ForumTitleContentMemberSexCountryDate/Time
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusRussia cuts electricity supply to Belarus

The most recent thing I could find was that as of last night at midnight, Russia was going to shut off its delivery of electricity to Belarus. But the article also said that only 10% of its electric power comes from Russia. The problem for Belarus is the same as so many other countries, they have no money. :bonk:

http://telegraf.by/2011/06/russia-delays-electricity-cutoff-for-belarus.html
I'm pretty sure Lukashenko knows where to find the money, but what does he care?
ONAFemaleRussia2011-06-22 14:48:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusRussia cuts electricity supply to Belarus
No, they postponed the debt.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-06-22 02:47:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusI have this friend .............

Fix0red. :)

btw ONA you come across as a nice easy going woman on here...far from a high maintenance / hot tempered RUB chick.

The thing is that I'm young and inexperienced, so I'm just learning how to be errrr... 'high maintenance' :lol: (just kidding)
There is a different problem with me - I'm so calm that sometimes it seems that I don't care.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-06-11 03:22:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusI have this friend .............

I went to google search and typed in; foreign men seek american woman and this article came up at the top of said search.

http://roissy.wordpr...american-women/

What Foreign Men Think Of American Women

http://community.sea...905&slug=erik05 <---- it derived from this article where they interviewed British expats married or formerly married to American women. LOL...this piece is gold imo. :devil:

Stay away, American Woman, say British men

I've read a couple of discussions, where people were saying that Russian women were complete b***es. I think I could find a link if I try if you're interested :lol: It's all relative.
The only thing is that I'm pretty sure that it's not about me (even though I'm quite a complicated person), so I just read it - take some stuff into consideration, get surprised about other stuff and just laugh at everything else.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-06-10 17:10:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusI have this friend .............

Man, I love running into those guys at clubs because they are so dumb. I always say that you know you've been in Russia a long time when you see a foreigner and no longer see someone who relates to your situation of being a foreigner in Russia but someone who is drunk and has lots of cash and will probably buy you and your friends lots of drinks.

:thumbs: :lol:
ONAFemaleRussia2011-06-10 08:43:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusApproved in Kiev!
Congrats!
ONAFemaleRussia2011-06-19 10:04:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusArrived!!!
Congrats! Enjoy yourselves!
Can't wait till my time comes :luv:
ONAFemaleRussia2011-06-24 16:40:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusNOA2 approved June 6!

Do yo think I should send the affidavit of support? I know it's not technically required by Moscow, but I was planning on doing it anyway until I read in the instructions that I should go to a notary...is this really necessary or will we be ok without it? It would be so much easier to just scan and email her my paystubs and job offer letter...

It's a good idea to send the affidavit of support. It does not need to be notarized, just fill it out and sign.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-06-25 09:27:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusNOA2 approved June 6!

So what happens now? Is somebody going to send me instructions? What about Elena over there in Russia? She is going to get her police certificate soon, but hasn't received any official instructions either. I read in the guide that NVC is the next stage.

Firstly, one of you should contact NVC via phone or e-mail to find out whether they completed your case and to ask them for your NVC case number (starts with MOS for Russia).
Then (about 7-10 business days after the NVC stage has been completed) one of you should contact the embassy via phone or e-mail (your fiancee can speak Russian to them), tell them your NVC case number (MOSXXXXXXXXX) and find out the interview date.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-06-14 08:13:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusNOA2 approved June 6!
The standard wait time is 1 month. I think it's possible to get it in 3 days if you pay for it. I applied for it on May,11 - they called me today and said that I can come pick it up tomorrow.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-06-09 14:06:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusBad news for men world wide =(

We have Chinese food in our food court... it doesn't have the American Chinese food classics like moo goo gai pan, but it's not like American Chinese food is any closer to real Chinese food than Taco Bell is to Mexican.

