[Spike]

(10-14-2012 11:55 AM)Neo Wrote:  

(10-14-2012 11:44 AM)RioNomad Wrote:  

Neil, you can't blame your editor. Ultimately it falls on your shoulders. Didn't you say he wasn't a professional editor? He probably has no idea about how to write a book. There are a lot of books out there that can help you become a better writer, and how to better tell your story.

Neil how'd you go about finding the editor and the person who made your cover?

I found the cover maker through 99 designs. He's a very skilled and friendly Philippine guy with tons of experience. (if you're interested I can give you his email address)

Rionomad was the one advising to use Odesk to find an editor. I wish I listened to him sooner but I was very short on cash back then. Well, I still am. In the end I'm glad I listened to his advice and I now have a perfectly grammared (not a word I know) book.

[The Fantasist]

The Exile: Sex Drugs And libel In The New Russia ( Mark Ames and Matt Taibbi )

I have just finished reading one of the most eye opening books I have read on Russia. Over the last 20 years I have read pretty much every book that has been released on the subject of Russia in search of cultural,social and historical understanding. I've read some great books by respected authors but it was only when I began reading 'The Exile' that a lot of long held beliefs about Russians were blown to pieces and I was left standing in a debris shower of grim realisation. The realisation that I didn't know them as well as I arrogantly thought I did.

For those of you who do not know,The exile was a humerus English language rag that was started in Moscow by Americans Ames and Taibbi. I'd read some Exile articles online and found the searing humour and 'not giving a fuck who we piss off' articles hilarious. However knowing the comfortable middle class,university educated suburban background of the editors I'd always presumed naively that they were merely playing at it,fakers who would soon head back to the US and settle down into a corporate lifestyle,the Exile merely a jolly jaunt. Upon reading the opening chapter though you realise that Ames,especially, is anything but. He's a real fucked up individual. And the great thing about the book is that he is not in any way hesitant to hide just how fucked up he is. He wears it's as a badge of honour.

The book describes Ames and Taibbi as they move to Moscow ( separately ) and end up, after working at a couple of local English papers,starting the Exile. It's then a roller coaster of debauchery,drug use and pissing off their fellow expats who represent the 'Beige-ism' that Ames and Taibbi despise venomously. The two chapters that are of interest in relation to this forum are 'The White God Factor' and 'Our God Is speed'. I would recommend people buy the book for these two chapters alone. The women portrayed in the book are not the stereotypical ones we talk about on here,who are loyal,enjoy literature,cultured. Ames takes us into the world of women where they virgins will let you fuck them in exchange for a few drinks,where mothers offer their daughters to you for being a foreigner,where the women snort heroin and any other substance they can get their hands on and then fuck random strangers they meet on the street. The main thing that Ames drills into the reader is the total lack of loyalty in Russian women. As soon as a better option comes along they jump ship without hesitation and without any feelings of remorse. He tells stories of being with girls who think nothing of going out to get shit faced in clubs and then fuck any random guy they can. There is seemingly little game needed in Ames' Moscow merely a foreign passport or a night in the 'Hungry Duck' a sadly no longer operating but infamous night club.

Unlike most social commentators who would look down on such behaviour Ames relishes and glorifies it and then dives in fucking teenagers up the bum,infecting them,forcing pregnant GF's to have abortions and then heading out to the shit hole provinces in search of places where his White God status is maximised even more. He tells the story of being in places like Novokuznetsk,Kirov,Minsk all in search of fresh meat. He is a guy that would fit in perfectly on the RVF. He writes a great piece telling it how it is when he describes the transformation western men undergo when arriving in Moscow. He breaks down the point that in the West we are brought up to believe and be told we want a woman who is 'our best friend' or 'a great mother'. This truth as men arriving in Moscow soon realise however is that all they ever really wanted was a young slut,a filthy bitch you can fuck up the ass and who lets you then fuck her friend. Ames swallowed the red pill.

