In English, I have achieved a certain level of fluency that is sufficient for functioning efficiently in society, but still does not represent my personality adequately. Hence, I constantly work on expanding my vocabulary. A couple of weeks ago, my English-speaking friend mentioned the word “laborious.” I figured out that it derived from the word […]
personal
When You Are Strange
When I was a teenager, I explored the Western rock music. Among other old names, I discovered The Doors and Jim Morrison. Mind you, the Soviet Union banned Western culture in general. Most of the musical heritage of the West became available to Russians only after Perestroika. I sang along to People Are Strange, and […]
The Napoleon Cake
The Napoleon Cake also is known as mille-feuille, a sort of custard slice cake, and has been one of the most popular cakes in Russia for two centuries. As Wikipedia says, “the exact origin of the mille-feuille is unknown”, however, one of the versions suggest a connection between the name of the cake and the […]
Don’t Be Polite, Be Helpful
“There is a large Russian community in my city, and I have made friends with some Russians. We meet on weekends and chat. We talk a lot. But all we do is talk. Nobody corrects my mistakes, and I don’t feel that I’m making any progress,” one of my students once complained. His Russian was […]
How Does It Feel When It Is That Cold
Early in the morning today I called my parents in Siberia (we have 12 hours time difference, so it’s not that hard to figure out what time it is there). I’ve been living in Ontario’s southernmost city since September 2011, but I still remember what Siberian winters are like. And the talk with my mom […]
Dust
Let’s face it: Russia is not the right country for white collars. And white jeans. And white t-shirts. And any white clothes at all. Because Russia is freaking dusty. If you don’t mind washing your white clothes every day, then OK, put your white jeans on and go for a walk, but don’t complain that […]