Tips for your Russian adoption
(based on our experience and talking with others)
Send questions or comments to Lucia

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*If you know you are going to adopt from Russia but do not have the agency picked out yet, you can still fill out the Federal form I600A www.immigration.gov/graphics/formsfee/forms/i-600a.htm. Just send the form attached to a cover letter stating you will let them know who the adoption agency is as soon as possible.  Also, schedule a full medical physical for yourself, your spouse and any children 18 years or older that reside in your home (it will be needed for your home study).  These 2 things can take 2-4 months to complete so start them first.  It will shorten your total adoption time.

CHOOSING AN AGENCY:

• Contact others who have adopted from Russia (we can help you).  
• We used the Frank Adoption Agency in North Carolina (800) 597-9135 or www.frankadopt.org.  They were excellent for us.  
• Check the Internet and search under “adoptions + Russia” to find additional agencies.
• We used the on-line search of agencies at www.adoptivefamiles.com to narrow down the list of possible agencies www.adoptivefamilies.com/agency_search_2002.php
• Ask the agencies to mail you an information packet and then start comparing.

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SAMPLE QUESTIONS TO ASK THE AGENCY:

• What are the age ranges of the children available for adoption? (may vary with agency).
• How many children did you place from Russia last year?
• What are the limitations concerning marriage, divorce, and age of the person(s)?
• What are the eligibility requirements? (agencies may be different).
• What is the breakdown of costs and what are the costs for?
• What are the extra incidental costs you will incur while in Russia?
• Do you travel alone or with other couples?
• Where will you stay in Russia?  In a hotel or with a host family? Will you have a choice?
• What is the average time between submitting the dossier and receiving a referral?
• What is the length of time between accepting the referral and taking our 1^st trip?
• What is the length of time between the 1^st and 2^nd trip?
• What is the average time for each trip?
• How long are we allowed to see the child during the 1^st trip?
• Is there a time difference if you request a boy vs. a girl?
• What is the process if you deny a referral?
• How long has the agency been in the business?  Is it a non-profit organization?
• Is the agency accredited in Russia?
• Do they have a list of references (other people) you can call?
• When in Russia, will you have a coordinator, translator and/or driver with you at all times?
• Will medical insurance be included in the cost or provided as an option?
• If there is a problem when you are in Russia, will you be given telephone numbers of people back at the agency to call in emergency at any time of day or night. (home #s)?
• Will you allow me to hire an independent doctor to accompany us to the orphanage? (if applicable).
• Does the agency handle all paperwork necessary while in Russia?
• Does the agency translate all the paperwork into English for you?
• If there is a moratorium, can I switch my application to another country? If not, will I get a refund or will I have to wait until the moratorium is over?

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OTHER ADOPTION RESOURCES:

• National Adoption Information Clearinghouse http://www.calib.com/naic/  or call  888-251-0075 or email  naic@calib.com
• Southern Tier Adoptive Families http://www.tier.net/~staf/ or call  607-785-7003
• Families for Russian & Ukrainian Adoption : www.frua.org
• Russian Adoption Medical Services  www.russianadoption.org/index.htm

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HANDLING PAPERWORK: 

• We strongly urge you to keep your paperwork as organized as possible.
• We used a large binder and put each item in a plastic sheet protector.
• * Hand carry paperwork to its destination (if possible) rather than mailing it to prevent paperwork loss and to lessen the wait time.
• * We used overnight FEDEX with tracking and confirmation to mail paperwork and speed up the process.
• ALWAYS date and make photocopies of everything you have.

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COMMUNICATION WITH YOUR AGENCY:

• Ask many questions and keep in contact with your agency. E-mail worked best for us.
• Be persistent and keep checking in with the agency.  Don’t wait for them to call you.

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REFERRALS:

• Try to find a doctor who is familiar with international adoptions to review the medical info.
• In addition, we hired a Russian doctor from Moscow, Oleg Togoyev togo@online.ru (who spoke fluent English) to accompany us to the orphanage…. We cannot tell you how crucial this was to our adoption.  Information on medical sheets provided by the orphanages can be incorrect or incomplete.  A doctor who can examine your child with you at the time of adoption will give you a greater peace of mind.  His charge was $300 and he spent almost 24 hours with us!  His fee varies depending on how far from Moscow he has to travel with you.