Same thing with sbarro being "Italian" :lol:
Anyway... no Chinese or "Chinese" food in the malls of my city yet... While Japanese food is quite popular.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-06-29 09:10:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusBad news for men world wide =(

Well, perhaps Yum Brands (parent company of Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, & others) is that ambitious, si man. There are Pizza Huts in Ecuador, too, but they're not as good as they are in the U.S. -- which isn't saying much. The mall food courts also have Chinese-food places and Ecuadorian-food places (minus the cuy, thankfully).

Chinese food is what I miss in Russia. Me and my friend (she's been to the States a couple of times too) were at the mall the other day and when we went to the food court there was Subway, there was Sbarro, there was a bunch of Russian and Caucasian food chains... It took us pretty long time to decide what we want and I figured it happened cause there was no Chinese food... so we ended up buying food drom a blini fast food place.
But what I miss a little bit more than Chinese food, but a little bit less than my fiance is crabcakes. We're going to Baltimore G&M as soon as I arrive.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-06-29 03:33:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusBad news for men world wide =(

Where I live in Moscow, there's a McD's right smack next to the metro station. It's ALWAYS full of people. I can walk past there at 3 am, 3 pm, noon, etc, doesn't matter... always packed with people. I'm seeing more and more overweight people here, especially overweight children, and men and women who seem to hit the 35+ mark and just eat until they die. IMHO the younger (I mean older teens and 20 somethings) women seem to be gaining weight more so than the young guys, who I find are usually so thin they look too young. It's not as bad as in the US, but it is a problem that seems to be increasing.

McDonalds is usually packed with people pretty much everywhere in the FSU, but so many people go there just for wi-fi. Might be difference in that between Moscow and my city though, but Moscow is pretty much like a different country compared to the rest of Russia.

Go to Arbat now... Dunkin Donuts, Wendy's, Starbucks, all that #######. I hate that street; talk about ruining a historic place with crappy American fastfood; I miss American food sometimes but it's not so good when fastfoods plague nearly every street of nearly every capital on the planet. Random note, I nearly died when my SO told me he was taking me to a restaurant with "real Mexican food", and it was Chilli's.

:lol: You should totally come to my city. We have a place that serves American and Mexican food and is called "BARak O'Mama" :lol: My fiance loved it :yes:
ONAFemaleRussia2011-06-28 03:43:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusBad news for men world wide =(
I don't think that fast food will become as popular in Russia as it is in the US, cause it's just cheaper to cook at home. $1 menu turns in $2 menu in Russia + the difference in salary and you realise that you don't want to waste your money on spending a lot of time in fast food places. Plus there are restaurants with cheaper and better food.
I believe portions are about the same though in Russia and in the USA... :unsure: When they opened the 1st Subway in my city I was wondering whether they were going to sell the footlongs, and apparently they do! I'm not sure that anybody buys them though.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-06-27 13:59:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusUkraine Passport Photo
Neonred, you shouldn't believe the person, who told you the information you have.
The information I gave you is most up-to-date, and it's written there that the last update to the law was in 2007 (which is 4 years ago, not 8). I gave you that link cause it's the website of the program used by the lawyers in Russia and it gets updated as soon as the law changes (my mom's a lawyer and even though she works with retirement law only, I know what I'm talking about).
Plus, I changed my passport 2 years ago, and I was told at that point that if I didn't change my passport in 30 days after I turn 20, I'd have to pay 1500-2500 rubles (it is usually 1500 rubles, if you have never been fined for something like that before).
ONAFemaleRussia2011-07-05 13:01:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusUkraine Passport Photo

I understand the fine is now about 15,000 rubles per month. We had hoped to pay someone to take care of this but there has been a crack down on corruption (believe it or not) and most people that used to fix these things are afraid to touch it now.

How a fine can be "per month"? The fine is 1500-2500 rubles.
Ask your wife to read this: http://www.consultan...koap/13_20.html - paragraph 19.15 (or you can read it if you read Russian).
ONAFemaleRussia2011-07-05 03:08:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusUkraine Passport Photo

I know things are different in Russia, but in Russia I understand there is a substantial fine if not done within a certain amount of time. Would not be a big deal except that my wife's propyska is still with the apartment over there. That was another issue, as Russia expects you to register with their embassy in the US if you are living here.

