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Author Topic: Rostov on-Don  (Read 25552 times)

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Offline msmob

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Re: Rostov on-Don
« Reply #50 on: September 15, 2018, 12:36:50 AM »
Whoosh .... that irony just took off over our BillyB's head... :popcorn:

Offline BC

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Re: Rostov on-Don
« Reply #51 on: September 15, 2018, 04:21:18 AM »
Moby

Its why so many of us are assholes. Ok honey you are one too now. Bet that would go over real well with my wife.
 :cluebat:
« Last Edit: September 15, 2018, 04:22:51 AM by BC »

Offline BC

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Re: Rostov on-Don
« Reply #52 on: September 15, 2018, 04:36:17 AM »
Rostov airport. January minus 20 celsius outside, midnight. After 12 hour delay finally boarded bus to plane, got off and bus drove away. Were not allowed to board. Waiting for first class passengers to arrive. I yelled in my rusty Russian “I’m Not Russian. I’m Italian and very cold!!

The crowd laughed and they let us all board.

Offline LAman

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Re: Rostov on-Don
« Reply #53 on: September 15, 2018, 07:58:30 AM »
Moby

Its why so many of us are assholes.   
 :cluebat:


It is that some here are much bigger than others....
Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift

Offline BC

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Re: Rostov on-Don
« Reply #54 on: September 15, 2018, 09:24:17 AM »
LA,
Reminds me of when the wall fell. Story goes that the East Germans were amazed by rolls of kitchen paper towels that in the East was unheard of.  Many wondered what size assholes westerners had that would require such large toilet paper.

Offline The Natural

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Re: Rostov on-Don
« Reply #55 on: September 15, 2018, 02:37:49 PM »
I landed at the Rostov airport, Platov, and everything went smoothly, picked up my bags and went out to the reception hall. When I ordered my hotel room, I also ordered and paid in advance for transportation to the hotel. There, as the doors opened I saw a young woman holding a sign with my name on it. I quickly approached her, as I always do with young women, haha. She was full of energy, talkative and knew English very well. As we walked towards the exit, she expressed her regrets of learning I had plans to stay in Rostov for only one night. That’s often the case she lamented, but that Rostov had so much to offer beyond that.

She guided me perfectly to the taxi lane and hailed my specific one. There was no waiting around and we got the bags inside the taxi which were driven by a woman in her 40’s. I sat in the front seat. It was a drive of around one hour to the hotel, but the driver did not speak English. Nevertheless, I could not stay silent all the way, so I said that there is a lot of traffic. She made me speak into her phone and her response: No, it’s not a lot of traffic, haha. Well, for me, not being used to so many cars it was a lot. For her, a lot of traffic probably meant a gridlock.

Everybody who has ever been to Russia and has also been to the west, would agree that the driving in Russia, in heavy congested traffic, is reckless. I saw it in Crimea and I saw the result of it on our way to the hotel, a car crash and that was by no means the last I saw of that in Russia on this trip. I live in a small place, so a car crash is a major happening around here. Our female taxi driver however, just made a swing past it all without raising her eyebrow one bit.

She stopped outside the hotel and we got out all the baggage. I wanted to give her a little tip, but she resisted, typing on her phone that it was pre-paid. Of course I knew it, I pre-paid 2100 rubles for the ride but I wanted to give her a little in person and managed to do so, with great resistance. She had made an extra effort, so why not, I figured.

At the hotel I was met at the reception and before I could put my bags down she asked for my papers. Ohh, hold your horses, one moment, haha. I gave it to her and she told me she had to hang on to my Passport for a couple of hours. Nothing unexpected about that. Not since my first trip to Russia, to St. Petersburg in 1997, did I find that unexpected, haha.
Went to my room and put things in order AND then, even after a 24 hour journey, yes, I did make a walk of the surrounding area. Made a walk of about an hour and came back. The receptionist thought it was brief, but then I told her I've been on the move for 24 hours. She and I later became great friends of sorts.

