Comments on: Visitor registration: now easier then before http://www.sochi-travel.info/articles/visitor-registration-now-easier-then-before/ Experience the Russian Riviera Mon, 06 Sep 2010 13:10:12 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9 hourly 1 By: Russophile: Russian Blogs, News & Discussion - Russian Visa Registration Requirements for Foreigners http://www.sochi-travel.info/articles/visitor-registration-now-easier-then-before/comment-page-1/#comment-4334 Russophile: Russian Blogs, News & Discussion - Russian Visa Registration Requirements for Foreigners Sun, 01 Jul 2007 15:17:35 +0000 http://www.sochi-travel.info/articles/visitor-registration-now-easier-then-before/#comment-4334 [...] Re: Russian Visa Registration Requirements for Foreigners Tony, See if this post at Sochi-Blog answers your questions. It was referenced in my original post. but with several links it would be easy to miss. He translated the new registration procedures. It might be best to bring along a copy of the new procedures in Russian -- second post here. I just realized that the person who posted those procedures in Russian is listed as Новичок (new guy) and not anyone official. Anyone knew where to find an official web page with those procedures? Not to scare you, but these procedures can change or sometimes the person you are dealing with has never heard of the changes -- or at least pretends so to extract a payment. Have a Russian come with you to airports and train stations if you don't speak Russian. This is even more important as you are leaving a location because you are legal when you first arrive. Also, remember to hang onto your train or plane ticket to keep you legal for the first three business days. By the way, where are you going in Russia? Is it your first trip? __________________ - Subscribe to Russophile via RSS - Register to comment [...] [...] Re: Russian Visa Registration Requirements for Foreigners Tony, See if this post at Sochi-Blog answers your questions. It was referenced in my original post. but with several links it would be easy to miss. He translated the new registration procedures. It might be best to bring along a copy of the new procedures in Russian — second post here. I just realized that the person who posted those procedures in Russian is listed as Новичок (new guy) and not anyone official. Anyone knew where to find an official web page with those procedures? Not to scare you, but these procedures can change or sometimes the person you are dealing with has never heard of the changes — or at least pretends so to extract a payment. Have a Russian come with you to airports and train stations if you don’t speak Russian. This is even more important as you are leaving a location because you are legal when you first arrive. Also, remember to hang onto your train or plane ticket to keep you legal for the first three business days. By the way, where are you going in Russia? Is it your first trip? __________________ – Subscribe to Russophile via RSS – Register to comment [...]

]]> By: Erik http://www.sochi-travel.info/articles/visitor-registration-now-easier-then-before/comment-page-1/#comment-4204 Erik Thu, 28 Jun 2007 23:29:37 +0000 http://www.sochi-travel.info/articles/visitor-registration-now-easier-then-before/#comment-4204 firstly, thanks for stopping by and sharing your view on our city's efforts and my english skills :) , really. and im excited to hear that our tax money are being spent well. but if you'll look at "about" section of this site, you'll realise that I am not in any way affiliated (unfortunatelly for me) with Sochi's Olympic Bid team. I just really love my city and want to spread the word, thats all. the official website you'll need to visit is www.sochi2014.com . i hope you'll find texts on it in better english then on my site ;) in anyway, you should forward your letter to them, you never know... and best of luck! firstly, thanks for stopping by and sharing your view on our city’s efforts and my english skills :) , really. and im excited to hear that our tax money are being spent well. but if you’ll look at “about” section of this site, you’ll realise that I am not in any way affiliated (unfortunatelly for me) with Sochi’s Olympic Bid team. I just really love my city and want to spread the word, thats all.

the official website you’ll need to visit is http://www.sochi2014.com . i hope you’ll find texts on it in better english then on my site ;)

in anyway, you should forward your letter to them, you never know… and best of luck!

