Some of you might wonder where Sochi is and why the winter Olympics take place in a city with palm trees? The city of Sochi is about 800 miles south of Moscow and is “located on the Black Sea coast near the border between Georgia/Abkhazia and Russia.” Due to its subtropical climate, the winters in Sochi are very mild, but the Caucasus Mountains provide the perfect conditions for winter sports.

While the official media coverage, both in Russia and the US, is rightfully focused on the athletes and sporting events, let’s take a look at some other topics surrounding the winter Olympics. Upon surfing the web for a few hours, outlines of the key discussions have become pretty clear. Here is what you should expect when in Russia (for the winter Olympics).

1. When in Russia, don’t worry about stray dogs (or cats).

Ahhh… the stray dogs. It is almost comical that these poor animals have garnered so much attention. It was OK to have them there all these years but then, all of a sudden, it wasn’t. As a person who grew up in that environment, I can assure you that pretty much every city, town, and village in Russia has stray animals. Russians have a pretty different approach to handling that issue: you can feed them if you want or you can ignore them, they don’t really bother anyone.

2. When in Russia, don’t ask the government where the money went.

Another dilemma a lot of international visitors seem to be facing is how do you spend 50 billion dollars on these Olympics and manage not to finish the hotels, shopping areas and other points of interest on time? For those of you who would like to dive deeper into this issue, check out sochi.FBK.info by Aleksei Navalny, Russian opposition and anti-corruption project leader.

New vocabulary!

When talking about corruption in Russia, perhaps, the most valuable expression one can learn is пилить деньги (piLIT’ DENgi) or пилить бабло (piLIT’ babLO) which means to embezzle. This commonly used slang phrase literally translates as to saw money.

The image below (found on наша-олимпиада.рф) is a great example of the phrase. Translation: Keep sawing, Shura. Keep sawing. Meaning: Keep taking, Shura. Keep taking (money).

 

3. When in Russia, don’t be afraid to ask what Russian people think. 

You might be surprised by the answers. In late January, Levada Center, an independent Russian research organization, polled some 1600 Russian citizens on the subject of the upcoming Olympics. Here is what they had to say.

What do you think is the main reason the Russian government pushed for having the winter Olympics in Sochi?

38%: It’s a great reason to get access to and embezzle an enormous sum from the government budget.

23%: It’s a great honor for a big country, it helps develop the nation’s sports and bring the nation closer together.

17%: It improves the image of Putin and of the country’s leadership.

15%: It’s a great way to develop tourism in Sochi, to get people to come.

7%: I am not sure.

Do you think Russia made the right decision by proposing to host the Olympics in Sochi?

15%: definitely yes

38%: probably yes

18%: probably no

8%: definitely no

21%: not sure

With only twelve days to go,  despite all the controversy, I am going to focus my attention on the Olympians! What about you?

Всего хорошего!