Well, it's possible to pay the fine (about $50-60), change the passport and keep the "propiska" :yes:
Some people don't even leave Russia, but change their passport about 3 years later than they're supposed to and don't have any problem (except for the fine).
ONAFemaleRussia2011-07-04 16:28:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusUkraine Passport Photo

I dont know what internal passport is, but the international passport, is expiring in July, then I would say she should get it renewed in Ukraine itself before starting her travel.

At POE when you have passport that is expiring pretty soon after arrival is not liked by the officers.

In Russia, Ukraine (and, I believe, some other countries) we have internal passports (used as an ID pretty much everywhere) and international pasports (which are in English and are used for travelling).
I believe that the OP is talking about the internal passport (the international passport needs to be changed every 10 years, not just have a new picture in it).
The easiest thing will be getting the new picture in the passport before she leaves Ukraine. You might have to use the option that tom&tanya mentioned. It might be hard or impossible to do it in the consulate (I'm not sure about Ukrainian passports, Russian internal passports can't be renewed by the consulate). Another option is just wait for her firs visit back, she'll have to pay a fine for not doing it on time, but it's not a big deal, plus she won't need her internal passport in the USA anyway.
Now I'll let the guys with Ukrainian wives talk, cause they probably know more than I do.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-06-26 15:05:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusCustoms Declaration when Leaveing Ukraine
Fiance(e) visa is a non-immigrant one, so technically she's not leaving the country forever, she's leaving for 90 days. Anyway, I never heard that anybody had to declared anything unless it was old books, coins etc.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-06-30 18:06:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusMoscow Russia embassy

I could write a book about the Moscow Embassy Email and telephone system, but I will spare you. Now lets see how long it takes to get DHL from Moscow with passport to Minsk Belarus... dropped off last Friday. Keep your fingers crossed !

Hope you get it asap! and congrats on the visa by the way :)

By the way, I got packet 4 yesterday! Never expected to see it :lol:
ONAFemaleRussia2011-07-06 13:02:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusMoscow Russia embassy

like I said, do not rely upon Russian mail for communications or forms. They never make it in time. Sasha's forms arrived after she had left St Pete's. (interview and visa in hand and left the country).

That's not even about the mail service. The worst thing is that you apparentely cannot rely on the e-mail you get from the Embassy. That's just a piece of advice to everybody: when they tell you your interview date, make sure they didn't make a mistake, like they did in my case.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-07-02 08:10:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusMoscow Russia embassy

My fiancee does live in Moscow...
We are currently waiting till NVC will recieve all the documents..
I thought after they recieve it they will send everything to Russian Consulate, which is in moscow, and she will have a month to do an interview:(
I was hoping that she will be here in August:( and the answer is NO?:(

I feel you.
We hoped I'll be in the US in July... Our case was approved on May, 17. My interview date is August, 2. Ugh... The worst part is that at first they sent me an e-mail stating that my interview date is August,1. Good thing I called them yesterday, I would've never found out otherwise (never got packet 4).
ONAFemaleRussia2011-07-02 04:18:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusShipping Personal Items from Ukraine
I tend to lose weight when I'm in the States... But that's cause I eat a lot of seafood there and... well... live with my fiance :blush:
ONAFemaleRussia2011-07-04 16:22:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusMoscow interview 8-19! But Elena's passport is at the Canadian consul!?
baron555, I'm telling you - the biggest problem was that they didn't send a reply to my fiance's e-mail at all :( He got the auto-reply that they received his e-mail and were supposed to send something back in 3 business days, but they just didn't reply at all. We both have been checking his e-mail every 10 min. for 2 weeks, but nothing... I told them about that when I called them.
And they messed up my interview date - sent me an e-mail that it was going to be Aug 1, later I found out that it's Aug 2. that was pretty misleading :wacko:

P.S. I hope I won't get the yellow slip for being so disappointed with the embassy, but we weren't lucky trying to correspond with them.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-07-14 09:16:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusMoscow interview 8-19! But Elena's passport is at the Canadian consul!?