]]> By: Marcus Palstra http://www.sochi-travel.info/articles/visitor-registration-now-easier-then-before/comment-page-1/#comment-4198 Marcus Palstra Thu, 28 Jun 2007 17:32:28 +0000 http://www.sochi-travel.info/articles/visitor-registration-now-easier-then-before/#comment-4198 I was intrigued by your advertisements relative to your quest for the hosting of the 2014 Winter Olympics; I saw your ads on CNN and was greatly impressed by their quality... you have accomplished many essential goals in international advertising, specifically: 1) the ads are short and to the point 2) the ads are not always the same: sometimes certain clips are included, sometimes not, which heightens the viewer's interest 3) the message of each clip is cryptic and leaves the viewer guessing 4) each clip has a certain sensuality to it - a girl skiing downhill wearing only pants, a fur hat and a bra definitely commands one's attention 5) the girls in the clips are gorgeous, and have very infectious smiles 6) the general atmosphere of the clips is positive and uplifting: one feels a sense of elation after viewing... Well done! I have travelled extensively around the world, but had never heard of Sochi: your ads interested me enough to make me search for it on the map... But there is a problem with your website: it is in poor English - obviously translated - and could do with some considerable editing. As it stands, it gives a poor impression to viewers who may have been considerably impressed by your advertisements (as I was) but are bound to be somewhat disappointed when they look up your official website... I am a translator, normally translating written documents from French, Spanish, Portuguese and German into English, and am certain that I could improve the presentation of your website from the perspective of native English speakers. Considering the urgency of the matter - the election of the 2014 Winter Olympics host being in a couple of weeks or less - I would be prepared to work day and night to edit the English of your website texts; I estimate that I could make satisfactory corrections to the entire website in 72 hours. This would, in my opinion, greatly improve the impact of your website, bringing it up to the same high standards as your TV ads... If you are interested in employing my services, I can be contacted at m_palstra@yahoo.com. Feel free to submit a sample passage for editing to allow you to determine the quality of my work... Best regards and good luck in your Sochi Olympic quest, Marcus Palstra Santa Cruz, Bolivia I was intrigued by your advertisements relative to your quest for the hosting of the 2014 Winter Olympics; I saw your ads on CNN and was greatly impressed by their quality… you have accomplished many essential goals in international advertising, specifically:

1) the ads are short and to the point

2) the ads are not always the same: sometimes certain clips are included, sometimes not, which heightens the viewer’s interest

3) the message of each clip is cryptic and leaves the viewer guessing

4) each clip has a certain sensuality to it – a girl skiing downhill wearing only pants, a fur hat and a bra definitely commands one’s attention

5) the girls in the clips are gorgeous, and have very infectious smiles

6) the general atmosphere of the clips is positive and uplifting: one feels a sense of elation after viewing…

Well done! I have travelled extensively around the world, but had never heard of Sochi: your ads interested me enough to make me search for it on the map…

But there is a problem with your website: it is in poor English – obviously translated – and could do with some considerable editing. As it stands, it gives a poor impression to viewers who may have been considerably impressed by your advertisements (as I was) but are bound to be somewhat disappointed when they look up your official website…

I am a translator, normally translating written documents from French, Spanish, Portuguese and German into English, and am certain that I could improve the presentation of your website from the perspective of native English speakers. Considering the urgency of the matter – the election of the 2014 Winter Olympics host being in a couple of weeks or less – I would be prepared to work day and night to edit the English of your website texts; I estimate that I could make satisfactory corrections to the entire website in 72 hours. This would, in my opinion, greatly improve the impact of your website, bringing it up to the same high standards as your TV ads…

If you are interested in employing my services, I can be contacted at m_palstra@yahoo.com. Feel free to submit a sample passage for editing to allow you to determine the quality of my work…

