ForumTitleContentMemberSexCountryDate/Time
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusHire an interpreter
Thank you, Gary. I'll keep that in mind :)
ONAFemaleRussia2011-02-21 18:08:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusHire an interpreter
So, me and my fiance were trying to figure out how to deal with the language problem during the wedding, since my parents don't speak any English, but we are planning on having them over for the wedding. Since I won't be able to do the translation during my own wedding, we were thinking about hiring an interpreter. Has anybody had any experience like that?
Actually, we don't even have idea where to look for one and how much it will cost. So any help will be appreciated :)
ONAFemaleRussia2011-02-21 15:53:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusUkraine feminists protest ‘Win a Wife’ competition

??????? ???? ??? ??????? ?? ? ???? ????????


??. ? ????? ????? ??? ???? ? ?????? ??? ????????? ??????? ? ?????? ???????. ???????? ????. :lol:


? ?????, ??? ??????????? ???????? ???????? ?? RUB, ?????? ??? ? ??? ??????? ????? ????????????.. :lol:

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl:
?? ?????, ??? ??? ????? ? ?? ??????? ??????.

Back to English. Gary is right actually. Of course FEMEN are paid. So are most of protesters in FSU countries. "Orange Revolution" was paid all the way through. I know some people, who have been there, on Independance Square in Kiev, and they were saying "Yeah, we're getting paid for it, but it's the only possible way for a Ukrainian student to make some money without having to work in McDonalds".

Edited by ONA, 06 March 2011 - 12:39 PM.

ONAFemaleRussia2011-03-06 12:38:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusValentines Day

I have to admit I thought about trying the J-1 visa thing via "Au Pair". The problem though was that I had to prove I had kids in order to get an au pair. I was going to barrow a few of my brothers kids but the INS asked for birth certificates. :angry:

I wasn't talking about au-pair actually...
Oh, btw some Work and Travel students come to Alaska too, but... mostly guys :lol:
ONAFemaleRussia2011-03-03 07:34:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusValentines Day

Fair enough question. It isn't like you meet Ukrainian or Russian women on every street corner in America. But people travel a lot more now. A European vacation 30-40 years ago was for rich people only. Now, I can buy a ticket to Kiev for about the price of going to LA or Seattle, maybe less.

But, yes, Brad and I have been called on that a couple times. Though neither one of us has ever made an issue of people that meet on the internet (I think it is great we can!) Most of the people on VJ that had failed "first marriages" met their ex's in ways other than the internet, so what does that say? :lol:

I'm a J-1 visa girl, and there are thousands of students from FSU and all kinds of Eastern European countries in MD, NJ, SC etc. every summer. So I just have no idea, why it's still some kind of unreal situation for some people, that we didn't meet online.
I mean... I don't mind it that people meet each other online. Who am I to judge after all? I'm just not one of those people, I don't understand why is that so hard to believe in. And I wouldn't mind people asking that question, if they didn't ask over and over and over again.

Edited by ONA, 28 February 2011 - 08:02 AM.

ONAFemaleRussia2011-02-28 08:02:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusValentines Day

Don't bother with that Amber. No one will believe you anyway (well, a few of us will) :lol: Gary and I have been telling how we met our wives in person first for years, and some members regularly call us out over it.

hmmmmm... so nobody is going to believe me?
who cares though... looks like every day there is somebody asking my fiance if we met over the internet.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-02-26 17:55:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusHappy Women's Day!
Happy Women's Day to all women :)
ONAFemaleRussia2011-03-08 04:12:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusJust a warning

I don't have a problem with mat per se--sometimes I have to have things translated INTO mat, like when I came across "razdolbai" last week while reading something for my thesis and my friend had to explain to me that it means the same thing as "razpizdai." But to me, like c**t in English, there is something just totally unsexy and icky about the word "minet."

:) That reminded me of a joke... too bad that it's hard to understand for non-native Russian speakers, but I'll post a link on it anyway: http://www.ljpoisk.r...ive/972312.html
I hardly ever use any "mat", but this joke cracks me up.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-03-08 17:59:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusJust a warning

Is the "T" in that word silent like in French ?