The funny thing is his breakdown of what happens to the female expats in Russia who for the first time in their life realise that they are an unattractive and unappealing lot of women. Being surrounded by Slavic beauties for the first time is a hard slap in their face,one Ames relishes telling us. He goes on to break down the western woman in Russia so completely and with such searing honesty that you wonder how any woman reading it would recover from the metaphorical slap. The hand print of those paragraphs will remain on their cheeks for a long time after reading it.

Also contrary to what many of us imagine Russian women to be and behave like,Ames goes on to describe the rampant drug use and lack of social restraint in the women. Female drug mules,heroin use,Bogdan's apartment teenage drug fuelled orgies,it's all broken down so that you close the book blinking into the sunlight as a veil of misconceptions come falling down before your eyes. It's writing and revelations to saviour like a fine wine,letting the thoughts enter your mind,swirl around before settling in some recess where they will wait to be accessed again in the future.

The other chapters are searingly well written,some fantastic insights into Russia that make you laugh out loud,metaphors and use of language that you read over again to let it settle in before moving on to the next line. It's an incredible book.

I'll be in Russia next year for a trip and I'll definitely be going with my eyes a little more open to the ways of the women and to the debauched possibilities of the place which will be accessible if I change my technique slightly. No coming across as the cool laid back charmer next time. Direct sexual game on the next trip. Venues changed from Kreschatik and Arbat clubs and bars replaced instead for provincial seedy nightclubs with puke stained carpets and suburban housing estates full of disenchanted and hopeless girls.

What must be remembered is that this book was published in 2000. Moscow won't be the same any more. White god factor has been eradicated in the places he talks about. The borders of such lands have receded beyond second tier so to recreate the Ames experience we need to push on deeper then Kiev,Kharkov,Minsk. We must head to places completely off the track and forge new paths in search of the past but it should still be there in pockets.

If you only buy one book about Russia this year,make it this one.

[Partizan]

(10-15-2012 06:53 AM)Vorkuta Wrote:  

The Exile: Sex Drugs And libel In The New Russia ( Mark Ames and Matt Taibbi )

I have just finished reading one of the most eye opening books I have read on Russia. Over the last 20 years I have read pretty much every book that has been released on the subject of Russia in search of cultural,social and historical understanding. I've read some great books by respected authors but it was only when I began reading 'The Exile' that a lot of long held beliefs about Russians were blown to pieces and I was left standing in a debris shower of grim realisation. The realisation that I didn't know them as well as I arrogantly thought I did.

For those of you who do not know,The exile was a humerus English language rag that was started in Moscow by Americans Ames and Taibbi. I'd read some Exile articles online and found the searing humour and 'not giving a fuck who we piss off' articles hilarious. However knowing the comfortable middle class,university educated suburban background of the editors I'd always presumed naively that they were merely playing at it,fakers who would soon head back to the US and settle down into a corporate lifestyle,the Exile merely a jolly jaunt. Upon reading the opening chapter though you realise that Ames,especially, is anything but. He's a real fucked up individual. And the great thing about the book is that he is not in any way hesitant to hide just how fucked up he is. He wears it's as a badge of honour.

The book describes Ames and Taibbi as they move to Moscow ( separately ) and end up, after working at a couple of local English papers,starting the Exile. It's then a roller coaster of debauchery,drug use and pissing off their fellow expats who represent the 'Beige-ism' that Ames and Taibbi despise venomously. The two chapters that are of interest in relation to this forum are 'The White God Factor' and 'Our God Is speed'. I would recommend people buy the book for these two chapters alone. The women portrayed in the book are not the stereotypical ones we talk about on here,who are loyal,enjoy literature,cultured. Ames takes us into the world of women where they virgins will let you fuck them in exchange for a few drinks,where mothers offer their daughters to you for being a foreigner,where the women snort heroin and any other substance they can get their hands on and then fuck random strangers they meet on the street. The main thing that Ames drills into the reader is the total lack of loyalty in Russian women. As soon as a better option comes along they jump ship without hesitation and without any feelings of remorse. He tells stories of being with girls who think nothing of going out to get shit faced in clubs and then fuck any random guy they can. There is seemingly little game needed in Ames' Moscow merely a foreign passport or a night in the 'Hungry Duck' a sadly no longer operating but infamous night club.