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TRAVEL:

• Call around to different travel agencies for the best airfares.  We used the travel agency called EnRoute Travel (800) 814-4939.  We also used the Russian airline Aeroflot.  The food was pretty good, however, their flights were always late leaving and arriving.
• When it is time to bring your child(ren) home, if you can afford it, book business class seats. There is much more room and you will be well taken care of (you will be tired ).
• Whether you book business or economy class, BE SURE YOU ASK FOR THE BULKHEAD SEATS.  Arrive early to the airport to be sure you can get these seats! They are the 1^st seats in the row with more legroom.  The flight attendant will attach a bassinet to the wall for the baby.  Be sure the bassinet is still available with your airline.
• When you are bringing your child(ren) back to the USA, we highly recommend trying to get a direct flight from Moscow to the US.  Our direct flight was 10 hours long, however, we were very comfortable, were able to sleep and didn’t have to pack up again to make a transfer to another plane.
• If you are on the 2-trip model, we strongly recommend you take the 1^st trip and make the most of it.   View this trip as an adventure, a vacation, but most of all, do all your shopping and sight seeing on this trip (it will be harder with a child on the 2^nd trip).  
• Be sure you bring a copy of your Dossier with you (just in case).
• Pack as light as possible and use luggage and backpacks with wheels !!  We used 4 large suitcases and 2 backpacks on wheels and even that was too much!  
• You may want to purchase an electrical adapter as your hair dryers won't work in their sockets.  They can be found at Wal-Mart in the travel (suitcase) section.
• Check with your agency about strollers and/or car seats.  We used a "Snugli" backpack where the baby was strapped on to our bodies.  It worked well and we didn't have to carry around a heavy car seat.

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SOUVENIRS:

• THIS IS MOST IMPORTANT FOR YOUR CHILD. 
• Be sure you take many pictures and bring a video camera everywhere you go.  This is the only thing you will be able to give to your child(ren) about where they came from. 
• We kept a log/diary to describe what we saw, what we went through, our thoughts, feelings, itinerary, etc.  Someday, she will be very interested in what we did.
• Buy as many souvenirs as you can.  The hotel will be the most expensive.  If you can, get yourself to the Red Square.  There is a mall directly across from the Kremlin (it is a yellow brick building that is 3 stories high and very long).  The 1^st floor has very good items such as nesting dolls (wooden hand painted dolls), porcelain dolls, hand painted eggs, books, etc.  St. Basil also has items for sale.  If you venture down the side streets, you may also find other shops/malls (some are below the street underground).  In the region where our child was born, we bought many items that we plan on giving to her each year on the anniversary of her adoption.  We even found books describing the area in which she was born (in English)!
• We took anything free we could get such as a Pepsi can that was written in Russian, candy bar wrappers, free magazines from the hotel, etc.  You never know which item is going to be treasured by your child(ren).

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HOTEL:

• There are many hotels in Moscow.  There are 2 American hotels in particular that are very nice: the hotel Marriott Grand and the Marriott Tyverskya.  These are 4 & 5 star hotels that treat adoptive parents very well.  We strongly recommend these hotels.  There is a discount for adoptive families but prepare to pay somewhere from $150 to $200 night.  They will supply you with a crib for your baby and there is Internet access.  We stayed at Tyverskya and it was so nice being able to talk to people who spoke English, who were friendly and it was comforting to see other adoptive parents.  I have not heard one bad thing about these 2 hotels from all the people we have talked to. 

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CULTURE:

• Russian people are formal people. You will rarely (if ever) see people dressed in jeans, “t”-shirts or sneakers (unless the men are construction workers).  We strongly recommend that you try to blend in with their style of dress.  They wear dark colors (black, dark blue and gray).  You will stand out if you wear your Columbia bright yellow/red/green winter coat.   The style is similar to what business people wear on business casual days.  Nice dress pants, dark shoes (no sneakers unless they are black)
• Communication may be difficult.   Not everyone speaks English.  We found the restaurants and hotels were easy, but the shopping malls and other places did not have many people who would speak English.  English/Russian translators are available to buy (approx $100).  This may come in handy for those who are staying with host families.