:no: there's no such thing as a silent consonant at the end of a word in Russian... as far as I remember :rofl: In the middle - yes, sometimes there is, never at the end.

Edited by ONA, 08 March 2011 - 04:49 PM.

ONAFemaleRussia2011-03-08 16:48:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusJust a warning

This one is exactly as it sounds. HOWEVER, as with all Russian "dirty" words, use with caution etc. While I do let loose with an occasional "mne pokhui" with close friends, I don't think I've ever set "minyet" aloud.

"minyet" is actually more innocent (if this word can be applied to this kind of vocabulary :rofl: ), but it's definitely not an everyday use word :lol:

Edited by ONA, 08 March 2011 - 04:39 PM.

ONAFemaleRussia2011-03-08 16:39:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusJust a warning

Dammit...they delivered her roses early.. :angry: She loves them and of course says it's not a problem and she got 11 not 12, but they were supposed to deliver Woman's Day roses on mmm Woman's Day..! Hmmmm I hope she's not expecting something else now tomorrow.. :unsure:

She probably is not expecting anything else, don't worry :)
They do the same thing to me all the time, so i get my presents 1-2 days earlier :lol: Although they did good this year on Valentine's. My fiance got his present on Feb 15 this year though :(
ONAFemaleRussia2011-03-07 13:46:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusJust a warning

true that- but, every man over there is a 'defender of the fatherland' whether they like it or not. maybe some VJ men have military history as well; therefore, they can be reciprocated. i know my husband, before becoming so, was showered with parades, vodka, flowers, head, who knows. just trying to throw you guys a bone.

Well, it has always been considered that it's a holiday for all men, because everybody would go and serve in the army as soon as they are 18, since it's not really like that anymore, i don't think it's right to make it a holiday for everybody. Plus there are women in the army too! My Ukrainian auntie is more of a "defender" than a lot of RUB guys, cause she used to be in the military.
That's my point though. I don't make my fiance to do anything special for me on IWD day as well, I just don't really care.

Edited by ONA, 05 March 2011 - 05:54 AM.

ONAFemaleRussia2011-03-05 05:54:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusJust a warning

IWD means nothing to me, but my husband has been hinting about the approaching 'holiday.' are you gentlemen aware of 'men's day' on Feb. 23rd? you could be getting special treatment as well :)

Recently the whole idea of feb 23 has become messed up a little :) It's actually "Defender of the Fatherland Day" - http://en.wikipedia...._Fatherland_Day
I don't like the idea of making it "men's day".
I don't like IWD either. I'm weird, i know.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-03-04 20:30:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusWell... she did it.

I am of the belief that YOU should speak ONLY English to him and your wife speak ONLY Russian. then he learns from a native speaker for each.

:thumbs: Right. I was giving a presentation about raising a bilingual child just yesterday, and one of the points was that this method proved to be the most effective. The only problem is that when kids see their parents talking to each other using the same language, they might start thinking that one language is some extra knowledge they don't need. It takes a lot of effort.
It's easier though to keep Russian in the family, if kids used to live in Russia - they already speak Russian, all they need is just keep using it, so they don't forget it.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-03-05 05:24:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusWell... she did it.
Congrats to both of you! :thumbs:
ONAFemaleRussia2011-02-26 17:38:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusParents

So, do others agree that having them opening a bank account their with them depositing money in it would help the cause? I already have given my fiancee an atm card to a seperate account so she can use it to get money for the fees and other things if we decide. I could have her take around $100 a month and have her give it to them to put in this account for them to 'show' they have money for the trip. I was going to pay for their ticket so this wouldn't be an issue.

well... usually a paper from work, which states income is a way to show that they can pay for the trip... i'm not really sure about the account...
i'm sure though, that you can write a letter to the US consulate, explaining that you will pay for their trip, and that's just how much you love your fiancee and how much you care that herr parents will be there for your wedding, and they can take this letter to the interview with them or submit it with other paperwork - that's possible, some people do that and it actually works for them. Make sure her parents don't object the idea of you paying for everything - my fiance wants to pay for my parents' plane tickets, they are determined to pay for everything themselves, so i'm trying to do something to make sure that the situation when they have 2 extra plane tickets will not happen :rofl:

Anyway, good luck to you! Hope your in-laws to be won't have any problem with getting their visas. We're in the same boat here, i really hope my parents will be able to come.