The main street in Rostov is very close to my hotel and I walked over the bridge. Could see down on the walkway by the river below me. There were a couple of elevators to the street below, but they didn’t work. The weather was wonderful, always the strong breeze but with 28 degrees it was never chilly. On the walkway on the bridge, not many people, mostly families, children walking by… quiet and safe. Wonderful.
« Last Edit: September 15, 2018, 02:48:30 PM by The Natural »

Offline The Natural

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Re: Rostov on-Don
« Reply #56 on: September 15, 2018, 03:18:56 PM »
After the walk I went to my room and rested a bit, got my things in order. But later on I went down to check out the surroundings, see things. Being rather informal in personality, I tried to chat up to the receptionist. I learned her name is Alla and she was actually very proficient in English. After the famous ice was broken, we talked at length. I asked how she know English so well and she told me a few years earlier she had been working in tourism and during the course of a 6-month period all she ever did was attend to American tourists. Ah, that explained things. Even though many learn English these days, the problem is that it gradually fades away for lack of practice. I see this with some Russians that claim not to talk English, when they are forced to it, listen to it for a couple of days, some of it comes back to them.
It’s different in Scandinavia. Most places, most times, we don’t encounter English speaking tourists, but we hear English all the time on TV. Nothing is dubbed, unlike in Russia or indeed in many countries in western Europe too, for that matter, like in Spain, which I spent a lot of time in the late 80’s. Very few could speak English, at least then. The result is confusion when they first hear the language.

Alla is great. Look her up if you go to the Hotel Hermitage in Rostov. We talked about her family, my family, life experiences…just a normal pleasant talk. If anybody say the Russians are cold or things like that, they don’t know what they’re talking about.

The others at the hotel knew some or no English. But they were all very polite to me as a guest at the hotel.

Offline GQBlues

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Re: Rostov on-Don
« Reply #57 on: September 17, 2018, 08:35:33 AM »
...Everybody who has ever been to Russia and has also been to the west, would agree that the driving in Russia, in heavy congested traffic, is reckless. I saw it in Crimea and I saw the result of it on our way to the hotel, a car crash and that was by no means the last I saw of that in Russia on this trip. I live in a small place, so a car crash is a major happening around here. Our female taxi driver however, just made a swing past it all without raising her eyebrow one bit...

Oh yeah! Although those 8 car-wide congestion over a 4-lane road is much like all the other 3rd world streets (like Quiapo, Manila where I grew up in), what was an eye-popping experience for me the first time I saw it was how people drove over the curb and speed up through the sidewalks to cut traffic. That was unnerving.

...I asked how she know English so well and she told me a few years earlier she had been working in tourism and during the course of a 6-month period all she ever did was attend to American tourists. Ah, that explained things. Even though many learn English these days, the problem is that it gradually fades away for lack of practice. I see this with some Russians that claim not to talk English, when they are forced to it, listen to it for a couple of days, some of it comes back to them....

When we first met and got married, my wife's language progression was outright impressive. She had very little Russian language exposure. As time went on, especially when messenger/Skype/facetime came about - coupled with her starting to befriend Russians in LA, she started 'losing' her proficiency and seem to struggle with pronunciation again. For someone who's only been here a relative short period of time, she's doing great. But just passed midway through that period, the rate of her progression diminished quite a bit when she's more engaged in speaking Russians with friends and family.
« Last Edit: September 17, 2018, 08:42:42 AM by GQBlues »
Quote from: msmob
1. Because of 'man', global warming is causing desert and arid areas to suffer long, dry spell.
2. The 2018 Camp Fire and Woolsey California wildfires are forests burning because of global warming.
3. N95 mask will choke you dead after 30 min. of use.

Offline The Natural

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Re: Rostov on-Don
« Reply #58 on: September 17, 2018, 01:21:05 PM »

When we first met and got married, my wife's language progression was outright impressive. She had very little Russian language exposure. As time went on, especially when messenger/Skype/facetime came about - coupled with her starting to befriend Russians in LA, she started 'losing' her proficiency and seem to struggle with pronunciation again. For someone who's only been here a relative short period of time, she's doing great. But just passed midway through that period, the rate of her progression diminished quite a bit when she's more engaged in speaking Russians with friends and family.

