Learning Russian and learning stuff ABOUT Russia

[Tish]

And what words would they be Annie......

[annie]

LOL...

Anyway, Annie you missed my question on page 21...
what do you traditionally have for dinner on Christmas in Russia?
you know, like in the US there's turkey, and here there's the roasted suckling pig...


not on same subject but somebody asked what SUKA means....it has a meaning here too....it means vinegar...LOL...just thought it was funny...you know, what means bitch to you means vinegar to me....LOL

[Annie]

anniekournikova said:

what's the traditional dinner for russians who celebrate christmas?

annie we really don't have any traditional things like turkey in the US, but every holiday table usually has:

1. Russian salad
2. Holodets (thats a tricky one to explain. Basically you boil cow legs with beef for a whole night and then you kinda chop up the meat into thin small slices, put it into containers, pour broth all over it and put it in the fridge and it kinda turns into a meat jelly..thats what a holodets it...it's a bit confusing to explain but it's actually quite good ;D)

That's two main dishes. The rest is up to your tastes and imagination

[alsl]

Hey Annie,was at the bookstore today and wanted to buy War And Peace (Nastya's fave book ) and there were like 3 million different versions by different translators.....would you recommend any specific translator/publisher?

[Annie]

Oh sweetie that's a tough one, I read it in Russian of course, so I don't really know..but it's a known fact that "Penguin" publishers are known for their good translations of the Russian classics, so try that

[lau]

alsl, I have no idea about this specific case, but, depending of the bookstore, there are sometimes very qualified employees that can help you. Most of the times they are them the ones who help me with this issues Of course, i have my fav bookstores and they are my faves because their employees are amazing helping you
One special bookstore which most employees have tons of experience or are literature students is my fave..., plus, it´s the biggest of Latin America.., so that helps too ,hahahaha

[alsl]

lol ty annie + lau..the bookstore was borders by the way...they have it here now how did you guys find the book?there was also anna karenina but i was kinda sitting on the fence about that one..

[Annie]

alsl if you want my opinion..I read all the Peace parts and skipped most of the War parts LMAO ... a lot of people find it very interesting though..I was kinda getting bored on the war action parts but that's me...

Re: Anna Karenina...I love that book!!!!!!!!! It's quite controversial and you don't have to agree with it but I read it in 2 days when I was 16 and I loved it ;D

Happy Leo Tolstoy reading alsl, whichever it will be..he is a true classic

[Annie]

oh re: Anna Karenina... I think if you like books that Jane Austin or Henry James write, you might find it interesting....kinda on those lines but the style is different

[ruth]

I just read a UK TV roundup of what different European TV stations broadcast
over Xmas & new Year; for Russia it talked about a comedy called The Irony of Fate
which apparently has people glued to their tv sets. What is that all about?
S Novym Godum! every one.

[Annie]

LOL Ruth I think it's a matter of a habit really. This is a film about New Year and it's about 20 years old and they ALWAYS show it on December 31, so a December 31 without this film is not December 31 ;D It's a comedy about a guy who goes to sauna on Dec 31 with his friends and gets really drunk before New Year and his friends send him off to St. Petersburg as a joke instead of another guy. He wakes up at the airport in St. P and hailes a taxi and gives him his home address. It turns out there is a street in St. P with the same name and the same house and the same flat and his key fits!!!!!!!! So he gets in there and falls asleep. Then the owner of the flat comes and obviously turns out to be a beautiful woman. She is trying to kick him out and he is too drunk LOL...

So the whole film is about him, her, their fiancees and friends and the whole mess about a mix-up. At the end of the film they fall in love and she follows him to Moscow because she knows his exact address ;D

It's a really old film, hence really sweet and simple. Sincere sense of humour and great acting This film for Russians on New Year is like turkey on Thanksgiving Day for the Americans ;D

[ruth]

Thanks Annie, it sounds like White Christmas or It's a Wonderful Life
which the BBC show over here.. I remember having to beg my parents to
let me stay up to see White Christmas which was being shown at the ungodly hour of 8pm.
At the time that felt like a real achievement.!

[Annie]

I know the feeling hun ;D I remember those days *sigh*

[SAFINNO1]

Annie, i dont know if ur a boxing fan but what have u guys made of Nikolai Valuev the 7ft 23 stone WBA champion from St petersburg. Damn he's huge

[myrella]

Oooohhhh yes i saw that match on tv a couple of weeks ago!!!!!!!
The match of Mohammed Ali's daughter Laila was before this one....it was amazing!
That guy is about 2,13m, thats incredible!!!!
Since that boxing match i'm a fan ;D ;D lol