I would strongly disagree with posting the Moscow Embassy "always answers emails within 24 hours", while that may be true in the most plain vanilla of cases and inquiries we have recently found them to be extremely confusing, late in replying and providing less than helpful info.

Agreed. I was reading all that information that they answer really fast when the USC sends them an e-mail... Nope... They NEVER answered my fiance's e-mail, I had to call them.
And when I sent them e-mails it took 3-4 days to get a reply.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-07-14 03:14:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusNOA2 was approved finally!
Congrats!!!
ONAFemaleRussia2011-07-19 12:40:00
Russia, Ukraine and Belarus5 Days Post-POE - GREAT!

(This wouldn't suit someone who prefers to dash in a store for a particular item and dash out.)

That's me most of the time.
Might also be like "dash in a store for a particular item, never find something she likes and dash out".
I would only go to Goodwill for used books, CDs and stuff like that. I would go for that to a second hand store in Russia too, plus here they don't really know what kind of treasure they're selling for "almost FREE", cause the books are not in Russian.
There was one time I got a Burberry purse in a Goodwill store for $5 though.
I can go to TJ Maxx or Marshalls, but again - I can't look for something for a long time, although, I was able to find some good deals over there. I would go to any store that says "SALE" on it :lol:
In general, I'm not the type that is looking for a bargain, but if there is a chance to buy something I like with a great discount, I take it! :yes:

But I'm also somebody, who some of the guys here refer to as "spoiled 20-something, raised after the collapse of the Soviet Union", so a lot of people probably have different experience with their spouses :)
ONAFemaleRussia2011-07-22 06:22:00
Russia, Ukraine and Belarus5 Days Post-POE - GREAT!

How? Like a malenki tornado! No questions asked. She just began picking through my clothes and boom!...suddenly many of my clothes disappeared. No questions...no answers. She follows the NIKE credo, "Just do it!" :-)

No question about the clothes! The problem is the deer head on the wall in (wait for it!) our BEDROOM. If I take this thing off, I'm in trouble :lol:
ONAFemaleRussia2011-07-21 08:11:00
Russia, Ukraine and Belarus5 Days Post-POE - GREAT!
I have only one question.

She also made him take his antlered deer-head off the den wall, sigh man, and many other outrageous inequities.

How did she do that? She can contact me and share the secret :lol:

As for the clothes, my fiance lets me pick it for him, but I try to get something that resembles whatever he is used to. Worked out great so far. Plus he hates shopping and he's glad that I can do it for him :yes:
ONAFemaleRussia2011-07-20 12:03:00
Russia, Ukraine and Belarus5 Days Post-POE - GREAT!
I wonder why nobody has mentioned Nordstrom (and Nordstrom Rack!!!) yet.

And be thankful that you're not married to an Ecuatoriana, each of whom must own 57 purses, sigh man.

:rofl: Is there a rule or something? :lol:

Lena and Igor, happy for you, guys!
Counting the days till I can get on VJ and report the same thing!
ONAFemaleRussia2011-07-17 11:43:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusMy wife just left Odessa for Kiev and 8am interview at embassy.
Good luck!
My interview is coming and for some reason I'm worried too!!! :help:
ONAFemaleRussia2011-07-24 14:28:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusVisa in hand
Congrats! :dance:
ONAFemaleRussia2011-07-30 13:13:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusThe wife wants to return to Russia
That's weird. My mom has a law degree and works for the State Pension Fund of Russia, she says they have people, who don't live in Russia anymore, applying for and getting approved for their pensions all the time.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-07-31 15:41:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusThe wife wants to return to Russia

1. Are there any issues about being a pensioner in Russia while living with an American in the States? My wife does spend a good part of the year, maybe 40% of the time, over there. It is necessary for family reasons.

