References

Colleagues in other regions:

Testimonials

Dec. 29, 2008

Thanks to Oleysa and Vladimir Panin
Posted on December 29, 2008 at 08:44:56 PM by Rebecca W hitney

Pasha,

Just wanted to say that my parents and I were very impressed by how helpful Oleysa was in helping us coordinate an airport transfer and day trip with Vladimir Panin on a recent trip to Moscow back in Oct 2008. My parents are kind of shy and they immediately warmed up to Vladimir's soft personality and personable demeanor. He was a kind and interesting person and you were dead on when you said he was unflappable in Moscow traffic. My parents live in a small rural town in Canada and so are easily intimated by crazy traffic in places like Toronto (where I live) which is not even 1 1/10th as bad as Moscow traffic.

My parents would love to write a thank you note to Vladimir; does he still not have email access? Or is there a way to send him a letter if you could get us his address? We wanted to personally say thanks and also send him a few pictures that he's the star of!

Thanks again for all your website's help and I would certainly consider coming to stay at your Dacha on a future visit; it sounds like a wonderful place with lots of outdoorsy things to do.

Rebecca (Toronto, Canada)

Oct. 18, 2006

I recently went to Moscow to explore some business opportunities there. Having never been to Russia before I had no idea what to expect. Olesya arranged a ride from the airport for me, had an apartment set up for my stay, showed me how to use the metro, got me to my first appointment of the day, and got me a cell phone with local service in Moscow. When I would get lost (which is easy to do in Moscow) all I had to do is give her a call and she made sure that I found my way to wherever I was going. When I was hungry she was available to tell me where I could get some food. Olesya not only saved me time and money by using her Russian Girl Friday Service, but she also made sure that my trip was a memorable and enjoyable experience. Next time I plan a trip to Russia, Olesya will be the first person that I call.

Thank You

Ronald Savino
Odnor19[@]yahoo.com

Feb.3, 2005

Dear Olesya

I am just writing a note to thank you for the service you have provided our company over the last 6 months. We have found you to be responsive, punctual and committed to meeting our requests often at very short notice regardless of whether we contact you day, night or weekends.

Your travel, apartment search and shopping service have been of particular benefit to us. I am also relieved that we have someone on call in Moscow to help our members of staff who are traveling to Moscow and cannot operate alone. It's a big piece of mind and represents a fraction of the cost of having staff permanently in Moscow to look after them. I recommend your service to individuals as well as small and medium-sized businesses who require a personal and customized service.

All the best with your continued success and we look forward to working with you in the future

Kind regards, Richard C
(e-mail available on request)

Dec. 22, 2004

Greetings!!!

I am an American citizen, a journalist, and am disabled (blind). Recently, I made my first foray to Russia in order to meet in person and marry the woman of my dreams. The immensity of my trip to Siberia with my K-9 assistant was somewhat intimidating, to say the least, as it included a 10-hour layover in the city of Moscow.

I found Paul (Pasha) Voytinsky and Olesya Pomazan on the internet and retained them to help me with airport transfers (Pasha) and to provide a place to relax and have a bite to eat (Olesya) during my layover in Moscow, before venturing to my final destination, the city of Tomsk, Siberia.

I heartily recommend Pasha and Olesya to anyone planning to venture to Russia (Moscow) that is in need of such services, and particularly to anyone that may be disabled. In spite of a mix-up in communications that was my blame, Paul managed to get me to my flight on time for departure, requiring a Herculean effort on his part, in fighting Friday evening rush hour traffic in Moscow. He and Olesya both speak excellent English and they made my Moscow visit a memorable and worthwhile experience, I will always treasure.

Thank you Pasha and Olesya, for your excellent care and service. I am very grateful that the great amount of trust I placed in both of you was completely well founded. Please know that I will continue to use your services for future trips to Russia with out any reservation and/or hesitation.

Sincerely yours,

S.G. James Wulf, Esq.

Alaska, USA

Oct. 24, 2004

From Uncle Pasha's Notice Board under "Russian hospitality in its real action!" string where the originator accused her of "selling Russian air at inflated prices"..