Had a very similar experience with my wife. She learned English very quickly when we first met. As time went by and she came to Norway and learned Norwegian, she now say she has forgotten her English, haha. Prefer to watch English speaking movies with subtitles in Norwegian.

So if I decide to learn Russian, will I forget English? Or does that only apply to Russians, haha.

Offline GQBlues

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Re: Rostov on-Don
« Reply #59 on: September 17, 2018, 03:30:28 PM »
...So if I decide to learn Russian, will I forget English? Or does that only apply to Russians, haha.


What 'language' is spoken in your dreams, English or Norwegian?
Quote from: msmob
1. Because of 'man', global warming is causing desert and arid areas to suffer long, dry spell.
2. The 2018 Camp Fire and Woolsey California wildfires are forests burning because of global warming.
3. N95 mask will choke you dead after 30 min. of use.

Offline The Natural

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Re: Rostov on-Don
« Reply #60 on: September 17, 2018, 03:41:59 PM »

What 'language' is spoken in your dreams, English or Norwegian?


In my dreams; the language of sex, haha. No, seriously, I guess Norwegian. Never given that any thought. But I suppose that if an English speaking person was part of my dream, it would be in English. What about you?

Offline GQBlues

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Re: Rostov on-Don
« Reply #61 on: September 17, 2018, 04:02:04 PM »
I don't remember when the transition took place, but it's definitely in English now. Prior to arriving here, and of course before learning English, it was Tagalog jumbled with two other dialects I spoke before.


I posed the same question to my wife a couple of years back, she paused, smiled and said she guess it's in English now. So I prodded even more and asked her if she at least maintained her accent.


 :)
Quote from: msmob
1. Because of 'man', global warming is causing desert and arid areas to suffer long, dry spell.
2. The 2018 Camp Fire and Woolsey California wildfires are forests burning because of global warming.
3. N95 mask will choke you dead after 30 min. of use.

Offline DaveNY

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Re: Rostov on-Don
« Reply #62 on: September 17, 2018, 04:18:17 PM »
After the walk I went to my room and rested a bit, got my things in order. But later on I went down to check out the surroundings, see things. Being rather informal in personality, I tried to chat up to the receptionist. I learned her name is Alla and she was actually very proficient in English. After the famous ice was broken, we talked at length. I asked how she know English so well and she told me a few years earlier she had been working in tourism and during the course of a 6-month period all she ever did was attend to American tourists. Ah, that explained things. Even though many learn English these days, the problem is that it gradually fades away for lack of practice. I see this with some Russians that claim not to talk English, when they are forced to it, listen to it for a couple of days, some of it comes back to them.
It’s different in Scandinavia. Most places, most times, we don’t encounter English speaking tourists, but we hear English all the time on TV. Nothing is dubbed, unlike in Russia or indeed in many countries in western Europe too, for that matter, like in Spain, which I spent a lot of time in the late 80’s. Very few could speak English, at least then. The result is confusion when they first hear the language.

Alla is great. Look her up if you go to the Hotel Hermitage in Rostov. We talked about her family, my family, life experiences…just a normal pleasant talk. If anybody say the Russians are cold or things like that, they don’t know what they’re talking about.

The others at the hotel knew some or no English. But they were all very polite to me as a guest at the hotel.

You're right about the lack of English comprehension in Russia. In the bigger hotels in Moscow and St. Pete there'll be employees on duty who understand and communicate in English. In the smaller hotels, probably not.

One of my complaints about Russia is that the various levels of government have done nothing over the last 15 years about increasing the teaching of English in schools and universities. Like it or not the lingua franca of the business world and world in general is English, not Russian, not Chinese but English and is likely to be English for quite a few decades.

In Scandinavia, Germany, the Netherlands and other parts of Europe most people under 40 speak some English, under 30 and it's almost guaranteed that in a large city they can carry on at least a simple conversation in English.   

Offline msmob

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Re: Rostov on-Don
« Reply #63 on: September 18, 2018, 08:51:25 AM »
You're right about the lack of English comprehension in Russia.

One of my complaints about Russia is that the various levels of government have done nothing over the last 15 years about increasing the teaching of English in schools and universities.

