
There is, however, a flip side to this story. When considering dating or having a relationship with a woman from Eastern Europe or Russia you would be wise to think about the answer to the following question:
What are some of the difficulties that you will encounter because of the visa and travel rules from Russia or Eastern Europe?
If you have already found a nice woman from Eastern Europe or Russia, you may find that the normal relationship-building phase that you have with a Western woman, will be not available or practical to you. Why is this the case? The reason for this is that most women from Russia or Eastern Europe will not be free to travel to visit you! For those of you that live in the US, this problem will be a foreign concept for you, so you may miss it. In general, the US has resisted national identity cards. For those of us that travel all the time, we are accustomed to just getting on an airplane and flying almost anywhere; flash your passport and you are on your way.
But, for many outside the US and Western Europe, it is not so simple.
If you travel to Western Europe, you will normally find that a visa attained prior to your trip is not required. Your passport is just stamped at the destination airport. Depending on the country, this “entry visa” is often good for 90 days.
Traveling to Eastern Europe is a little more complicated but similar. Many of the former Soviet Satellite States such as the Ukraine, Estonia, and Latvia will also allow you to enter by just showing your passport upon arrival at the airport. The length of time that you can stay on this tourist visa varies by country.
If your friend lives in Russia, or Belarus, the differences could not be more different as well as more aggravating. The process to visit these countries is archaic. So archaic that you will think you stepped back in time 50 years. In general, here is the process. First you must decide where you want to go. Let’s say your friend lives in St. Petersburg. You decide you want to visit St. Petersburg and now you must make a hotel reservation. You find and reserve a nice hotel in the city. At this point, however, you need an “invitation.” The hotel or another travel agency can get you a special “letter of invitation” with the dates of your travel and itinerary spelled out.
You think that you are done? Not so fast, you are not even close!
Next you must get your flight arrangements. The airlines may not give you your ticket until you have the invitation.
The following step, and the worst step, is you have to mail or visit the Russian consulate and give them your passport with copies of everything you have as well as a passport photo. In about 3 weeks they will send all you documents back; At least you hope so! Now you are ready for your trip!
Here is another example.
You have a friend in Kiev that is one of the easier countries to enter. You fly in, go to a hotel, and all is normal. The weekend goes well and you ask your friend “Svetlana”, “Why don’t you come visit me next month?” After an awkward pause, you discover that she can’t visit you next month, perhaps not even next year or ever! In order for Svetlana to visit you, she will be required to get an exit visa from her country as well as an entry visa to the US. It gets very technical but in general the American Consulate in Kiev will not issue tourist visas for reproductive age woman to visit the US! Of course, you can marry her after a few visits, get a K-3 visa, apply for a K-1 visa and take your chances.
The point of all of this is that this encompassing and unfortunate bureaucracy will make it very difficult for you to have a normally developing relationship. Generally, a normal relationship is one in which you have many casual dates, in a relaxed setting, and over a long period of time. But, do they want that? Not so fast.
In general, these women are only looking for someone that is “serious.” Her definition of “serious” is someone who is willing to
invest a significant amount of money and time on them before the man even knows them. No dating please: an engagement after only a few days together or hit the road.
“It’s alright to think twice.”
“For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost…” Luke 14:28
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