Unlike most social commentators who would look down on such behaviour Ames relishes and glorifies it and then dives in fucking teenagers up the bum,infecting them,forcing pregnant GF's to have abortions and then heading out to the shit hole provinces in search of places where his White God status is maximised even more. He tells the story of being in places like Novokuznetsk,Kirov,Minsk all in search of fresh meat. He is a guy that would fit in perfectly on the RVF. He writes a great piece telling it how it is when he describes the transformation western men undergo when arriving in Moscow. He breaks down the point that in the West we are brought up to believe and be told we want a woman who is 'our best friend' or 'a great mother'. This truth as men arriving in Moscow soon realise however is that all they ever really wanted was a young slut,a filthy bitch you can fuck up the ass and who lets you then fuck her friend. Ames swallowed the red pill.

The funny thing is his breakdown of what happens to the female expats in Russia who for the first time in their life realise that they are an unattractive and unappealing lot of women. Being surrounded by Slavic beauties for the first time is a hard slap in their face,one Ames relishes telling us. He goes on to break down the western woman in Russia so completely and with such searing honesty that you wonder how any woman reading it would recover from the metaphorical slap. The hand print of those paragraphs will remain on their cheeks for a long time after reading it.

Also contrary to what many of us imagine Russian women to be and behave like,Ames goes on to describe the rampant drug use and lack of social restraint in the women. Female drug mules,heroin use,Bogdan's apartment teenage drug fuelled orgies,it's all broken down so that you close the book blinking into the sunlight as a veil of misconceptions come falling down before your eyes. It's writing and revelations to saviour like a fine wine,letting the thoughts enter your mind,swirl around before settling in some recess where they will wait to be accessed again in the future.

The other chapters are searingly well written,some fantastic insights into Russia that make you laugh out loud,metaphors and use of language that you read over again to let it settle in before moving on to the next line. It's an incredible book.

I'll be in Russia next year for a trip and I'll definitely be going with my eyes a little more open to the ways of the women and to the debauched possibilities of the place which will be accessible if I change my technique slightly. No coming across as the cool laid back charmer next time. Direct sexual game on the next trip. Venues changed from Kreschatik and Arbat clubs and bars replaced instead for provincial seedy nightclubs with puke stained carpets and suburban housing estates full of disenchanted and hopeless girls.

What must be remembered is that this book was published in 2000. Moscow won't be the same any more. White god factor has been eradicated in the places he talks about. The borders of such lands have receded beyond second tier so to recreate the Ames experience we need to push on deeper then Kiev,Kharkov,Minsk. We must head to places completely off the track and forge new paths in search of the past but it should still be there in pockets.

If you only buy one book about Russia this year,make it this one.

Great review of Ames's book and I read it after I bought online 3 years ago before I went to Russia for my first (and only) time to date. Given that the book was written in 2000 and covers the period primarily between 1993-2000, I wondered just how accurate it was and read in preparation for my trip. Given my short time there so far and my recent trips to Minsk and Kiev, there are snapshots that book gives a very accurate account of everyday Russian life and social mores.

I recall being in an Ekaterinburg club (Podval) on a Wednesday night with some local guys and i being struck by numerous women standing around near patrons at various vantage points around the club. I though that it was a bit suspicious but when I asked one of mates, an ex army guy were they working he said yeah. What he meant by working was prostitutes. All of them were studentkas. To them it was normal.

