Quote: (11-29-2012 02:39 PM)Vacancier Permanent Wrote:
WWTraveler,
That's awesome that you lived in Ukraine for a year. Would love to hear more about it. Could you post your thoughts on your experience there as far as living there, the women, their attitude and overall vibe you got there? It'd very interesting!
Hey VP, man that was about 4 years ago. It was a trip and kicked my ass in many ways. I never lived that long in a country that I didn't speak the language. In a lot of ways, I felt like a child. I was just starting my business at the time so all my time went into that instead of learning Russian. I want to go back and do it right. heh
I don't think the women are as gorgeous as many think. I think they are just slimmer and know how to present themselves to maximize their beauty. High heels, tight pants, makeup, all done on a daily basis where we get stuck with women wearing slippers to grocery stores in North America.
Women will assume you're an alcoholic if you say you drink a lot. To them, beer and wine isn't really drinking. I never came across an alcoholic like this one dude I met in Ukraine. He would pound a fifth of vodka and literally not be able to move. That is drinking!
Smoking is the same. Smoking one or two cigarettes a day means she isn't a smoker.
Some say the people are cold but they just mind their own business. They don't walk around smiling at strangers or starting conversations with people they don't know. It is odd to them. They are incredibly warm when they know you. Vodka parties with tons of food is a blast.
They don't seem to be much in the savings department. I am not sure if that has changed with the younger generations. I am sure it has something to do with many people losing their life savings when the USSR collapsed. Some people I knew where scared when we hit our global crisis. I just left Ukraine and people started doing a run on the banks. The government had to cap how much people could take out at one time otherwise the banks would collapse. I think a few did collapse.
One of the things I like about North America is being able to go to a bar and meet new people rather easily. I worked as a consultant and would take jobs in different locations where I didn't know anyone. I always found it pretty easy to make friends. Ukraine, it isn't like that. I found people more closed off and stuck with their social groups.
It was pretty funny when summer hit. It seemed a beer tent popped up on every corner. People love to hang outside drinking. Not at all uncommon to sit in parks and have a beer.
Culture was interesting. Very direct, they don't mince words. Being PC is not normal there which I liked. People have no problem telling others they look bad, gained weight, etc...
Getting anything done there is a nightmare. I think they make it that way so they can get bribes. My ex couldn't get her college diploma for years because they always ran out of paper. That is until she greased them and all of the sudden she got it the next day. I really don't know how people get anything done there because what would take us an hour here would take weeks there.
With that said, you can get away with a lot more because of the ability to bribe your way out of it. It is more in your face there unlike here in the US. The same shit happens at home but we are shielded from most of it.
You see old soviet block buildings that look just terrible. They were basically condos but looked like buildings you would associate with the projects or very poor areas. Walking in the halls, stairs, etc.. would look shitty and you would think you walked into a drug house. Then you walk into the condo itself and it is all done up nicely. The outside building is suppose to be maintained by the government while the inside is up to the owner. That is why the buildings look so terrible. I lived in a new building that looked great but the old soviet blocked housing was an eyesight. It seems like most people lived in these condos and had small houses out in the country where they would grow their own fruits and vegetables.
It's definitely a man's world there.
![[Image: sad.gif]](https://rooshvforum.network/images/smilies/sad.gif)
). Visa is not a factor, thankfully, I don't need one. 
