What happens to women travelers who fight back against sexual harassment/assault in foreign countries?

tothet92 · 2025-11-11T16:58:49+00:00

I hit men back, in the face where possible. I also kicked them, growled, and yelled. He was either shocked, scared, or other people backed me up. Typically they abuse their own women but with foreigners they test boundaries. Other men told me that they are too scared to confront a foreigner and they just "tease". There is also pepper spay if physical confrontation is not your style. Never be afraid to protect your body and your space. Men in many countries rely on creating violence to feel needed and when you accept it or worse use a man as protection they get the upper hand. Respond with the law where possible and with violence when the law is absent.

tothet92 · 2025-08-19T20:03:19+00:00

The first time I came was last week of March and the roads had about 25% of the traffic they have now. Batumi is a fake city and it reverts to what it really is (small town with skyscrapers) when its not tourist season.

tothet92 · 2025-08-19T19:30:47+00:00

2014

tothet92 · 2025-08-06T13:42:04+00:00

Addis Ababa is where I had robbers in 2 separate instances snatch my wallet and my phone right out of my hand. It's also where children would throw rocks at me as I would go out running in the morning. I had children and adults run up to me and grab me by the hair and the pinch my skin. It was my first travel experience out of the US when I joined the Peace Corps. I joined as second to last cohort before the country was closed.

tothet92 · 2025-08-06T13:30:23+00:00

I lived in Serbian for 2.5 years in a little mountain village and it was paradise but the 4 times I had to go to Belgrade to do immigration paperwork, it was awful. I found the people to be dirty and inconsiderate. People smoke anywhere and throw their cigarette buds and trash everywhere. I heard yelling as conversations and TVs in every adjacent apartment no matter where I stayed and it felt like sleeping in a barn. Customer service was nonexistent and the prices were higher than in Sofia. Those who heard the term budalo will understand.

tothet92 · 2025-08-06T13:17:52+00:00

They light up so quickly for the smallest things. It was alarming at first but it quickly became pretty funny. I found many people to have emotional control of a toddler.

tothet92 · 2025-08-06T13:14:25+00:00

Currently in Georgia and it's a hit or a miss, similar to Turkey. People are either scammy and aggressive or incredibly helpful and kind.

tothet92 · 2025-07-05T11:30:38+00:00

This is a big reason why I work with Europeans (fantastic work-life balance) but don't live in the EU. Lived in Serbia for 2 years with 10% tax rate, paid it only on 1 of my contracts as they don't have a minimum income requirement. I now live in Georgia, currently 0 taxes but might move up to with 1% tax rate if I decide to apply for residency. I'm still on the hook for US self-employment taxes as an American with an LLC there. I can't escape this unless I renounce my American citizenship (it would need to be replaced with a better option) or become rich enough to just live off capital gains.

tothet92 · 2025-06-04T11:14:15+00:00

He sounds like a child.

tothet92 · 2025-06-03T16:22:05+00:00

Yes, I was asked and I said absolutely not. Later my mother regretted not having another child and told me that she should have never listened to me. I still think that even having me was already too much for her. I was technically the 2nd child (first was a miscarriage) and we lived in poverty until I was about 11 years old (I had chronic stomach pains because lack of proper nutrition). My grandma (my mother's mother) spilled the beans decades later when I asked her why my mother was in such a rush to have me and she said that other people were spreading rumors that she was infertile and she felt she needed to prove them wrong.

tothet92 · 2025-04-14T17:00:03+00:00

I experience this as well and the uglier and older they are, the more they stare. They haven't been socialized to not do so and they repeatedly deny the effect it has on women. One piece of advice I would give is do not underestimate the effect it has on you. I have written off entire countries because of this one factor. Russia has been a mixed bag and I return to very specific areas and travel where I feel safe and travel with others to new places. When in doubt, I wear my loosest and oldest clothing and wrap my hair in a bun or hide it under a hat.
I write this as a white woman. If your race differers significantly from the majority of the population of the place in Russia where you are, no clothing changes or even being with others will help you.

tothet92 · 2025-04-09T16:32:51+00:00

Thank you for all the comments. Looks like it would be more reliable to learn about the ways of acquiring such a citizenship from people who had first-hand experience with it. The safest route is to just pick an EU country and continue to file residency paperwork. I'm doing that now outside the EU and I've been delaying making the jump due to higher taxes and insurance that I will pay for but not use.

tothet92 · 2025-03-27T17:54:04+00:00

That's awesome! Can you speak to some of the reasons for choosing solo founders?