Sorry, DaveNY - but once AGAIN you are proving you don't don't know....

Perhaps it's because I spend so much time in Sochi

1/ Buses and trains in Russian and English

2/ Street signs - Russian and English

3/ Have you been to any RU schools ? I've been a guest speaker at THREE and believe me - those kids know English REALLY well

While not up there with Benelux nations - I'd say not far behind Germany

Offline BdHvA

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Re: Rostov on-Don
« Reply #64 on: September 18, 2018, 05:27:15 PM »
While I am speaking of Ukraine, English is spoken also by some civil servants.

I can say my son 13 years old speaks very good English, as well as German. And I understand his Chinese is not very shabby. I think the funniest moment was being stopped in Kiev by a German couple seeking directions. Nicolas stepped up in fine German and explained the route. They were for a moment speechless.

If Russia or Ukraine wanted to advance English fluency they would drop from English programming overdubbing English in Russian/Ukraine.
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Offline DaveNY

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Re: Rostov on-Don
« Reply #65 on: September 18, 2018, 06:37:18 PM »
Sorry, DaveNY - but once AGAIN you are proving you don't don't know....

Perhaps it's because I spend so much time in Sochi

1/ Buses and trains in Russian and English

2/ Street signs - Russian and English

3/ Have you been to any RU schools ? I've been a guest speaker at THREE and believe me - those kids know English REALLY well

While not up there with Benelux nations - I'd say not far behind Germany

Just because there are signs in English doesn't mean the locals understand English. There are English language signs everywhere in the large cities in Japan, the locals there are far from proficient in English. There are English language signs everywhere in major cities in Thailand, again locals are far from proficient in English.

Yes I've been in schools in Moscow. As I've mentioned before my wife was a school teacher in Moscow. When I first arrived in Moscow I had lots of spare time so sometimes I helped the English teachers at her school. I tutored students and helped design and mark English lessons. None of the English teachers spoke English without a noticeable accent. My wife spoke better English than most of the English language teachers I met. My wife taught math. There were no ELT assistants from the US, UK, etc. I also helped graduating students fill out applications for universities in the US and UK. Some even wanted to go to Australia and NZ.

I did 5 or 6 demos after school of what a math or physics lecture given in an American university would be like. My lectures were usually about 30-45 minutes as opposed to the usual 2 hour lectures as is typical. Usually did a Q&A after the lecture.

Some of the students who had wealthy parents took private English language lessons and spoke very good English, good enough to study at a university in the US or UK. Their parents understood the need for an enhanced understanding of English to succeed in the international community. However the vast majority of the graduating students could not have carried on a simple conversation in English for more than a few minutes if that.

If you've read my posts and you really should they're very informative, I've ranted several times about what I and others who've worked in Moscow consider the sorry lack of leadership in expanding English language resources for Russian students.

As for Russian high school students having English language skills equal to German high school students, no, not even close. My wife and I have been to Germany a number of times. She worked in Germany in the 90s and speaks German. Walk in to a McDonald's in a major German city and it's very likely some young person at the counter is able to take your order in English. Same in many stores and tourist sites. Try that in Moscow and you're going to be disappointed most of the time.

Maybe Sochi is different. We were only there once and my wife did most of the talking so we didn't have to worry about finding a person who understood English.

Of course this is just my opinion. Maybe you live in a different reality.










 
« Last Edit: September 18, 2018, 08:25:01 PM by DaveNY »

Offline Nightwish

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Re: Rostov on-Don
« Reply #66 on: September 19, 2018, 12:05:16 AM »
While I am speaking of Ukraine, English is spoken also by some civil servants.

I can say my son 13 years old speaks very good English, as well as German. And I understand his Chinese is not very shabby. I think the funniest moment was being stopped in Kiev by a German couple seeking directions. Nicolas stepped up in fine German and explained the route. They were for a moment speechless.

If Russia or Ukraine wanted to advance English fluency they would drop from English programming overdubbing English in Russian/Ukraine.