Edited by ONA, 10 March 2011 - 12:00 PM.

ONAFemaleRussia2011-03-10 11:58:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusBest, Worst, Most unexpected thing about FSU

Thanks for the links ONA, I have been wondering about this for some time (purely as an exercise, as I have no plans to visit Russia soon). Let me ask a follow up question here. If a foreigner were to get hurt while on a valid visa in Russia (say, break a limb), and had no money to go to a private clinic, what happens if they cannot visit a free clinic or use foreign insurance to pay?

I actually had to google some information on that question. Found a link in Russian (http://oneworld.bstu...rticle/?id=1023) that at least since 2005 the emergency treatment is provided for free, anything other then that has to be paid for.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-03-11 11:27:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusBest, Worst, Most unexpected thing about FSU

I read or heard somewhere (maybe here), that Russia makes the visa process for Americans as tough as America makes it for Russians. So if America adds ten questions and a second page to the application, Russia will do the same, also claiming security issues, etc.

The questions are sort of the same, I think that Russian application is a bit shorter with fewer questions though. Also, when the US embassy raises visa fees, Russian embassy does the same.
The difference is that most of applicants from Russia have to go through an interview in the consulate to obtain their visa (nearly all of those, who are getting it for the 1st time), while Americans are usually not required to do that. Also American tourist visa is granted for 1-2 years and it's a multiple entry visa (you can spend in the US up to 6 months at a time), while a regular Russian tourist visa is a single entry visa and it's granted for the specific period of time (you are supposed to indicate the dates of your planned arrival and departure in the visa application), and if you want a multiple entry visa you also have to specify it and give a proper reason for it.

In Ukraine, there is apparently no mechanism at all to bill insurance in most cities. We have met two American expats (in Odessa and Kherson) who required fairly extensive treatment for injuries. The one in Odessa had no way to pay for anything, and payment was never discussed. The other, in Kherson, paid a very low fee as he went through weeks of physical therapy. I wonder if the healthcare system in Russia is also social-esque, and the main concern (as in America), is that tourists do not become hospital patients at Russian taxpayer expense.

Well, explaining how healthcare works in Russia can take quite a while... You can have a look at wikipedia http://en.wikipedia....hcare_in_Russia or some other links http://www.allianzwo...hcare-in-russia
Russian people are not concerned about paying for somebody else's healthcare for reasons like
- different mentality
- very low taxes
Still, I don't think there's a way a tourist can use a state clinic in Russia (unless he bribes somebody, but then... well, it's not for tax payers expense), and state insurance is pretty much for Russian citizens, a foreigner will have to go to a private clinic. A lot of Russian people would go to private clinics too to get better treatment.

Edited by ONA, 11 March 2011 - 10:26 AM.

ONAFemaleRussia2011-03-11 10:26:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusBest, Worst, Most unexpected thing about FSU

So does he do a homestay visa or a tourist visa? Maybe I am doing it wrong but I am just trying to do it as they explain on their instructions for tourist visas. I wondered if I could get away without buying the health insurance policy. The hotel reservations also I found out on my first visit can be changed afterward with no hassles. Still, why can't they relax at least a little with all the restrictions, especially with Putin talking to Biden about eliminating the visa requirements completely. (Which the US is unlikely to do considering the relative economic disparities for the average citizens)

He does a tourist visa. As for the hotel - they require a voucher, but I've never seen them requiring an actual reservation.
I've never seen any information about getting insurance to obtain visa either. And I was the one in charge of finding out all the information about getting a Russian visa, so I looked through different websites, including the embassy website.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-03-11 02:41:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusBest, Worst, Most unexpected thing about FSU

I used Travisa also. They require you to have already arranged hotel reservations and an insurance policy before getting the 'invitation'.

No they don't. They really don't, cause my fiance never did any of that.