The following Friday I ended up in Iceberg, a club inside a huge entertainment centre on Sibirskiy Trakt. It was jammers and the female to male ratio was off the fucking charts, 4:1. I got chatted up on the dancefloor and ended up snogging and getting a number from a girl called Yulia (a solid 7.5 brunechka) who worked as an accountant with Russian Railways. I went on 2 further dates with her the following week but she wasnt willing to put out. However if I had not run out of time I would have smashed her. I had met other women using a combination of mamba and connections from social contacts from the guys. I smashed a girl indirectly from mamba when one of my dates couldn't make it but instead recommended me her friend. I was not to be disappointed. Like the other girls I was with, she was a lovely 7, from Bashkortostan. The girls I met overall were very friendly, curious and receptive. They were in the 6-7.5 range. Nice girls with nicer personalities, very feminine girl next door types which is what I prefer. My Russian is not great and neither was their English so most of the time on dates when my limited Russian would run out, I would end up using hand signals and reaching for the phrasebook. The next week was an unbelievable ride. Ended up in other niteclubs pissed as a flute, snogging other birds, strip clubs with tits and arse grinding in your face and you can take a back room to do the deed and a massage parlour to boot. It was total madness, total freedom. The one thing that struck me about life in the provinces was the Russian attitude of not giving a fuck, total nihilism. If you like order and punctuality, then this place is not for you. People especially girls you meet on a date are always on average half an hour late. I felt more freer there than I did back home. It was an elixir, a drug and it has made me determined to go back which I will.

Fuck Moscow and Pieter, this is the real Russia. Vorkuta is spot on. Head to the provinces and see life for what it really is, rough as a bear's arse. A word of warning to the connoseurs, if you are expecting 9s and 10s to be falling into your arms as soon as you get off the plane, you will be sorely disappointed. As long as you are presentable you will plough through the 6s and 7s. I am not a player by any means, just a normal guy but that trip gave me a glimpse of what one could expect if you did spend a considerable time here.

Damn it, i wish I had discovered this place sooner than I did.

[Gaston]

(10-15-2012 01:16 PM)Partizan Wrote:  

I recall being in an Ekaterinburg club (Podval) on a Wednesday night ...

Fuck Moscow and Pieter, this is the real Russia. Vorkuta is spot on. Head to the provinces and see life for what it really is, rough as a bear's arse.

@1.3 million people living in it - that doesn't strike me as a province.

[The Fantasist]

Partizan you were in Ekaterinburg about the same time I was in Ulyanovsk it seems. I just hope things have not changed much since then because my experiences in the provinces seem similar ( not quite as debauched unfortunately ) to yours. Neil's experiences were the same judging from his anal destructions in the far East of Russia.

The three of us should hit some Siberian shit hole for a month of alcohol induced debauchery. Then we come back and write the book about it.

[Partizan]

(10-15-2012 01:29 PM)Gaston Wrote:  

(10-15-2012 01:16 PM)Partizan Wrote:  

I recall being in an Ekaterinburg club (Podval) on a Wednesday night ...

Fuck Moscow and Pieter, this is the real Russia. Vorkuta is spot on. Head to the provinces and see life for what it really is, rough as a bear's arse.

@1.3 million people living in it - that doesn't strike me as a province.

Its actually a medium sized city relative to its population size. You can traverse from one end of the city to another in 20 minutes by car. The provincial mentality here is prevalent as many young people are drawn to the city from surrounding villages and towns. In Russia the big cities suck in the working age population from the villages and Ekaterinburg is no different. My advice is to get into a social scene asap. I was lucky in that I was introduced to these local guys by a relative. They had a goldmine of info, from clubs, pubs, places to go, see, eat, hang out and game. The locals dont get to see many Westerners. I remember getting stared at on the metro and trams.

[Partizan]

(10-15-2012 01:31 PM)Vorkuta Wrote:  

Partizan you were in Ekaterinburg about the same time I was in Ulyanovsk it seems. I just hope things have not changed much since then because my experiences in the provinces seem similar ( not quite as debauched unfortunately ) to yours. Neil's experiences were the same judging from his anal destructions in the far East of Russia.