Don't they do the same in Germany, I have not spent any significant amount in time in the country so I have no idea about Movies and such, but everything on TV seems to be dubbed.

but I do agree, here we have never used that, everything is subtitled so we are always subjected to listening to English. Even my 82 year old mom can carry short conversations in English and she has never studied it and never really been much of a traveler. So what she knows, she has picked up from hearing it. 
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Offline msmob

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Re: Rostov on-Don
« Reply #67 on: September 19, 2018, 12:42:20 AM »
Just because there are signs in English doesn't mean the locals understand English.

The under thirties- particularly do

Yes I've been in schools in Moscow. As I've mentioned before my wife was a school teacher in Moscow. When I first arrived in Moscow I had lots of spare time so sometimes I helped the English teachers at her school. I tutored students and helped design and mark English lessons. None of the English teachers spoke English without a noticeable accent. My wife spoke better English than most of the English language teachers I met. My wife taught math. There were no ELT assistants from the US, UK, etc. I also helped graduating students fill out applications for universities in the US and UK. Some even wanted to go to Australia and NZ.

Many English teachers have never LEFT the FSU - amazingly - hence they ADORE to speak / hear a natural speaker ... PLUS tourism - other than from former CIS nations - isn't exactly booming - other than the World Cup blip ..So OF COURSE accents are strong - but the knowledge is there....    When WERE you last in Russia?


Of course this is just my opinion. Maybe you live in a different reality.

YOU posted an 'assertion' re Piter and Moscow -  my experience - of mainly Sochi - but I travel widely in Russia - is counter to yours and I'll wager more current

Once again - you lived in the UK and told us the BBC is 'state run' - so you'll forgive my doubting some of your 'validations' ..

It is not just my opinion - I share it with Russian Professor of Language methodology - now a resident of the US ;)

It will be great if they can be bothered to join / post  - rather than observe - PROD ... ;)


Offline Nightwish

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Re: Rostov on-Don
« Reply #68 on: September 19, 2018, 01:06:46 AM »
The under thirties- particularly do

Many English teachers have never LEFT the FSU - amazingly - hence they ADORE to speak / hear a natural speaker ... PLUS tourism - other than from former CIS nations - isn't exactly booming - other than the World Cup blip ..So OF COURSE accents are strong - but the knowledge is there....    When WERE you last in Russia?


YOU posted an 'assertion' re Piter and Moscow -  my experience - of mainly Sochi - but I travel widely in Russia - is counter to yours and I'll wager more current

Once again - you lived in the UK and told us the BBC is 'state run' - so you'll forgive my doubting some of your 'validations' ..

It is not just my opinion - I share it with Russian Professor of Language methodology - now a resident of the US ;)

It will be great if they can be bothered to join / post  - rather than observe - PROD ... ;)

I can only say after 3-4 years talking to numerous amounts of Russian women (35+) your experience on the ground in that case, does not look the same on the Internet and in the women who sign up on the datingsites. (same experience as I had with almost all FSU-countries)

Finding someone there who can speak and understand even a word of English is 1/10 maybe.
For some reason the (few) women I approach from Azerbaijan spoke it very well, but the selection was quite small I have to admit. 

Since I haven't been to Russia in any significant amount of time, I can't say how it is there. But my personal experience is that Russia/Ukraine/Belarus was about the same, finding someone who can understand and speak English is rare. Even in heavily tourist populated areas.
Multitasking means screwing up several things at once.

Offline msmob

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Re: Rostov on-Don
« Reply #69 on: September 19, 2018, 02:27:54 AM »
Nightwish,

my dating experience extends to a now even older grouping and I chose the 30 years and under grouping re much improved English knowledge

I work on a day to day basis ( in the present ) with Russian folks in this particular age group - they are not the elite - more the norm - in my opinion

My own t'other half spoke VERY poor English when we met and would agree that the next generation in her ( regional ) city make her feel inadequate in this regard ;)

Offline DaveNY

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Re: Rostov on-Don
« Reply #70 on: September 19, 2018, 07:44:51 AM »
The under thirties- particularly do

Understanding a sign that says 'toilet' or 'sale' or a McDonald's menu does not mean a person can carry on a conversation in English.