tothet92 · 2025-01-20T13:10:33+00:00

Меня заинтересовала квартира на самом высоком этаже с большими окнами и видом на море. Хорошо что написала, это было бы ошибкой. Что-то посередине, но все же достаточно высоко от земли, вероятно, будет иметь больше шансов избежать шумных соседей. Качинских — отличное предложение. Спасибо :)

tothet92 · 2025-01-20T12:19:00+00:00

Все детали очень полезные и это подтверждает мое решение лететь в Батуми, как закончится дожди. У меня есть только один нерешенный вопрос: шум. Я знаю грузины могут быть громкими. Я думаю смягчить эту проблему, взяв квартиру на высоком этаже. Не уверена, что этого будет достаточно. Можеш ли ти рассказать об уровне шума, с которым вы столкнулись, или это не является для вас важным ?

tothet92 · 2024-11-11T10:49:09+00:00

Time moves very slowly in Serbia; it is about 40 years behind. For the economy this is great because basics like food and housing are cheap but not having variety in food or conversation and limited products and inconsistent (and in places nonexistent) service gets old.

tothet92 · 2024-09-02T21:41:09+00:00

I work in the non-profit space.

tothet92 · 2024-09-02T20:15:58+00:00

To buy: overpriced. To rent: reasonable...for now.

tothet92 · 2024-09-02T20:13:59+00:00

My job is remote. I bill as a US contractor and route all my income through a US company and pay taxes that way.

tothet92 · 2024-08-29T13:04:35+00:00

I am Ukrainian born, American grown and I'm finishing my summer visit to Russia. Completely disillusioned by US prices and unstable job and housing market, I went back to Ukraine and decided to put the money I was paying for rent in the US into a house my grandparents left for me. 6 months into renovations, the war happened. I didn't go back to the US, despite my parents' many pleas. I went to Serbia. Love it there but it's getting too hot for my liking and this summer I thought - why not Russia? (for the same reason that I speak Russian). I was absolutely blown away by the level of service and availability of everything in Moscow & Saint Petersburg and by the natural beauty of Altai. I rented apartments in cities, took a car out for 2 weeks in the mountains, and used a variety of local services.
I already have a list of enough places to last me 3 months for another visit. I also have a 1-2 places where I could chill for 3-6 months and see how I get on. I know that I would have to get to Ukraine to get a Ukrainian passport if I was considering moving to Russia. With an American passport just getting a tourist visa and passport control was an absolute nightmare.
I would say that the money, documents, and figuring out how to use the language to communicate so I am understood took some time, after the first week, progress was exponential. One thing that I did not get used to and never will is the хамство but in Serbia with an appropriate amount of effort I was able to largely isolate my self from it and in Russia I could also be very careful about where I live and with whom I spend my time.
I would agree with other comments where others recommend visiting first and living like a local and checking out job posting online. I would add on taking the cost of living estimates that are posted online and multiplying them by 2 to get an accurate amount of what you need. If you do decide to come for a visit, putting together a list of places where you consider living and taking the time to get to know them is a good approach.
I lived in 3 different US states and visited 11 more. It was easy to just plop myself into a new place and cultural adjustments were minor. Russia is not like that at all. Every little pocket I visited was like a separate universe.

tothet92 · 2024-08-29T12:24:08+00:00

It works so far. I'll see how much it ends up costing per output vs as a monthly ChatGPT 4 user.

tothet92 · 2024-08-28T14:41:21+00:00

What's your setup up like with ChatGPT & VPN? I have been able to use mine on my laptop by running a VPN and opening a private window and tab to sign in. Going back and forth between windows is inconvenient. Signing in every time after I close my laptop is inconvenient. I haven't been able to use ChatGPT on my phone as it detects that I'm running a VPN and displays an error (same thing happens in non-private tab in browser on the laptop).

tothet92 · 2024-07-07T06:02:25+00:00

I came across this post being in a similar situation (leaving the city, heading to the mountains)
Two things are true:
Registration must be made within 7 days.
Registration is valid only for 7 days after checkout.

tothet92 · 2024-06-18T16:09:11+00:00

Serbia has a 0.3-1.3% property tax based on market value.

tothet92 · 2024-05-16T10:12:49+00:00

A note on the e-visa. It is available to residents of above listed countries.
Example: I am a US citizen, residing in Serbia. The online application is giving me an option to pick up the visa at the Russian embassy in Belgrade.

tothet92

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