Posted on October 28, 2004 at 11:39:45 AM by joe

I recently spent 10 days in Moscow with Olesya as my travel escort. She arranged transportation, bought theater and circus tickets at local prices and provided commentary on museums and exhibits we visited. Olesya provided the services she advertises on her website (www.russiangirlfriday.com) at the prices she lists. She is a good listener and conversationalist and has a pleasant personality. At no time did I feel I was being gouged or taken advantage of by her. I would recommend her services to anyone!

Oct. 20, 2004

Hi Olesya,

Here's a testimonial for your website...

My father and I try to travel to somewhere exotic each year. But the problem with exotic places is that you can end up wasting much of the trip just wandering around trying to find or figure out the simplest things. Fortunately, when we visited Moscow last month, we had Olesya to look after us. She showed us how to use the metro, obtained show tickets for us, and even gave us a cell phone so we could call her from anywhere. As a guide, she gave great explanations of the places we visited, including a Moscow River boat tour. And when a metro station was too far away for easy walking, she quickly negotiated low taxi rates with passing drivers! Olesya even prepared a detailed list of buffet restaurants in town, so we could sample different styles of food without struggling over menus. Unlike some guides we have talked to, Olesya was very flexible, adapting her schedule to ours, and helping us make the most efficient use of our short time in Moscow. We highly recommend her services!

Ricky & Lavon Loynd,

Oct.15, 2004

Olesya
>
> I meant to write when I got home to thank you for all your help when we
> were in Moscow. I think we would have had great difficulty without you.
>
> We enjoyed Staritsa very much but Paul hadn't brought any beers with him
> not realising it was so far to the nearest shop!! I told him a couple of
> days without alcohol wouldn't do him any harm but he pointed out he was
> on his holidays!.
>
> Despite your advice about carriage numbers we managed to board the train
> at the wrong end (my fault) and Paul had to drag my suitcase practically
> the whole length of the train. He was not impressed as it was very hot.
>
> Anyway the trip went without any major hitches and we had a lovely time
> in St Petersburg. We are off to Goa for Christmas. Paul is travelling
> from Japan and we are meeting him there.
>
> Many thanks again and say thanks to Pasha (if you are speaking to him).
>
> Dympna, Paul and Ayumi
>
> PS
>
> We were very sad to read about the terrible events in Beslan when we got
> home.
>
> Dympna Stewart
> Taxation Officer
> Queen's University Belfast

July, 2004

On the third floor, in what you can call a typical Russian

suburban house with several floors of tired concrete, we were

introduced to our becoming home for four nights. One thing you

should be aware of before choosing this form of accommodation is that

you will practically live in a family's living room, which for example

means that you get to be awakened by the crying of a child every

morning. This does not have to be a bad thing though: It works

better than an alarm clock, believe us. Other positive things is that

you get to wash your clothes when you want to, store your food in a

super cool refrigerator and cook it whenever you want to. The view

can give you the wrong impression of all but concrete jungle

surroundings. Five minutes away there is a huge public park where we

had our lunch: grilled chicken from one of the kiosks outside the

metro station. Also there is a movietheatre and several local bars

where you can get drunk with the locals. Staying at Olesya's gives

you a unique insight to standard Moscow suburban life, fifteen

minutes away from the city centre. Especially recommended in the

summer time since the cold water discount makes it 20$ a night per

couple'.

Henny Sunnby, Marius Lien
sheriff_11 [at] hotmail [dot] com

July, 2004

Hello Oleysa!

I would like to leave this feedback for you regarding my stay in Russia this past July of 2004:

I had the pleasure of staying with Oleysa during my fiancé visa process of July 2004. She is a pleasant person and extremely helpful! I felt completely safe and comfortable. A short walking distance to local markets and grocery stores, as well as the metro and many other shops. I never felt lost with Oleysa’s help! Thank you.

I will gladly use her service again during my next trip to Moscow.

Sincerely,

Richard richard [ at] sidereus [ dot] us

July 8, 2004

Hi Olesya,
We are back in San Diego, CA and the trip went great. Thanks to you I
was able to have a nice suit for the ballet, good tickets for the train
ride to Nizhnii Novgorod, and excellent taxi service provided by your
driver Slava. His speaking English was very helpful, even though my
wife speaks just a little Russian. Indeed, your English was able to
make the trip very enjoyable.