Many English teachers have never LEFT the FSU - amazingly - hence they ADORE to speak / hear a natural speaker ... PLUS tourism - other than from former CIS nations - isn't exactly booming - other than the World Cup blip ..So OF COURSE accents are strong - but the knowledge is there....    When WERE you last in Russia?

Back when I was teaching English in 2000 almost no Russian English language teacher I knew had left Russia. Those that had usually went for a vacation to Turkey or had worked in Europe. None had gone to earn a degree in the west.

As for Russian English language teachers adoring speaking with a native English speaker again we'll have to disagree. Even today many Russian English language teachers who have graduate degrees and were educated solely in Russia do NOT want to converse with native English speakers. They certainly don't want to be corrected by them. They truly believe that their masters or Phd degree means they know more about the English language than a native speaker does. In some cases that's true. In many other cases it's not.

I lived in Russia from 2000-2005 and returned yearly until 2016. What's the longest period of time you've spent in Russia without leaving?

YOU posted an 'assertion' re Piter and Moscow -  my experience - of mainly Sochi - but I travel widely in Russia - is counter to yours and I'll wager more current

Since I literally lived in Russia for about 6 years and visit often I'll wager I have far more in country time than you.

Once again - you lived in the UK and told us the BBC is 'state run' - so you'll forgive my doubting some of your 'validations' ..

You claim to have lived in the UK and don't understand that the BBC is 'state run' you'll forgive me for doubting your conclusions.

It is not just my opinion - I share it with Russian Professor of Language methodology - now a resident of the US ;)

It will be great if they can be bothered to join / post  - rather than observe - PROD ... ;)

While what I say is my opinion it is an opinion shared by a number of Russian teachers of English who have graduate degrees and many Russians who live in Russia and the US.

Offline GQBlues

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Re: Rostov on-Don
« Reply #71 on: September 19, 2018, 09:50:28 AM »

In my dreams; the language of sex, haha. No, seriously, I guess Norwegian. Never given that any thought. But I suppose that if an English speaking person was part of my dream, it would be in English. What about you?


Natural-


I forgot to share this with you before relating to language and well 'sex', though maybe not on the same context you implied here (hahah).


When I was with my then Czech GF in Banska Brystica, we were in a bar along with many of her friends having some drinks and a lot of good times, when at one time nature called for me to relieve my bladder. I asked Zora where the restroom was, and she obliged and pointed where it was. I excused myself and walked towards the room she said it was in. I walked in through the hallway and was faced with dual doors. I presumed the words written on the doors differentiated gender designation.


So I stood there and thought to myself, "OK, I remember the time when I asked my then prior Slovak ex what the equivalent of saying 'Mr & Mrs' in Slovak language for a card I wanted to send ther parents. She said to use 'Pan a Pani'. I looked at the doors and one door had 'Pani' and the other said "Dami'. Process of elimination right? I walked in the 'Dami' door. Walked right at the time Martina was just pulling her blue laced panties up in front of the mirror. Nice legs, too.!"
Quote from: msmob
1. Because of 'man', global warming is causing desert and arid areas to suffer long, dry spell.
2. The 2018 Camp Fire and Woolsey California wildfires are forests burning because of global warming.
3. N95 mask will choke you dead after 30 min. of use.

Offline msmob

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Re: Rostov on-Don
« Reply #72 on: September 19, 2018, 10:07:37 AM »
Understanding a sign that says 'toilet' or 'sale' or a McDonald's menu does not mean a person can carry on a conversation in English.

Yes, you already tried that one - but having the buses / trains / announcements in TWO languages is a form of teaching... You told us regional RU cities don't have the English skills penetration and I've just brought 'MY' regional city as one exception to your generalisation   

Back when I was teaching English in 2000 almost no Russian English language teacher I knew had left Russia. Those that had usually went for a vacation to Turkey or had worked in Europe. None had gone to earn a degree in the west.

Some had earnt degrees in their fraternal neighbours and not a few Russians spoke German - ironic - fluently ..English has taken over

As for Russian English language teachers adoring speaking with a native English speaker again we'll have to disagree.


