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3 Quirks of Russian Food Culture Posted by Maria on Nov 30, 2017
We have often talked about Russian cuisine on this blog, from popular dishes to unique foods. Now let us look at 3 food-related conventions that may catch a visitor by surprise. Value of Liquid Food A typical larger Russian meal (so, обед — 2nd meal of the day; and ужин — last meal of the…
Things to do/try when in Russia Posted by Jenya on Mar 11, 2014
So you made the decision to go to Russia or, perhaps, somebody made it for you. Either way, now is the perfect time to put some thought into what to do while you are there. There is no shortage of things you can do or see in Moscow or Saint Petersburg but if you find…
How to Figure Out Gender of Russian Noun Posted by yelena on Dec 1, 2011
Can you believe it? It’s December already. Let’s start the new month with some Russian grammar, specifically with a short (sort of) post about «род» [gender] of Russian nouns. As you know, Russian language has 3 genders – «мужской» [masculine], «женский» [feminine] and «средний» [neutral]. There are two reasons why it is extremely important to…
Soup And Salad All In One Posted by yelena on Jul 21, 2011
This summer’s «жара» [heat] and «засуха» [drought] are set to beat all sorts of records. While the «пессимист» [pessimist] in me frets over «мой огород» [my vegetable patch] and the «оптимист» [optimist] in me cheers that «вода в бассейне будет ещё теплее» [water in the pool will get even warmer], my inner «реалист» [realist]…
Russian Space Songs Karaoke Posted by yelena on Feb 25, 2011
Well, it’s «февраль» [February] and the weather is absolutely dreary. All around me – «снег» [snow] and «сугробы» [snow drifts] and freezing temperatures. So all I want to write about is tropical climes, but Russia isn’t famous for those. So instead, I’m going to talk about «астрономия» [astronomy]. «Сперва» [at first] I thought about…
Reading “Мастер и Маргарита”: Chapter 15 Posted by yelena on Oct 1, 2010
Remember Nikanor Ivanovich Bosoi (literal translation of his last name is “Shoeless”) who briefly appears in Chapter 9? In the beginning of that chapter he strikes a not-very-clear-cut deal with «коварный» [treacherous] Koroviev and at the end is led away by two nameless, but sinister «товарищи» [comrades]. And that was, seemingly, the end of…
Russia Cannot Be Understood by the Mind Alone… or Can It? Posted by yelena on Sep 3, 2010
The infamous line “Russia cannot be understood by the mind alone” is one of those must-know Russian phrases that comes up pretty much constantly in many situations. It lends itself happily to a collection of jokes and funny images that, like the photo above, seem to confirm that Russia is indeed a land of…