If you would like Travisa to obtain the voucher and confirmation for you, you can place an order by including the Russia Tourist Voucher/Confirmation Order Form along with the visa application materials. The number of entries permitted and validity of the visa will depend on the number of entries and dates specified on the Tourist Voucher and Confirmation.

That's what it says on their website and that's the only thing he did - just fill out an extra form: no reservations, and i never ever heard anything from him about the insurance (what's up with that?) and every time he was filling out the visa application in front of me, while we were talking on skype, so he would have said something.

I found the 'invitation' cheaper from the place I rented an apartment the last time but it is convenient having Travisa able to do that. I am getting quicker with all of it but it still takes way more than an hour to get plans in place for a trip! Maybe it would be faster if my fiancee was able to make the lodging reservations for me.

Well, maybe it is a lot easier for us, cause my fiance stays at my place every time he comes, so we never have to do any reservations.

It would be great if Russia made these visas simpler or even waived them for US citizens like in Ukraine!

Yeah, Russia is not going to do that.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-03-11 01:49:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusBest, Worst, Most unexpected thing about FSU

But he didn't think of this dodge. His story seems to be morphing as he realizes it doesn't fit the realities of travel to russia. Having been there several times myself I was highly suspicious of his claims. Before I ever traveled there I might have thought their visas would be like ours, that it is for entry anytime over a certain extended period that could be used whenever during that time you wanted. People are invariably surprised when I describe the steps involved in planning a trip there, getting hotel and airline reservations, then an 'invitation', lining up an insurance policy, and only then sending in my passport with the application for the visa and the appropriate fees.

Are you kidding me? Now I'm surprised :lol: You found the most complicated way to get a Russian visa, really. All my fiance would do was just go on travisarussia.com, fill out the application visa form, fill out an additional form to get an invitation from them and then just send his passport and pay the money. All of that won't take longer than 1 hour. And he's been to Russia several times now, so I know for sure, he's telling the truth :rofl:
It's more complicated to get a homestay visa, but why you would even go for it, planning a short trip to Russia, when travel visa is that easy?
ONAFemaleRussia2011-03-10 04:25:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusBest, Worst, Most unexpected thing about FSU

How pervassive is bribery there? I have visited countries where there was obvious solicitations of a bribe, but you could get around without paying it. It seems like from what I have read here that you really need to if you want to get things done.

I've never bribed anyone. From my experience it's possible to have things done with no bribery, but it takes more time and effort. So, if you're lazy and/or you're in a rush, bribery is the way to go, I guess. There's always a choice :innocent:
ONAFemaleRussia2011-03-09 17:03:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusBest, Worst, Most unexpected thing about FSU

Maybe the could try another from of birth control...so they don't get pregnant in the first place ? Just an idea.

If you look a little bit above you'll se that I was talking about the same exact thing.
But I guess I can't put my brain into somebody else's head :whistle:

I would say that Ukrainians and Russians are slightly taller than Americans as a rule, but I may be wrong. I just go tthat impression ans particularly with the women. The men maybe only slightly, the women though are generally taller than American women.

I don't know where Americans get this idea from, but being about 5"3 tall, I get a lot of "I though Russians were tall" :lol: Being half Ukrainian I spoil both Russian and Ukrainian stats.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-02-20 18:57:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusBest, Worst, Most unexpected thing about FSU

I guess this explains why abortion is still the #1 choice of birth control in Russia.

No. That's why so many people rush into marriage because the girl got pregnant.
Which is not quite right, because cances that the marriage will be happy are pretty low in that case.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-02-20 17:44:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusBest, Worst, Most unexpected thing about FSU

OK, but it is the former Soviet Union that seems to have all the women that cannot figure out how not to have abortions. :whistle: You really do not need to tell me about this.


None of my friends are like that. And not everybody, who is older is that smart and not at all selfish. So I don't see the point in generalization

The other? It is because older people are wise and experienced.

That reminden me of a joke, but I'm not going to tell it, because I have respect for older people.
The thing is that some older people don't realise that different doesn't mean worse, and also for some reason think that they were angels, while in reality they caused the same kind of talks among even older people, when they were young themselves.
My dad is the best. He is never hypocritical about younger generations, he understands the way it works and that's why he has always been my friend (even more than my mom). He is a wise man.

