Looking love in Russia for marriage not easy: from books and online dating ru services

“Love looks not with the eyes but with the mind,” Shakespeare said. However, getting past those eyes and into a person’s mind can take a bit of work, and slavic women in Russia are getting creative, whether it is at the mall, in a class or online.

Julia Shedrova found herself unmarried at the ripe-old-age of 18 and dove head first into the marriage business. Now, over 80,000 women across the world call her website, “Want to Get Married”, their homepage, paying good money for membership, along with her CDs, books and dating advice.

girl russian bride Elena

“One thing I did was create a T-shirt which read ‘I am looking for a husband’,” she said. “I wore it all over Moscow and ended up with a whole notepad of phone numbers. It widened what I call my ‘bride opportunities’.”

“I told members of the website about this experience, and it took off. Russian women are even putting stickers on their cars!” Julia added.

The market for men is treacherous in Russia, where the average age of marriage for a woman is just 24, four years before her sisters in the US and the UK. Women also outnumber men by 50 percent and live ten years longer. That is no laughing matter!

“Women here in Russia are very serious, so one thing I do is tell them just to smile and maintain eye contact,” said Julia. “They instantly stand out among other Russian girls.”

Turning that frown upside down also means big bucks for the Academy of Private Life in Moscow.

“In this day and age we are advised on how to be interviewed successfully, to get the right job, to run a business, and to earn money. But how do you meet Mister Right?” asked Julia Derdo of the Academy. “That is why we call ourselves the ‘Academy’.”

For 500 bucks a pop, ladies coming to study here expect to find their way to the alter in just four lessons.

“For so long in our country we were not supposed to be men and women to each other, but comrades. Now we must learn to have vibrant professional and personal lives on our own,” said Julia Derdo.

“Russian women have the dream, but they have no skills,” she added. “There are lots of simple gestures that work. It is all about communications.”

Aleksandr Belov charges US$650 for two months of dating advice. He will even go out on the town with you to help out.

“The key is to approach a man with some question, or ask for help. Then the man thinks you are having a problem and wants to help you. Then he gets to feel like a hero and suggests meeting up for a date,” he said. “He does not even realize he is being had.”

“So just pretend you are meeting someone named Alexander, and go up to a man and find out if it is him,” Aleksandr suggests.

And while her clients are looking for the right man, Julia Shedrova has successfully found hers. The man of her dream is now her husband and he works for her site, helping russian women to find their match.

News RT.com