Then I'm going to quote you - leaving off your ID and place you've posted it - on a group I'm in - made up of teachers and students - let's get the opinion from the horses mouth - I will not need to 'lead' - i can guarantee the response ...

Even today many Russian English language teachers who have graduate degrees and were educated solely in Russia do NOT want to converse with native English speakers.
  :ROFL:

They certainly don't want to be corrected by them. They truly believe that their masters or Phd degree means they know more about the English language than a native speaker does. In some cases that's true. In many other cases it's not.

UTTER bollox - you seem to know some v.silly Russians

I lived in Russia from 2000-2005 and returned yearly until 2016. What's the longest period of time you've spent in Russia without leaving?

I've lived there ( Russia ) for 179 days each year since 2014 and spend time in other former CIS nations - UA, BY and lived with three Russian ladies who taught in both Soviet and 'modern' Russia - as I said - one was a professor of Language methodology .. one taught kids and t'other Music ( but spoke passable English )

Since I literally lived in Russia for about 6 years and visit often I'll wager I have far more in country time than you.

I've been going since 2002 - to Russia / Ukraine and RU speaking parts of the Baltic States and lived / worked WITH Russian speakers since the same time... 

You claim to have lived in the UK and don't understand that the BBC is 'state run' you'll forgive me for doubting your conclusions.

Repeating your folly - you've already had this spoon-fed .. The govt charges a TV licence fee - but the BBC is NOT run by the govt - either you never lived in the UK or you demonstrate a level of incredible ignorance / observation skills - I have already asked to to check out the BBC Charter, reminded you how the BBC has brought down a PM - proving his B over the Iraq 'WMD' and Mrs May is hardly getting an easy ride re her assertiveness over he Chequers Red Line on 'Brexit'

While what I say is my opinion it is an opinion shared by a number of Russian teachers of English who have graduate degrees and many Russians who live in Russia and the US.

Will will see the response when I ask the question to such folk ..

Let's agree the format ...   How about " Do you like to hear native speakers of English "   Do you get upset - if you are quietly - not publicly, corrected ?

I will not post the Q - until you agree - and I promise will not mention it to ANYONE - other than here and will not draw anyone's attention to the source - which I guess can be verified from mods..

Sorry, but we do - indeed - live in parallel universes - or you've been in LOUSY schools

Offline ML

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Re: Rostov on-Don
« Reply #73 on: September 19, 2018, 12:50:12 PM »
So I stood there and thought to myself, "OK, I remember the time when I asked my then prior Slovak ex what the equivalent of saying 'Mr & Mrs' in Slovak language for a card I wanted to send ther parents. She said to use 'Pan a Pani'. I looked at the doors and one door had 'Pani' and the other said "Dami'. Process of elimination right? I walked in the 'Dami' door. Walked right at the time Martina was just pulling her blue laced panties up in front of the mirror. Nice legs, too.!"

I was a young 17 year old during my first US Navy cruise that included Japan.
Went into the toilet at bar and was whizzing at the long trough when I hear female voices beside me. 
Looked over, and two Japanese women were combing their hair at sinks and mirror, and talking a mile a minute.  They paid no attention to me.
As I really had to complete, and being fully crocked, I was able to just continue.
My introduction to toilet practices that were quite different than in my Midwest upbringing.

Some weeks later during another port stay, I had a more or less steady GF and we went on trip to a lake with two other Japanese couples.
We were standing on pier waiting on a boat when I heard sound of pee going into the water.
Looked over, and the two men were peeing.
My gal saw me looking and said, You had better pee now too.
Women didn't seem to have to pee.
A beautiful woman is pleasant to look at, but it is easier to live with a pleasant acting one.

Offline BillyB

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Re: Rostov on-Don
« Reply #74 on: September 19, 2018, 07:15:58 PM »

Insults and politics should be deleted from trip reports since things will get out of hand. This is the third time I'm saying this. The other two times I said it, my posts were deleted. Some people need a daily reminder.
Fund the audits, spread the word and educate people, write your politicians and other elected officials. Stay active in the fight to save our country. Over 220 generals and admirals say we are in a fight for our survival like no other time since 1776.

 

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