Edited by ONA, 20 February 2011 - 05:24 PM.

ONAFemaleRussia2011-02-20 17:23:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusBest, Worst, Most unexpected thing about FSU

In the meantime they will abort the babies they make, not because they are selfish.

If you ask me, abortion is not an option unless a woman has been raped or something.
There are ways to avoid both having children when you're not ready and abortion, right? Sure, there is always this 1% when something goes wrong, but these people don't go for abortion. From what I've seen abortion is usually an option for those, who are too lazy to think BEFORE and who apperently are not selfish enough to think about their health and to consider the possibility of not being able to get pregnant ever again.

Anyway, everything you say just reminds me of what we call "fathers and children conflict" (after Turgenev's novel), when older people always say that younger generation is definitely worse. It's just classic. Nothing new.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-02-20 17:00:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusBest, Worst, Most unexpected thing about FSU

In my MILs time of being a young woman, it was the duty of all women to re-populate the Soviet Union. There was even a national "fertility holdiay", September 12th (why they picked that day I will forever be curious) when women were supposed to devote themselves to getting knocked up. It is still observed in a few Oblasti. They were encouraged to have children, even without marriage. In 1949 there were 7 million LESS men than women aged 25-34. Exactly HOW were the women in this prime child bearing age all supposed to get pregant if they had to be married? It is also, I believe a cultural explnationfor why FSU women generally accept a wider age gap between themselves and their husbands than "western" women. It is hardly an isolated incident for the time period. When Alla was a young woman, YES, it was considered important (at least in propaganda)to be a virgin when married, Alla claims she was and I believe her, why would she lie? But she was married a couple months after her 18th birthday. I do not mention "isolated" incidents or ONE incident. I never claimed to be 100% sure of anything, but my opinion is not based on one person.

All of my greatgrandmothers except for one of them somehow were married by the end of 40-s. And the one, who was not married is the only one, who had only 1 child, others had 3-5. Just saying :whistle:

Abortion is still common in the FSU, they have the highest rate of abortion on earth and abortions as the result of pregnancy far outnumber live births. RUB are in a class by themselves for abortions. Which makes one wonder if the girls were ever really saving it for marriage. I attribute this to a general promiscuous culture and a lack of birth control.

But it's not like at the moment there are a lot of young women, who had 5 abortions, which was possible for women 20-30 years ago.


As I have also mentioned, FSU women have flexible morals. While having a family and father and children is the desired result, the skewed sex ratio, pervasiveness of alcoholism and abuse makes it very difficult to achieve that goal and then the women do what they must do. They still want children. I do not say this as a negative. It is not. FSU women are incredibly able to accomplish nearly anything, some way, some how. As long as they "move ahead" as Alla says, she will do whatever is needed, work as hard as needed. Certainly not a bad thing.

Yep. And I have no idea when it became a bad thing to want kids only when you are a grown-up, when you're ready not only physically, but also mentally and financially - and that's what young people are about. And it's definitely not about being "me,me,me", it's being concerned that your kids can have everything. Not just "something somehow".

A 45 year old man in the FSU can walk out to the kiosk to buy cigarettes and meet a super hot 22 year old that will jump in bed with him. Tonight. Tomorrow latest. And I do not base that on one incident either.

:rofl: Men should always remember to use all kinds of protection dealing with this kind of girls. Believe me. You can barely ever expect anything good from a girl, who would go for a sugar-daddy.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-02-20 15:47:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusBest, Worst, Most unexpected thing about FSU

Young women then didn't think about "I am young and have no kids I will enjoy myself for a while" They thought "I am 20 years old and have no kids. WHY? I want children!" Like a lot of women at that time, my MIL was not married, didn't want to get married, but she wanted a child so she just found a likely "donor" and he "donated" until she was pregnant and then "thank you, goodbye". Soviet sperm bank. No father listed on the birth certificate. She continued her position as a civil engineer and did her duty to the motherland.