The three of us should hit some Siberian shit hole for a month of alcohol induced debauchery. Then we come back and write the book about it.

Good idea I doubt things have changed at all. This part of Russia is still off the beaten track from expats and tourists unlike Moscow and Pieter and teh visa/residency situation mitigates against this unlike Kiev which is tired and played out. The Urals and beyond I believe contains many golden nuggets. I had a glimpse of a poosy paradise should I end up here for a sustained period of time. I had not experienced this since I lived in Bulgaria in 2004.

I am not bigging the place up but if you really want to experience it, you have to stay for a prolonged period not the 2 and a half weeks I was there for.

[Gaston]

(10-15-2012 01:36 PM)Partizan Wrote:  

The locals dont get to see many Westerners. I remember getting stared at on the metro and trams.

Most Irish can pass of as Russians. It's a big city, did they knew you were foreign by your clothes?

[Gaston]

(10-15-2012 01:42 PM)Partizan Wrote:  

The Urals and beyond I believe contains many golden nuggets. I had a glimpse of a poosy paradise should I end up here for a sustained period of time.

Anybody ever lived in Irkutsk? That's the kind of place I long to go.

Also, I was once in Ulan Ude (close to Mongolian border) for about "five minutes". I thought I was in heaven as it was filled with noticeably young women, mostly pretty Mongolian types, but also Russian devushkas. Just about perfect combination.

[Partizan]

(10-15-2012 01:43 PM)Gaston Wrote:  

(10-15-2012 01:36 PM)Partizan Wrote:  

The locals dont get to see many Westerners. I remember getting stared at on the metro and trams.

Most Irish can pass of as Russians. It's a big city, did they knew you were foreign by your clothes?

Not so you would be surprised. In this part of Russia, the Eurasian look (round face, tanned appearance) is more apparent here due to the mixing of various races, Chuvash, ethnic Slav, Bashkir and Uralic peoples like Mari, Udmurt, Mansi etc. Also quite a few Baltic peoples were exiled over here by Stalin. You forget that the Golden Horde ruled Russia for 4 centuries so they left their mark as well. I'm Irish, pale skin, strawberry-brown hair, skin burns when its hot and my face is elongated, pinched and jaw more pronounced, typical Celt. My clothes, well I wore dark jeans, leather jacket, t shirt. I tried to blend in but the locals could still tell that I was not a Slav. They can tell you are from the West. In Bulgaria I was often mistaken for Scandinavian. That is forgiven as the Vikings did quite a bit of raping and pillaging in my neck of the woods.

[Partizan]

(10-15-2012 01:52 PM)Gaston Wrote:  

(10-15-2012 01:42 PM)Partizan Wrote:  

The Urals and beyond I believe contains many golden nuggets. I had a glimpse of a poosy paradise should I end up here for a sustained period of time.

Anybody ever lived in Irkutsk? That's the kind of place I long to go.

Also, I was once in Ulan Ude (close to Mongolian border) for about "five minutes". I thought I was in heaven as it was filled with noticeably young women, mostly pretty Mongolian types, but also Russian devushkas. Just about perfect combination.

Ulan Ude is in the Republic of Buryatia where Buryats, a Mongol people live. I saw a few of those ladies in Ekaterinburg as well. See my point about the ethnic mix in Russia. It is because of this that the girls are exquisite.

[Gaston]

(10-15-2012 01:58 PM)Partizan Wrote:  

Ulan Ude is in the Republic of Buryatia where Buryats, a Mongol people live. I saw a few of those ladies in Ekaterinburg as well. See my point about the ethnic mix in Russia. It is because of this that the girls are exquisite.

Damn, some of their girls are so fine. I'd love to mix 'em my genes in there somewhere!


Here's 9 (body 10).


Couple of 7's and an 8.

[Partizan]

(10-15-2012 02:04 PM)Gaston Wrote:  

(10-15-2012 01:58 PM)Partizan Wrote:  

Ulan Ude is in the Republic of Buryatia where Buryats, a Mongol people live. I saw a few of those ladies in Ekaterinburg as well. See my point about the ethnic mix in Russia. It is because of this that the girls are exquisite.

