Search by tag «Russian culture» 13 results

• Digging Deeper: Literary Origins of St. Petersburg Metro Stations

  It’s no secret that the St. Petersburg Metro is one of the world’s most exquisite and beautiful underground transit systems. But its interiors aren’t the only things worth noting. While anyone with even a cursory knowledge of the Russian language will probably be able to glean the meanings of most of its stations’ names, there are a few that would require a bit more in-depth knowledge of Russian culture. Today, we’ll look at some of the stations that bear the names of Russian writers, poets, and other masters of the written word.

  04.08.2020

• Speak like a Russian: Cat Words

  It’s sometimes hard to come up with a new article idea, especially at times like these when all that comes to one’s mind has to do with either the risk of infection or the boredom of isolation. Today was different: the topic almost forced itself onto me. First thing in the morning, I find a whole rookery of cats lazing on my porch, and a half hour later, I learn that today is “International St. Petersburg Cats’ Day” - a new improvised holiday that I personally find rather odd, but still. So, it seems that there’s no way around it, and the language that we’ll be learning today will have to do with the purring little creatures that (almost) everyone loves!

  08.06.2020

• Love Diversity (and Exploring!) Like a Russian

  So have an irresistible urge to travel around Russia but that’s not exactly feasible right now? Besides, your attention span is down to a nanosecond? Cue in Multi-Russia, 55 postcard-style cartoons about the country’s various regions told by who else? A bear!

  01.06.2020

• White Nights in St. Petersburg

  You might already know that St. Petersburg is renowned for the fascinating natural phenomenon of white nights. But what are they, and what is it that makes them so special? Let’s find out.

  22.05.2020

• Swear Like a Russian: of the Fool and the Devil

  As I promised, this article will be about “safe” Russian swear words, and first off, we’ll take a look at two that are very simple and common, yet very special to the Russian culture. 

  18.05.2020

• Swear like a Russian (not): Russian

  It's a common thing to ask someone to teach you a swear word in their native language: you think it’s funny and cool and wins you points. For some, knowing how to swear even helps build their confidence with a language. Then again, swear words and slang hold a special place in every culture, and are very easy to misuse. For this reason, we’ve decided to touch upon this topic, and start with Russia’s most notorious way of speaking: the infamous “mat”.

  23.03.2020

• Speak Like a Russian: the Unfathomable "Авось"

  To tell you the truth, today started as a total disaster for me. Just yesterday, I had plans to post a nice winter-themed article, and the first thing that I didn't see this morning were any traces of snow. A few hours later, when I was working on a gloomier backup topic, the heavy morning rain gave way to some glorious sunshine, which messed up my plans once again. Needless to say, I was ready to burst out in anger! Then suddenly, I remembered one peculiar Russian expression which helped me calm down, contemplate on the situation that I got myself into, and recall the one word that you definitely have to learn in order to truly understand the Russian culture. 

  18.02.2020

• Russian Language Summer School: Behind the Curtain

  After asking students about their experience of learning the Russian language we decided to take a peek behind the scenes and ask the teachers about their experiences teaching the Russian language to foreign students. 

  22.08.2019

• The Magic of the ‘90s

  From runways to video games, the ‘90s are hot right now. What were they like for us and our families? Were they the “wild” years of the post-Soviet era when money vanished and mafia ruled? Or the times of frizzy hair and first music videos? Or just a childhood when all of this seemed normal? We asked around:

  02.07.2019

• “Calmness, Only Calmness.” Classic Soviet Cartoons to the Rescue

  As we get to the end of the semester, here are some words of wisdom from the cartoons we grew up with that will help you go out with a bang!

  20.05.2019