Almost forgot, but I asked my mom, she says there's no problem with that, even if she spends a lot less time in Russia, it doesn't matter.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-07-30 13:10:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusThe wife wants to return to Russia
I can ask my mom about pension, but I'm leaving for Moscow tonight, so I'm not sure when I can type the answer here. As soon as I get to some place with free wi-fi :)
ONAFemaleRussia2011-07-25 07:51:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusThe wife wants to return to Russia

I don't watch news here unless it's local news. BBC and Reuters online ftw. US news has turned into complete bs. No news on Iraq or that other war unless it's some stupid ####### human rights story about amputee's getting new arms and legs....usually peeps bombed from US war planes and not the Taliban. It's enough to make me want to puke.

I like Euronews.
I'm never watching BBC again, cause I had to watch it for Current Affairs class for 2 years... :help:
ONAFemaleRussia2011-07-13 14:26:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusThe wife wants to return to Russia

the government owned and controlled media puts it on the air and the brainwashed peasants there eat it up.

:rofl: You see Russians through an American's eyes.
People in the US might believe in what they see on TV, but that's not the case with Russians. That's why we call it "zomboyaschik" ("zombiebox").

Edited by ONA, 13 July 2011 - 01:47 PM.

ONAFemaleRussia2011-07-13 13:46:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusThe wife wants to return to Russia

I read something on wikipedia about how the packs of feral dogs migrate from the country to the city every winter via electrichka... OMG I am never taking one, not with hobo dogs riding the rails.

:lol: I've seen dogs on the buses in my city.
And they always cross the streets when the green light is on. Sometimes those dogs are way smarter than people.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-07-12 19:25:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusThe wife wants to return to Russia

Anyone in a foreign country has to use their common sense, whether it's Russia or the UK. MAYBE in Canada it'd be ok, because everyone there is so polite. But in Russia, where most guys put in military service and in certain parts of the country, especially years ago, just walking to the store was/is an opportunity for gopniks to come and beat the ####### out of you? Yeah. Don't be stupid is the #1 rule. Follow that and you'll be fine.

I agree. There are so many foreiners, who just get waisted in clubs in Russia and start being absolutely careless.
There was one time when two guys from my university found a drunk American guy outside of a club here - all he could say was just the name of the hotel he was staying in. They called the hotel and the receptionist said: "An American? Yeah, he's staying here". So they got a cab for him and sent him there. He got very lucky that he was found by those guys, not by some gopniks.
I hate clubs and I don't go there a lot, but even I see that happening. And I hear those stories all the time.

Edited by ONA, 12 July 2011 - 09:50 AM.

ONAFemaleRussia2011-07-12 09:49:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusThe wife wants to return to Russia

Why Manchester specifically? Have you ever been there?
In my opinion (very personal opinion) Manchester is no more than a very big mall.

I haven't been there, but I'm a crazy Manchester United fan. All my friends, who have been there say that it's like a fan's heaven there.
I started learning English just cause I wanted to go there. Here I am - a recent university graduate with a degree in linguistics and teaching foreign languages.... and getting ready to move to the States... Well, I guess hockey, Washington Caps and Ovi will work as long as my man is going to the games with me.

Leave Spain for last, because I have a feeling that once you visit you are going to want to stay. I tried staying in Barcelona, but God wanted me to meet my wife instead, so I had to return to USA after running out of money because of seven months without a job. If I had "my job" in Barcelona, I would move tomorrow, even if my wife never gets the golden American passport that so many people treasure. :bonk:

:lol: Great advice, thanks. So, it's really dangerous for me, cause I started learning Spanish just cause I wanted to go to Barcelona (I would learn Catalan instead, but I don't think they teach it in Russia).
ONAFemaleRussia2011-07-11 08:02:00