Damn, some of their girls are so fine. I'd love to mix 'em my genes in there somewhere!


Here's 9 (body 10).


Couple of 7's and an 8.

Give me the 7s girl next door type any day.

[gadabout]

(10-15-2012 06:53 AM)Vorkuta Wrote:  

The Exile: Sex Drugs And libel In The New Russia ( Mark Ames and Matt Taibbi )

Wow. If I had a time machine!

Right now Moscow suits me just fine because the Western influence is just enough that 50% speak English, but not so much that we have lost exotic appeal. Damage can still be done I know that sounds ignorant but I can only compare to other countries I have been where western influence really has changed peoples perception.
If its wasn't so expensive I'd move to Moscow in a heartbeat but on the other hand, if it wasn't, so would everybody else. The culture has gone from one extreme to the other keeping out the majority of foreigners. Poor and backward to rich and powerful. It has got me thinking about going to other places in Russia but I don't think I am that brave to be honest.

I am currently reading Teacher X in Vodkaberg. Lapping it up

[Menace]

Russian speaking Asians...I think this may be the promised land for me.

[Spike]

(10-15-2012 01:58 PM)Partizan Wrote:  

(10-15-2012 01:52 PM)Gaston Wrote:  

(10-15-2012 01:42 PM)Partizan Wrote:  

The Urals and beyond I believe contains many golden nuggets. I had a glimpse of a poosy paradise should I end up here for a sustained period of time.

Anybody ever lived in Irkutsk? That's the kind of place I long to go.

Also, I was once in Ulan Ude (close to Mongolian border) for about "five minutes". I thought I was in heaven as it was filled with noticeably young women, mostly pretty Mongolian types, but also Russian devushkas. Just about perfect combination.

Ulan Ude is in the Republic of Buryatia where Buryats, a Mongol people live. I saw a few of those ladies in Ekaterinburg as well. See my point about the ethnic mix in Russia. It is because of this that the girls are exquisite.

I can vouch for that. I've been to Ulan Ude but not long enough to have a night on the town. The Buryat girls are quite nice to look at.

I've been to Ekaterinaburg too but was too damn sick from drinking vodka on the train with 3 Russian dudes to go out at night. My stomach was too fucked up.

[Menace]

What's the fastest and most efficient way to get into this region? Fly to Ulaan batar and then by bus or train? Are there many foreigners in these places? I wouldn't think so, but we may have RVF agents lurking at every corner. I think aside from the girls, the natural beauty here would make a nice vacation as well...fishing in the lakes, camp fires, etc.

[Partizan]

(10-15-2012 03:15 PM)Menace Wrote:  

What's the fastest and most efficient way to get into this region? Fly to Ulaan batar and then by bus or train? Are there many foreigners in these places? I wouldn't think so, but we may have RVF agents lurking at every corner. I think aside from the girls, the natural beauty here would make a nice vacation as well...fishing in the lakes, camp fires, etc.

All depends on what part of the US you are coming from. Turkish Airlines and Aeroflot do very good deals if you are coming from Western Europe like me.

Anyway here is a taster of your typical provincial Russian girl.

http://englishrussia.com/2012/10/14/girl...ore-111959

and crazy stuff in the provinces

http://englishrussia.com/2012/10/14/craz...ore-112023

[Menace]

(10-15-2012 03:23 PM)Partizan Wrote:  

(10-15-2012 03:15 PM)Menace Wrote:  

What's the fastest and most efficient way to get into this region? Fly to Ulaan batar and then by bus or train? Are there many foreigners in these places? I wouldn't think so, but we may have RVF agents lurking at every corner. I think aside from the girls, the natural beauty here would make a nice vacation as well...fishing in the lakes, camp fires, etc.

