I am Russian. Ask me anything.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why do Russian accents sound so harsh and guttural? Kind of. . monotone? (?)

I was wondering that, too (I don't have much of an accent so don't mind discussing it )
I think it's two things. First, the Russian phonetics makes it more difficult to acquire the English phonetics (than, say, for Scandinavians or other Europeans). Second, ESL studies in Russia were extremely poor at the high school level (we are not talking college level) up until recently. Now the situation has improved, and I would expect more advanced English speakers and less heavy accents pretty soon...

How did you get rid of it? Unless you think you don't have an accent, but you actually do.

[Anonymous]

Ok, I am back let's see what we got here

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why do Russian accents sound so harsh and guttural? Kind of. . monotone? (?)

I was wondering that, too (I don't have much of an accent so don't mind discussing it )
I think it's two things. First, the Russian phonetics makes it more difficult to acquire the English phonetics (than, say, for Scandinavians or other Europeans). Second, ESL studies in Russia were extremely poor at the high school level (we are not talking college level) up until recently. Now the situation has improved, and I would expect more advanced English speakers and less heavy accents pretty soon...

How did you get rid of it? Unless you think you don't have an accent, but you actually do.

Of course I have an accent, I never said I didn't but people would ask me what state I was from
Didn't do anything special, I think it's a natural ability to mimic... I automatically start speaking with a British accent around British people, though I try not to.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Are many Russians religious?

How does the "typical" Russian feel about Americans?

Yes, right now religion is on the rise, but I think many people are only superficially so ( and even less tolerant than those who are not).

As for your second question, unfortunately there is a lot of prejudice against the USA right now, and what's worse it is being supported by the government (like official ideology). So many "simple" people think Americans are stupid, shallow and artificial...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My stupid Mac won't post in Russian. OP, I was trying to type Spla-ceeba (thank you). Russian always sounds like Klingon to me. I think the inventors of Klingon probably intended that.

Ne za shto - you are welcome
I am not a big fan of Star Trek but I think there were some allusions to the US-USSR tensions in the original, 1960s series, but Klingon as a language was not invented until the later, 1990s series, no? So I am not sure about intensions...maybe subconsciously

[Anonymous]

How did you end up in this country?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is orthodontia not available in Russia? You all seem to have jacked up teeth.

Why do so many Russian women dye their hair that deep auburn (almost magenta), totally unnatural color?

Why do so many Russian women wear revealing clothing even when it's inappropriate to do so?

I agree with a PP in that the TONE of your questions is insulting, but not the questions themselves. But that's what I am here for - to answer anything you were afraid to ask

Question 1: Orthodontia is much less developed than here, and it is not covered by insurance. Many people don't feel like spending a fortune and lots of time on something like teeth.
Question 2: maybe its henna? it is popular with older women and with less sophisticated young women (I am worldly, trendy and sophisticated of course - I hate it).
Question 3: multiple reasons. First, for a long time women were not supposed to expose their femininity (in the Soviet time), and trendy clothes were a rarity. Second, right now there is a lot of emphasis on women being women and all that stuff, you are supposed to attract men and to marry well. Third, I think its lack of taste and feel of appropriateness in many people.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What do you think about the fact that so many Americans adopt Russian orphans?

I think its great! Notwithstanding many scary stories that are, to my mind, exaggerated in terms of being typical (have you heard about many happy families? I haven't, either).
I also think it is a great opportunity for many white Americans to adopt a child of their own race.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What Russian food do you think would be the most unpalatable to an American? Be brutally honest.

Never thought of this actually... Maybe "rassolnik"? the soup which has meat broth, pearl barley, potatoes, carrots, onions, and - ugh - pickles? I hate it

Oh come on . There must be something more pagan than that. I'm talking about what villagers eat at a rustic feast. Tell us. Something akin to the Scots with their heinous tripe.

I'm not OP, but I know a food like that - kholodets. It is cold jellied meat dish, usually made by boiling pig's head and feet. If you can get over the jiggling and some crunchy bits it is actually not that bad.

and if you put some mustard on it - yummy

You Certainly mean xpeH - Horseradish, rather than mustard. Op, if you have a daughter, what middle name did you give her? Following Russian tradition (father's first name) or following American tradition (a girl's name)? Trying to decide how to name dd.