We are now off for a 3 week driving trip in the Western states. After
returning from that trip, I AM going to write a letter and send it to
the travel agencies I mentioned, recommending your service. I think you
provide such an excellent service I would like for others to be helped
by it, and to help expand your business. I did want to let you know
that we had not forgotten you and are planning on following up. We/my
wife may be making another trip to Russian in about a year so we will
stay in touch with you. Thanks again.
Nick Vanmatre
San Diego, CA

April 12, 2004

Dear Olesya,

I would like to thank you for making my stay in Moscow so memorable! I would like to share my story so that others know about the wonderful service that you provide there:

I began to correspond with Olesya through Uncle Pasha. My husband stumbled across Uncle Pasha's website in preparation for our trip to Moscow. Prior to my departure, Olesya rearranged her schedule to accommodate my very short five-day trip to Moscow. We spent three fabulous days all day touring the city and surrounds. I was immediately impressed with her ability to speak and understand English; with her historical knowledge as we toured various sights; and with her ease at navigating what could have been a difficult system for me as I do not speak Russian. Riding the metro, obtaining tickets, or reading a menu was no problem with Olesya's assistance. I was able to accomplish so much in such a short period of time at her very reasonable hourly rate. Her friendly and easygoing personality and flexibility with plans which always seem to change was also much appreciated.

I voraciously read travel books and internet websites to develop two lists prior to my trip to Russia: Sights that I must see and sights that I would like to see if time permits. I was pleasantly surprised that both of these lists were accomplished in my three days with Olesya! We toured the Kremlin, the Armory, Red Square, St. Basil's Cathedral and many other cathedrals inside and out. We enjoyed the ballet at the Bolshoy, toured the Tretyakov Gallery, the All-Russian Exhibition Center (VDNKh), and were even able to take a train trip outside of Moscow to Sergiev Posad! Olesya gave me the space and time to enjoy all of the sights at my own leisure yet seemed to be just close enough whenever needed.

Olesya also helped with miscellaneous projects along the way: Selecting gifts for my family that were outside of the normal "tourist traps" and setting up a cellular telephone necessary for my husband to conduct business while in Moscow.

She even quickly responded when I had already left the country and once again asked for her assistance to help with a purchase. I e-mailed her that I had unsuccessfully attempted to make a purchase with my credit card on the morning of my departure. I left for the airport after numerous failed attempts with various cards (later determined due to security measures). Within days of my e-mail, she made the purchase and even e-mailed me pictures to ensure it was the correct item!

I would highly recommend Olesya to those interested in a more personal tour guide to make their trip to Russia as special as mine!

Hope to see you in Moscow again real soon,

Kimberly Parrotte
Frederick, MD
USA

KJParrotte [at] aol [dot] com

February, 2004

Dear Paul and Olesya:

Here is the letter as promised:

Imagine being in Moscow, alone, in a Russian snow storm with a freshly broken arm .That was my situation in early February in 2004. After an accident in the Urals, I had made my way to Moscow where I could theoretically change my plane arrangements and get to the U.S. for surgery. As I had no hotel reservation, do not speak Russian and knew I had to accomplish some things quickly, I searched the internet and found Uncle Pasha's website. One phone call to Olesya brought immediate response. They arranged for a driver to bring me to their home, found me a hotel room and pain medication and then working to change my airlines tickets. Although the airlines were not coopcerative, they managed to make the proper arrangements with minimal involvement from me. During this period of time, they also contacted my friends near Moscow and met her at the train station and brought her over to see me. Finally, my early morning departure was expedited by the timely appearance of Pasha who not only took me to the airport and managed to see me and my bags all the way to the gate.

I relate this story as an appreciative endorsement of the services for the services offered by Paul and Olesya at unclepasha.com and at russiangirlfriday.com
Their attutude was great, their abilities are varied and theri fees are very reasonable. I look back at my experience in Moscow and know that they changed what could have been a scary experience into one which was pleasant as could be under the circumstances. I heartily recommend this service to any travler in Moscow needing professional and varied assistance. They can interpret, act as city guides, and mosti importantly assist with all the other aspects of your Russia experience.

Your satisfied client,

Ben Jones A12Be2 [at] cs [dot] com