Economic Crisis Behind Increase of Sex Shops in Salem, Oregon's Ukrainian Sister City

Our Correspondent in Simferopol, Ukraine, reports that the city is experiencing an economic crisis, and an explosion in sex shops. WARNING: Explicit photos.

(SIMFEROPOL, Ukraine) - When the first sex-shop appeared in Simferopol, it was as a symbol of “perestroika” – we even had “it”, and people knew where it was located - on Pushkin street, near the museum.

Crowds hurried into a shop not to purchase – but simply to stare at the “goods”.

Proprietors sold every type of linen and souvenirs close to the entrance, and the cherished door was located on the back side of the shop – along with the expected inscription, *Adults only*.

Unexpectedly, I discovered during my last visit that the center of the Crimean capital is literally flooded with these sex-shops.

A small square of Simferopol is crowded with a half dozen of these special shops.

Some shops were friendly to journalists and allowed us to take pictures, some were not.

One example is a shop on Karl Marx street where a scared saleswoman did not discuss or agree to show the “things”, and prohibited us from taking photos.

Q: — "Is it true that lately, during a crisis, the number of sex-shops was increasing?"

A: "I think that they were more of them, but they were less advertised. Our shop's been here for a few years."

Q: — "Unlike you, in some shops sales people do not want to answer questions, or allow permission to take pictures."

A: "Maybe those 'goods' are not alright, it is unknown where they brought them from, their quality is unknown, whether they have certificates or not."

Probably the biggest reasons for the increase in the amount of similar shops, are the new work opportunities, an chance for people to begin to work on new “goods”, and a chance for those on welfare to add to their incomes.

By the way, Cyril, who answered my questions, graduated from the Simferopol lawyer university a few years ago.

Unfortunately, the quantity of lawyers is now more than the state needs, so he works here instead.

Oleg Shirokov lives in the historic Russian Federation city of Simferopol, Ukraine, which is the capitol of Crimea and quite interestingly, one of Salem, Oregon's four Sister Cities. We look forward to sharing more of his reports from a very distant, artful and romantic part of the world.

Before reporting news, Oleg work as the translator for 15 years, gaining valuable experience in specialized areas such as software localization, hardware, telecommunications and technical marketing. He also worked as the programmer for 8 years, and serves clients as a translator.

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william kellin February 26, 2011 2:02 am (Pacific time)

i travel often in ukraine and have recently spent three months living in simferopol...knowing the city center and the general area refered to in this report...i can tell you that these shops are not so well noticed and displayed as they are in any city of the usa....simferopol is a very unique city...artful, cultural, happy, even joyous...the people there are warm and friendly...sex to them is a wonderful, natural part of life...this is not the old USSR comunist city we were scared of in the 50's....this is a town with very little crime...at least not as we know crime...if there is bad..it is in the unseen corruption of politicians and the alcoholism of its male population...the other unknow criminal element is of the female dating scammers who prey on western and some european male clients who are attracted to the known beauty of the ukrainian women who are hawked on the internet russian dating sites.....sadly...i must confess to being a man who fell to such a terrible circumstance...three trips to ukraine from the usa...living there for nearly one year...all to find love...i can say that i fell in love a number of times...but all of them were unsuccessful....i spent tens of thousands of dollars on internet dating agencies, letters, memberships, chat and video chat services...gifts...and then in person...this last time...a girl was substituted to me for the girl who did not show up at the airport who had been writing to me for months....shocked and disillusioned and very pissed off i took up with the other girl...and after five consecutive days of dating this incredibly beautiful, sweet, adorable angel...i fell in love...deeply, incredibly, naively and terribly hook line and sinker believeing all of her words of love, desire, intentions of serious love for me, wanting to marry me and while all of this was going on....i did not question for a moment her words or actions....not until the day before her birthday after two months of dating...buying her thousands of dollars worth of gifts, meals, and entertainment...did i learn from a crossed moment in time and a very devinely placed young ukrainian man who is an english interpreter who was introduced to me through some church friends of mine in simferopol who saved me from getting in any deeper...he was helping me buy NASTYA presents for her birthday...and as he and i stopped for coffee i opened my lap top to show him some of our photos...when he looked he shouted ...oh no man...not her...man i know this girl..she is playing you...she is a player...i know this because she has been dating my freind from NEW ZEALAND who has just moved here to live...he has been with her on a number of dates over the past three weeks and on one of those days...i interpreted for them both...wow....blindsided...my heart and head aching at what i had just been told...my mind racing not believeing the words and the scream about to crawl out of my lungs as the tears were coming to my eyes...as i knew at this moment in time...my beautiful adorable dream and fairytale....had just come tumbling down and there would be no way to repair it...id like to tell you that i fought the good fight...that i walked away with my head held high and my spirit and manhood intact...all i can say was the next day on her birthday when i confronted her...she first wondered wheere her flowers were...she had already received the expensive computer to help us webcam and internet chat and write to each other when i was back home in the usa...she had already received the 300 us dollar leather boots from me and the gold earrings and the expensive perfumes....she had also gotten the other sucker to buy her a pair of leather boots three days after she got the first pair from me...and i wondered about that pair of brown leather knee high boots she was wearing the next time i saw her and why she wasnt wearing the pair i had bought for her....she had been helped and aided in all of this by her interpreter who lied to me on different occaisions...covering up for her with stories of her illness and why she couldnt keep the dates with me...when actually she and the female interpreter were with the other guy going to the same places she had taken me..my heart was broken...my blood was running..i was dying from this all...she said she was sorry for hurting me...but she was sorry she was caught...she had little to no contact with either of us after that..and although she wrote to me in answer to my letters a few times...she had only enough contact with me to keep me away from the law until i left the country....and the manager of the dating site who had been my friend from the previous year...who had actually been an attraction to me and me to her..when she and her boyfreind were not getting along...but she knew all about this...orchestrated it...knew of this girls use of false names to both men...and that she was also seeing others...i didnt want to believ this..the worst..but now..months later...i have watched this girl continue on other dating sites..and know..i was just scammed..i was the sucker...she played me and got away with it...but i am damaged in a way i have never been before...i feel raped, defiled and so disrespected...like a human who is abused and spit on, pissed on like i dont matter ...her day will come...and i hope i am there to see it and be a part of it...i am now an anti scam advocate and will dedicate my life to stopping women like her and this network of theives that she lives with..from stealing from us all and from hurting other men like she hurt me...imagine..for the most part i live alone...and if anyone were to be near me..they would be shocked at what they would see and hear...ever since this happened...at just about any moment in time...ten to thirty times per day...i begin not just crying...but sobbing...wheling...like a wounded animal in deep set pain...i cannot explain the depression and emotional breakdowns i have had since this happened...i would think a shrink would call it post traumatic stress disorder..ptsd...as i am a viet nam vet..and i know what it is and its symptoms..but my war experience does not even equal the emotionally charged sobbing and crying i go through at the momentary thought of her or us or what she did or music...or to see something we touched together or -photos of us...all of which..i have not been able to part with...this has been a living hell...a nightmare unlike anything i have experienced in all of my life and i am now what was a very young and i guess now a very old 62 years of age... i am writing a book and articles about this...and i have many plans to go along with that all..but as far as finding the love i travelled around the world for...well...i am still alone...and perhaps if i were to find a woman that i could ever come to trust again...i might be able to get over this all...GOD BLESS YOU ALL...

Mike December 7, 2009 3:56 am (Pacific time)

There are so many here in Salem! They are at almost every busy street, except they make it a little more subtle and call them "Adult shops."

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