That's not the rule, that's an exception. You can't be 100% sure about something, having seen just one example, which is not even a norm actually. Since FSU women are more "traditional", as you noted, it's not quite acceptable to have children before you're married. It's frowned upon espesially by the older generations. That's why abortion was such a common thing when USSR still existed. Traditional family doesn't mean "I want kids, I don't want the father", traditional family is a complete family. That's one of the reasons why FSU women avoid divorse as long as they can - they want their kids to have the father.

Edited by ONA, 20 February 2011 - 02:39 PM.

ONAFemaleRussia2011-02-20 14:37:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusBest, Worst, Most unexpected thing about FSU
Gary and Alla, still it's not like "you're young, you have everything -> you're selfish". It's more like "you're young, you don't have kids, so you can enjoy yourself for a while".
Spending, sometimes the last money on your friends is actually more common for young people.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-02-20 04:38:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusBest, Worst, Most unexpected thing about FSU
I might die if something happens to my cell, ipod or if i don't have internet access. I don't know if I'm all like "me, me, me", but at least I never heard anybody talking like that about me.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-02-19 11:38:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusBest, Worst, Most unexpected thing about FSU

When i was being stared at, i turned and looked back, but they didn't look away. I agree that they were most likely very curious though. I've had quite a few people approach me and ask for pictures lol.

there are some students from African countries who make money that way - they go to some Black Sea resorts and offer people to have pictures taken. :lol: Although it only works in the places, where very few people from different countries go.

Ahh, i see. Thank you for explaining that. And what about the dessert? Only a few short minutes after having the meal, i was being brought cakes with tea lol. I guess most people do have their dessert shortly after a meal, but i usually have to wait a few hours before i'm ready for that.

No problem. That's a very interesting thread - makes me see my culture through the eyes of American people.
As for dessert, you don't have to have it right away. Though the best option can be trying a little bit of it, saying how much you like it and promising that you will definitely eat some more later, as soon as you start feeling hungry :)

And one more tip about food - when somebody is making a plate for you, you can actually tell them when it's enough. That way there is a chance that you won't end up with too much food on your plate :) Just a chance though, no guarantee :lol:
ONAFemaleRussia2011-02-15 10:36:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusBest, Worst, Most unexpected thing about FSU

Lots and lots of stares, and i'm not talking brief stares. I'm talking 2 straight minutes of staring without looking in another direction. Has to be expected though, seeing as though i was one of only a handful of black guys in town, and they were most likely very curious.


That's probably more about people being curious, because actually staring is quite an impolite thing in Russia. Even if a Russian person can't help staring they would turn away if they realize that you noticed them staring at you. That's considered to be the polite thing to do. Even if 2 people make eye contact in the street they don't smile like Americans do, they turn their heads and look in another direction... which makes foreigners think that we never smile :lol:

The slippers. I wasn't used to having warm slippers waiting for me when i walk into someone's door. This was strange at first, but i thought it was pretty cool.

:lol: when my fiance comes to Russia, he keeps forgetting about slippers and my mom always makes him wear them :lol:

Forgot about this part. The amount of food that was prepared was strange. My fiance cooked me dinner....i mean enough food that could feed an entire family, but for some reason she was expecting me to eat it all myself? All of the families we visited did the same thing. They cooked a bunch of food, and expected all of it to be eaten. They think it's very bad to waste food in Russia. It's an offensive act.

In Russia when you have somebody over for dinner and you see that they have finished their plate, you have to ask them if they want more, again - if you want to be polite. It's OK to say "no, thank you", even if you're asked 7 more times after that. It's not like the host is trying to make you eat everything, it's just that they are trying to be nice. It's a cultural thing also. In fact a Russian person would rarely say "yes" right away, even if they are hungry, so Russians keep offering some more food. It's not bad having some leftovers. Actually, having nothing left on your plate is like a signal that you're still hungry and you probably want more.

Things are even worse in countries like Georgia, Armenia or Azerbaijan - people there seem to be too hospitable even for Russians.

Edited by ONA, 12 February 2011 - 03:46 PM.