[Anonymous]

OP, are you a mail-order bride?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why is Russia's abortion rate the highest in the world?

I am not sure its the highest, do you have a link to any statistics?

There used to be more abortions than live births. Now, for every 100 births, there are about 73 abortions:

http://www.iol.co.za/dailynews/lifestyle/russia-world-s-highest-rate-of-abortions-1.1176756#.T_yiNrd5nTo

thanks for the link. I think it may be the fact the abortion rate is measured in comparison to live births, and the birth rate is not very high? Also, the article mentions that only 10% of first pregnancies are terminated - so I tend to think that most of the "clientelle" are women who already had their first and second child, so are a bit older and maybe still into the Soviet traditions. Many men of the older generation also despise condoms, that may contribute to the fact.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What Russian food do you think would be the most unpalatable to an American? Be brutally honest.

Never thought of this actually... Maybe "rassolnik"? the soup which has meat broth, pearl barley, potatoes, carrots, onions, and - ugh - pickles? I hate it

Oh come on . There must be something more pagan than that. I'm talking about what villagers eat at a rustic feast. Tell us. Something akin to the Scots with their heinous tripe.

I am at a loss! I must be too refined
Cow tongue?

What about Salo? It is pig fat. Just simply pig fat. Not pickled or fried, there's no meat on it and you just eat slabs of it with garlic and bread.


??????????

Ha! Its funny, but Russians consider it to be Ukrainian food

Yup, a Ukrainian here and confirm that salo is the best. Of course it tastes different than stuff you buy here in the supermarket. It's good on a slice of rye bread, with a slice of tomatoe, onion and salt. When I visit Ukraine, I can't get enough of it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How did you end up here? Are you a legal immigrant?

I am legal, but not an immigrant (go figure ) My husband is on a J visa (researcher) and I have a "dependent visa". No, I am not a mail order bride, my DH is Russian and we met and married in Russia. I have been in the US many times before, for cultural exchanges and later work and business.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is orthodontia not available in Russia? You all seem to have jacked up teeth.

Why do so many Russian women dye their hair that deep auburn (almost magenta), totally unnatural color?

Why do so many Russian women wear revealing clothing even when it's inappropriate to do so?

I agree with a PP in that the TONE of your questions is insulting, but not the questions themselves. But that's what I am here for - to answer anything you were afraid to ask

Question 1: Orthodontia is much less developed than here, and it is not covered by insurance. Many people don't feel like spending a fortune and lots of time on something like teeth.
Question 2: maybe its henna? it is popular with older women and with less sophisticated young women (I am worldly, trendy and sophisticated of course - I hate it).
Question 3: multiple reasons. First, for a long time women were not supposed to expose their femininity (in the Soviet time), and trendy clothes were a rarity. Second, right now there is a lot of emphasis on women being women and all that stuff, you are supposed to attract men and to marry well. Third, I think its lack of taste and feel of appropriateness in many people.

Oh, honey, you're in the wrong place! We don't do wordly, trendy and sophisticated around here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do you know any mail order brides? Is this common?

How do you feel about vodka?

What's your favorite Russian dish?

Brides - I don't know any in person, but I frequent a forum where many are, it s an interesting read I think it is less common now that the economic situation has improved and there is less fashion for all things foreign.
I used to drink vodka when I was younger Good vodka is great, but there's nothing worse than bad vodka. Also, Russians drink it in gulps, not sips.
As for the dish - I really don't know, I like many things...

I am the PP who asked those questions and this is why I asked about the vodka- I recently went to a Russian Jewish wedding (my first of either type of wedding) and there was Grey Goose service on every table. (Along with caviar and blinis- yum.) I cannot handle vodka- don't like it a bit. But of course, everyone at our table did a shot. A shot. But at the tables full of older Russians (speaking in Russian and everything- no English) they were drinking it like it was water with dinner.
The wedding was fabulous fun, by the way. Russian band, and TONS of dancing. I've never been to a wedding with so much dancing. Dinner was basically pushed back by about 3 hours because nobody would stop dancing. It was actually as if the reception dinner was an inconvenience to them because it meant getting off the dance floor.

Hi PP, I am glad you liked the wedding
When you drink vodka, you are supposed to gulp it down very quickly, preferably without feeling it with your tongue, so all you feel is a little inconvenience and then this warm pleasurable feeling of being tipsy and eventually drunk