All depends on what part of the US you are coming from. Turkish Airlines and Aeroflot do very good deals if you are coming from Western Europe like me.

Anyway here is a taster of your typical provincial Russian girl.

http://englishrussia.com/2012/10/14/girl...ore-111959

and crazy stuff in the provinces

http://englishrussia.com/2012/10/14/craz...ore-112023

Well, I doubt that the typical provincial Russian girls looks like that; those have got to be exceptions. I'd be coming from the East coast of the US. So maybe US --> Istanbul --> Irkutsk (or something like that). I'm wary of flying Aeroflot.

Neil, I'll pay for your airfare out there if you come.

[gadabout]

Don't be scared.
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-U5Y8Yvz27Lo/Ta...+girls.jpg

(10-15-2012 03:15 PM)Menace Wrote:  

I'm wary of flying Aeroflot.

[Fujiwara]

Helps me look forward to my time in Mongolia next year even more!

[Gaston]

Ha ha, look at us, the guys ready to go to remote areas of the world for a shot at pretty, attitude-free pussy.

Ulan Ude area seems to have only a trickle of foreigners, but make no mistake you advertise it enough and they will come. For every RVF member making potential plans, there's probably two lurkers already booking a ticket.

Yes, plenty of little-spoiled nature around there. Lake Baikal is huge and popular with Russians and Scandis.

By the way, when I visited Vladivostok briefly I couldn't help but marvel how close I was to Japan (across the bay), yet there were all this white Russians around me. There I was, practically could touch Japan with my hands, yet when I turned around I realized that Russia in the opposite direction ends somewhere around Romania Which is just wrong (imagine a country that stretches from Japan to Romania lol). That's the moment when it dawned at me how special Russia and those people really are.

[Partizan]

(10-15-2012 03:37 PM)Menace Wrote:  

(10-15-2012 03:23 PM)Partizan Wrote:  

(10-15-2012 03:15 PM)Menace Wrote:  

What's the fastest and most efficient way to get into this region? Fly to Ulaan batar and then by bus or train? Are there many foreigners in these places? I wouldn't think so, but we may have RVF agents lurking at every corner. I think aside from the girls, the natural beauty here would make a nice vacation as well...fishing in the lakes, camp fires, etc.

All depends on what part of the US you are coming from. Turkish Airlines and Aeroflot do very good deals if you are coming from Western Europe like me.

Anyway here is a taster of your typical provincial Russian girl.

http://englishrussia.com/2012/10/14/girl...ore-111959

and crazy stuff in the provinces

http://englishrussia.com/2012/10/14/craz...ore-112023

Well, I doubt that the typical provincial Russian girls looks like that; those have got to be exceptions. I'd be coming from the East coast of the US. So maybe US --> Istanbul --> Irkutsk (or something like that). I'm wary of flying Aeroflot.

Neil, I'll pay for your airfare out there if you come.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aeroflot_ac..._incidents

[Gaston]

(10-15-2012 05:00 PM)Partizan Wrote:  

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aeroflot_ac..._incidents

"Mention the name Aeroflot and most Western travellers will recoil in horror, conjuring up images of rusting Soviet planes, appalling service, inedible food and a service ethos reminiscent of the days when collectivism trumped consumer culture in the USSR.

Now the airline is trying to address that image problem, and yesterday it announced plans to renew its fleet, improve its service and generally turn over a new leaf. Unfortunately, alongside those laudable 21st-century goals, the company's management made another commitment that plunged it right back into the worst 1970s stereotypes of airline priorities: a promise to pamper passengers with a new generation of stewardesses who would be easier on the eye. The new Aeroflot CEO Vitaly Savelyev said all new stewardesses would be "very striking, very eye-catching girls"

http://tinyurl.com/ckc54p7

[Gaston]

"The new Aeroflot CEO Vitaly Savelyev said all new stewardesses would be "very striking, very eye-catching girls"

Guys, just give that statement a simple thought for a second.

Could any of you imagine the American Airlines CEO saying the same thing?