Best regards and good luck in your Sochi Olympic quest,

Marcus Palstra
Santa Cruz, Bolivia

]]> By: Russophile: Russian Blogs, News & Discussion - Russian Visa Registration Requirements for Foreigners http://www.sochi-travel.info/articles/visitor-registration-now-easier-then-before/comment-page-1/#comment-3998 Russophile: Russian Blogs, News & Discussion - Russian Visa Registration Requirements for Foreigners Mon, 25 Jun 2007 03:25:55 +0000 http://www.sochi-travel.info/articles/visitor-registration-now-easier-then-before/#comment-3998 [...] Russian Visa Registration Requirements for Foreigners If you have never been to Russia only to stay with friends or family, you may not have paid much attention to the requirement that your Russian visa be registered within three business days. This is a second step in the visa process which is not required any any other country where I have traveled. It is not a problem is you are staying in a hotel since the hotel will register the visa for you, but it can cause tremendous difficulty as you travel Russia country and stay with friends and family. If you fail to register your visa in a particular location and must pay the official fine, it is recorded as an infraction. If you pay the fine three times, you cannot receive another visa into Russia for five years. So the registration requirement is simply an ATM machine for Russian police -- especially those who work at train stations and airports. Often, people pay the official fine or more to keep the infraction from going on their record. The police of course are happy with the current state because it gives them a reason to extract bribes. I have a few interesting stories about registration including once being held in a metro jail for some time because my visa and passport were not returned to me in a timely manner. Traditionally, the registration function was done by the Office of Visas and Registrations (Russian acronym OVIR). The OVIR offices were dismissed on Moscow in 2004 and the function take over by local police offices, but not in other locations since I just had to an OVIR office register a visa in 2006. One of the last places I traveled, told me that there was a six month backlog for the stamp that you are legally required to have within 3 days of arrival. A nice gift fixed the backlog. Sochi Blog has posted a translation of some new registration procedures which are supposed to be easier for foreigners to register. The procedure is also mentioned at the US Embassy website. I don't think that the new process looks much easier than the old registration process, plus it places an additional burden upon your host. In my opinion, Russia needs to entirely scrap the registration process for tourists who are on a 30 day visa. It wastes at least one day of every vacation I take to Russia. Plus, it contributes to the feeling by visitors that Russia is still a state run society and leaves people with the impression that bribes must be paid to accomplish mundane tasks (or because simple tasks can't be completed simply and timely.) By the way, Russians must also register when they move to a new city, which is against Article 13 of the UN Human Rights Declaration and section 1, chapter 2, article 27 of Russia's constitution. However, they do not have to fill out any paperwork to leave the country, which is a question that I am regularly asked. Anyone have any experience with those new procedures or an interesting experience trying to register a visa? __________________ - Subscribe to Russophile via RSS - Register to comment [...] [...] Russian Visa Registration Requirements for Foreigners If you have never been to Russia only to stay with friends or family, you may not have paid much attention to the requirement that your Russian visa be registered within three business days. This is a second step in the visa process which is not required any any other country where I have traveled. It is not a problem is you are staying in a hotel since the hotel will register the visa for you, but it can cause tremendous difficulty as you travel Russia country and stay with friends and family. If you fail to register your visa in a particular location and must pay the official fine, it is recorded as an infraction. If you pay the fine three times, you cannot receive another visa into Russia for five years. So the registration requirement is simply an ATM machine for Russian police — especially those who work at train stations and airports. Often, people pay the official fine or more to keep the infraction from going on their record. The police of course are happy with the current state because it gives them a reason to extract bribes. I have a few interesting stories about registration including once being held in a metro jail for some time because my visa and passport were not returned to me in a timely manner. Traditionally, the registration function was done by the Office of Visas and Registrations (Russian acronym OVIR). The OVIR offices were dismissed on Moscow in 2004 and the function take over by local police offices, but not in other locations since I just had to an OVIR office register a visa in 2006. One of the last places I traveled, told me that there was a six month backlog for the stamp that you are legally required to have within 3 days of arrival. A nice gift fixed the backlog. Sochi Blog has posted a translation of some new registration procedures which are supposed to be easier for foreigners to register. The procedure is also mentioned at the US Embassy website. I don’t think that the new process looks much easier than the old registration process, plus it places an additional burden upon your host. In my opinion, Russia needs to entirely scrap the registration process for tourists who are on a 30 day visa. It wastes at least one day of every vacation I take to Russia. Plus, it contributes to the feeling by visitors that Russia is still a state run society and leaves people with the impression that bribes must be paid to accomplish mundane tasks (or because simple tasks can’t be completed simply and timely.) By the way, Russians must also register when they move to a new city, which is against Article 13 of the UN Human Rights Declaration and section 1, chapter 2, article 27 of Russia’s constitution. However, they do not have to fill out any paperwork to leave the country, which is a question that I am regularly asked. Anyone have any experience with those new procedures or an interesting experience trying to register a visa? __________________ – Subscribe to Russophile via RSS – Register to comment [...]

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