• We recommend bundling the child(ren) whenever you are outside.  The Russian people are very careful about keeping their children warm.  Be sure you always have a hat on the infant (a bonnet in the summer) and bring a blanket for the legs if needed.  We recommend snowsuits.

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GIFTS:

• Russia is a gift giving culture.  Gifts are given as appreciation.  Ask your agency what would be appropriate.  We suggest giving only new items and items that are small.  (You will need all the space you can get when packing).
• We gave items such as watches, cologne, perfume and good candy.  Others have given silk scarves and US coin collections, etc.  Items only found in the US also make a nice gift.   You may want to give gifts to your host family (if you stay with one), the orphanage director & doctor, the children in the orphanage, your doctor, your coordinator, etc.

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QUESTIONS FOR ORPHANAGE:

• Prepare a list of questions you want to ask the orphanage.   Such questions may be medical in nature or they can be as simple as, “do the children sleep with a light on?”
• Ask them what they may need for the children.  This will help you in deciding what to give as gifts for your final visit. 
• We gave shoes, clothes and toys.  However, your orphanage may need money, medicine or diapers for example.
• We asked the orphanage for our child’s bonnet she wore and they not only gave us that, they gave us two pacifiers and a little toy doll.  This was so meaningful to us (and may be to our child when she is older).  However, you may not be as fortunate (depending on the orphanage).  You may want to bring new clothes to give in exchange for a piece of clothing your child wore in the orphanage.

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 MEDICINE:

• Bring with you everything you can think of for both you and the child(ren). 
• Items for the adults may be:  antibiotics, aspirin, decongestants, sleep medicine, motion sickness medicine, Pepto-Bismol (or something for the stomach), etc.
• For child(ren): infant Tylenol, infant Mylicon, infant decongestant, cream for eczema….talk with your doctor and/or pharmacist to have them stock you up for anything that might (and most probably will) come up.
• DON’T LEAVE WITHOUT little packets of tissue and travel packs of the antibacterial wipes.   You will find the bathrooms are not like at home.   DO NOT DRINK OR WASH HANDS WITH THE WATER (except for the hotels and/or good restaurants).  Remember, the bacteria in a foreign country are something your body is not used to!!

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 FOOD:

• This is important if you are traveling away from Moscow…. Bring snacks that don’t need refrigeration.  You will never know when your next meal might be, so be prepared.  If you have to travel to the orphanage, limit your liquids during the ride (because you may not stop often).
• Eat well whenever you get the chance (for the same reason as above).  Try to stay away from raw items (like fruit and salads).  Eat foods that are cooked so the bacteria will be killed from the heat.  Drink only bottled water and/or soda or hot drinks.
• Examples of food for infants: powdered soy milk (it is digested easier), baby food such as stage 2 or 3 from Gerber.  Gerber boxed oatmeal, rice and/or other grain cereal.  You can mix one jar of fruit with this cereal.  These items can be given at room temperature (which is good for when you are traveling).  Playtex disposable bottles were fantastic.  Buy a few Playtex bottles and purchase the “drop-in’s” that go with it.  We never had to worry about having to clean a bottle.
• Examples of adult snacks:  cheese & crackers that are packaged, nuts, candy bars, etc.  Basically, whatever you can find that doesn’t need refrigeration.

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MONEY:

• Money is in Rubles.  The exchange rate varies so try to find the best exchange rate.  Be sure you have some rubles when you leave this country so you can buy small items in the airport if needed.
• The money you spend in Russia will need to be in Rubles or credit cards.  You can exchange US dollars at the hotel in Russia or you can find a bank or other institution to make the exchange.  You will find the airport will have the worst exchange rate.  Only exchange a small amount there.
• The best exchange rate we saw in Oct 2002 was 32:1.  32 rubles to 1 American dollar.  You will find the best (advantageous to you) rate will be on the side streets close to the Red Square.
• When you arrive in Russia you’ll have to declare everything you bring into Russia such as CD players, radios, etc. even the amount of cash you have.  Russia only allows you to take $1,500 USD out of Russia when you leave.  So plan carefully the amount of cash you bring with you.  Be sure your agency can tell you approximately how much you will need when on your visit.  Our agency was excellent about giving us good estimates.

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WEATHER:

FINANCIALS:

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