ONAFemaleRussia2011-02-12 15:45:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusBest, Worst, Most unexpected thing about FSU

Why, pray tell ONA? :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

C'mon. I'm not going to spoil slim's wife's Valentines by telling her that original version of The Nanny was created in the States :rofl:
ONAFemaleRussia2011-02-12 06:29:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusBest, Worst, Most unexpected thing about FSU

Don't tell that to my wife!

:lol: i won't.

My wife showed me this one on YouTube or something. I forget the name of it, but it was almost exactly the same. Still funny, even in Russian. But without Kelly Bundy, I can't watch it.


It's called "Happy together". I personally like the original version better.

If you'll notice, Russians (FSU in general) basically tell the cops to p!ss off whenever they encounter them. If there's only one or two cops, they generally figure it's not worth their time. This works for tourists too.

Careful with that. You gotta know the right words, or you might get in trouble, especially being a foregner.

My fiance still can't understand why i'm treating him like a little kid when he comes to Russia, but i never leave him alone in the street and never ever ever let him try any food sold in the streets or kvas sold by babushkas.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-02-10 17:35:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusBest, Worst, Most unexpected thing about FSU

One of our favorite things to watch is The Nanny. According to my wife, this was a Russian show before they brought it to America. I'm still trying to figure out which Nanny I like more.

Vice versa. Americans created it, they just made an adaptation in Russia.


They had everything decades before we did, AND better shoes. :lol:

Russian shoes really are better :whistle:
ONAFemaleRussia2011-02-09 07:42:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusMarkets
I guess it has something to do with crabs/crab cakes, shrimps, scallops and other seafood, but I tend to lose some weight while I'm in the States.
It's also good that my fiance is used to cooking at home... and we prefer to bake food or boil it, not fry...
I don't mind hamburgers, chicken wings or pizza every now and then. Me and my fiance also like having taco nights at least every other week.
I don't mind going to big grocery stores for foor either... so i guess, i'm more or less adjusted to American eating habits.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-03-16 11:11:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusReport: Chechen Women Forced to Wear Headscarves

That said, it seems to me that, as usual, all the talk about independence and blah, blah, blah boils down to one thing...religion. Nothing else. I do not understand the mindset that would somehow excuse a religious terrorist from blowing up an airport or subway station in Moscow, but thinks it is terrible if terrorists from the same religion blow up buildings in New York or a subway station in London. The terrorists justify their acts against ALL countries with the SAME excuse.

Agreed.
And it's not the only problem caused somehow by religious differences. Crusades, inquisition, now all those explosions... and a whole lot of other crimes justifyed by religion.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-03-15 07:46:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusReport: Chechen Women Forced to Wear Headscarves

I'm still not sure what the Caucus country's have in common with Russia. It's pretty obvious they want their independence. What's not surprising though is that Russians still haven't figured this out.

Russia has always been seeking an access to the sea for trade. That was a cause for a great deal of wars Russia has ever been in.
Also... let's say American Idians all gathered in one state and they want independence. Would you let them to? Or maybe West Coast wants independence, what would be reaction of the US government? NO WAY, right?
A good example though is Great Britain, and people from Northern Ireland fighting for independence. Also, Basques fighting for independence from Spain. Americans keep their mouths shut about those cases, so why do you want to tear Russia apart?
ONAFemaleRussia2011-03-15 06:06:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusReport: Chechen Women Forced to Wear Headscarves

Independence without secession. "It's like it's your own country but we'll just still call it Russia. Nobody will notice."

You got it.
It's easy to figure that out as long as you're familiar with the history of Chechen wars and of where Kadyrov and other Chechen politics come from.

Then why does He let it happen?

If He's all-powerful, all-knowing, why does he let bad things happen?

Erich Maria Remarque in one of his books says that the God is scared, cause "if everybody is happy, nobody will need Him anymore". It doesn't have to be true, but I love books by Remarque, cause they really make me think about stuff like that.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-03-10 14:00:00
Russia, Ukraine and BelarusReport: Chechen Women Forced to Wear Headscarves
He wants headscarves and legalisation of polygamy.
And that (along with some other reasons) is why people in Russia (at least outside Chechnya, Dagestan and Ingushetia) don't want Kadyrov.
ONAFemaleRussia2011-03-10 12:07:00