[matthewshannon9]

I have seen the massive number of posts about Russia in the past few months on the forum and I want to tell you guys about Russia. I have quite the history with Russia and Ukraine and have actually taught myself up to almost fluent Russian over the last 2 and a half years or so. I have spent time in 12 Russian cities and will see about 20 at the end of my trip. Upon finishing my trip I will be starting a tourism company dedicated to helping people who don't speak Russian see what I call "Real Russia." I see myself in Russia likely for the rest of my life but as we know, we can't predict the future.

With regards to women, I have to say and agree with Roosh that its not the easiest place for one night stands, it is a very conservative country outside any large city. Additionally, without at least the ability to understand and have a conversation in Russian, you are severely limited in the girls you can talk to. Even in Moscow or St. Petersburg, I have met very few girls who speak English better than I speak Russian. In the second tier cities forget it without Russian. I have even had girls tell me I'm lying that I'm an American in these small cities. In Izhevsk for example, one girl got so angry that I was messing with her she and her friends left the club... I didn't usually bring my passport to the clubs for fear of losing it but since these events I bring it.

In Moscow everything is different, I can go to the club walk up to any girl who is an 8 or lower put my arm around her and whisper in her ear, "Do you speak English?" Most will say no, I then switch to Russian and they tell me they've never met an American who can speak fluent Russian. If they don't want to sit down in 20 minutes, I just walk away and find a new girl. I can get 5 numbers a night easily and line up dates.

If anyone has any questions regarding travel around Russia, ways to learn Russian yourself, or is in Russia and would like to meet up let me know!

[presidentcarter]

Nice! Another Russia expert's brain I can tap!

I'm happy for your business idea and all, but I hope I have my fun there before it becomes a success.

I'll PM you.

[CEOArob]

So alot of people talk about St. Pete's and Moscow, but where have you found some really great cities for meeting women (or just even for exploring) in Russia that are rarely talked about?

And could you just elaborate about your experiences in "Real Russia".

Cheers.

[CEOArob]

Also, could you list some of your resources (books, CD's, Audio, etc) for someone who is looking to also attain fluency/near-fluency for Russian?

Thanks

[matthewshannon9]

Do not worry, I want nothing to do with bringing a ton of western people here. I do want to show people who are truly interested in seeing what Russia is like. Without knowledge of Russian its practically impossible to even use the metro in Moscow(though 2 hours learning Cyrillic solve that problem). Shoot me a pm with any questions and I'll gladly answer them.

[matthewshannon9]

First thing, every single city in Russia is great for exploring, you wouldn't believe some of the things that happened in the last three weeks, crazy women, a guy at 6am at the pharmacy bleeding profusely from the wrist with a tourniquet on his already black hand, drinking with shop workers while they call you a taxi, it just never ends here. Its an adventure every single day and that's why I love Russia. If you don't speak Russian, Kazan is a great beautiful city off the path yet still as tourist friendly as it gets in Russia. Ekaterinburg is also not a bad option. Everywhere else I have been is practically impossible to get around without real determination or Russian.

As for learning Russian, find music you like, translate the lyrics, when you watch TV And you hear a word 3 words translate it and write it down. Find as many Russian speakers to talk with as possible, its possible to find them in any large city in the world. Check on VK. Lastly, put your life in Russian, meaning your phone and your computer are in only Russian for a few weeks translate words but soon it will start to click. Listen to only Russian radio. Don't concentrate so much on grammar, it only makes it more difficult.

[chamele0n]

(09-30-2013 05:20 AM)matthewshannon9 Wrote:  

Do not worry, I want nothing to do with bringing a ton of western people here. I do want to show people who are truly interested in seeing what Russia is like. Without knowledge of Russian its practically impossible to even use the metro in Moscow(though 2 hours learning Cyrillic solve that problem). Shoot me a pm with any questions and I'll gladly answer them.

Why is it "impossible to even use the metro in Moscow?" Did you notice the maps in the train cars have the train station names in Latin alphabet just under the Cyrillic names in gray color?

[matthewshannon9]

I speak Russian, I have no trouble using the metro but getting off at the right station isn't the problem. Its switching stations underground that seems to be difficult for people. I stayed in a hostel in Moscow for 3 weeks and that was the most common difficulty.