Magic Translation Earbuds

[2tallbill]

I bought some magic translation earbuds. First I searched Google and came
to the page attached to the link below.

http://bestconsumerpicks.org/top-translation-earbuds-review-2/


The top rated unit was Vital Translate Buds. So I went to Amazon and bought
them for$48.70 with next day delivery. The next day they showed up and I 
jumped up and down (inside because it seemed too magic to be true). So I
charged them up to 100% with my phone charger because it didn't come
with a charger and the cord included was approximately 3 inches long
(7.6 CM)


Then like I always tend to do I powered them up, hung the buggers from my
ears without reading a single word then ran up to Angel Eyes to test
them out. Luckily I didn't try to test them naked (in 2tallbill sex mode) or
the frustration would have been greater. NO THEY DIDN'T WORK!   

Now I go to the instructions which is printed so small that I had to pull out a
pair of cheaters (reading glasses bought off a rack at some store) to read it.

Now I find that I have to download a really sketchy Chinese AI App, then
after doing that I will need to pay for a premium service for them to work.
Cuss words start to fly. If I knew any of this in advance, I wouldn't have
been as disappointed.

I deleted the sketchy app, then went to Amazon to do a return which today is
the last day that I can return them at a Whole foods store. Remember I had
ordered them 2 days ago and they arrived an hour ago. My older son is
nearby so I asked him if he wanted to return them for half the money,
because I will never spend the time or effort to return things.

More to follow in next post............

[2tallbill]

As of today, I am of the opinion that we are still operating in the days
before magic earbuds. I might be wrong (happens all the time).

Many years ago I spent one very memorable night sitting naked in bed
with an old time Ectaco handheld translator. Passing it back and forth
with a hot Russian girl who spoke English as well as I spoke Russian.

It didn't work very well. It was better than a dictionary, but the translation
was bad. She really wanted to explain something that kept referring to a
floodplain. I never learned what she was trying to say. Soon after something
else popped up so we moved on to other things.   

I stopped meeting FSUW that spoke zero English and the Ectaco translator
disappeared.

I looked up Floodplain on Google translate and found Пойма = Poyma.
I will give up trying to find whatever the girl said all those years ago.

[Trenchcoat]

Thanks for showing us Bill I didn't know they existed, must be pretty new to the market and amazing what AI is already doing for us.

They do ones on Amazon that may be better ones and could be worth paying a bit more for the better ones. Probably buying two pairs of translation earbuds is a good idea as if the girl speaks little English then she can get the English translated when you speak. Otherwise even if you get her Russian, etc translated you would likely reply in English and she wouldn't know what you are saying lol. Just speaking about FSW in general here rather than your wife of course.

So I guess it's back to old repeat after me Pimsleur for you then Beel

How advanced is your Russian language now anyway?

[2tallbill]

Thanks for showing us Bill I didn't know they existed, must be pretty new to the market and amazing what AI is already doing for us.

So I guess it's back to old repeat after me Pimsleur for you then Beel

How advanced is your Russian language now anyway?

My advice is to wait until the magic headphones actually work.
My Russian isn't getting any better. It's not advanced, I just know
a bunch of words maybe 600 or so (doesn't include numbers). 
I don't know the various cases or any grammar.

I am like a dog in respect that I can understand more than I can speak.
My English is getting worse, since I have adopted too many simplifications
to communicate with Angel Eyes. Her English is getting better and mine is
getting worse.

[Trenchcoat]

My advice is to wait until the magic headphones actually work.
My Russian isn't getting any better. It's not advanced, I just know
a bunch of words maybe 600 or so (doesn't include numbers). 
I don't know the various cases or any grammar.

I am like a dog in respect that I can understand more than I can speak.
My English is getting worse, since I have adopted too many simplifications
to communicate with Angel Eyes. Her English is getting better and mine is
getting worse.

Thanks for the advice on the headphones I appreciate it. My guess is that they will probably be the next advancement in translation a bit like when the electronic translators can along then eventually Google Translate on the mobile phone. I think the will probably help a lot and be a big improvement over Google Translate but still knowing the actual language fully will likely still be smoothest. The nearest I have to go on is my Mother with her hearing aids, it can be a pain waiting for her to put them in, the batteries going dead and for her having them stuck in all day. I figure these are like hearing aids just with Translation instead.

I'm probably at not a too dissimilar position as yourself with regard to learning Russian Bill. Duolingo tells me I have learnt over 1,000 words now lol. In reality I know I have probably roughly been through 1,000 words on Duolingo but I haven't really learnt that many as recalling them is another matter.

However, with more time that will be available to me soon now back on my hands I am determined to learn Russian better. It's an uphill almost vertical monumentus climb I know but it's something that I wish to really achieve. It's kind of one of those elusive things that often has eluded me but that I want to have down. Like a final achievement in this FSU scene I guess, my FSU journey won't be complete without it.

My GF has suggested learning Ukrainian instead of Russian but for me that would mean starting over in a language almost as long/difficult as Russian. I would just get confused and likely not feel like I was learning what I wanted to be learning. Nothing against the Ukrainian language but for me it's probably not for me. For me while I am against what Russia is doing its language and culture I feel are a part of Ukraine rather than separate from it as much as that may understandably upset Ukrainians who have suffered greatly from Russia.

[2tallbill]

Thanks for the advice on the headphones I appreciate it.

I want to find someone that I know that has Google pixel earbuds. I am very
skeptical after my last experience.

Use search terms "google pixel earbuds translate"

Duolingo tells me I have learnt over 1,000 words now lol.

I don't have any way to know or measure how much I know.
I just made a scientific wild @ss guess.

[Trenchcoat]

Just out of interest, has there ever been anyone on here that as a complete foreigner has learnt up Russian or Ukrainian, or similar as a foreign language from absolutely knowing nothing to being fluently conversational in it?

Potentially we could make this a big RWD Competition to see who can manage it first.

[2tallbill]

Just out of interest, has there ever been anyone on here that as a complete foreigner has learnt up Russian or Ukrainian, or similar as a foreign language from absolutely knowing nothing to being fluently conversational in it?

Potentially we could make this a big RWD Competition to see who can manage it first.

I believe TwoBitBandit did it. Boe is fluent, her Grandmother spoke to her
exclusively in Ukrainian as a child. So that probably doesn't count as much
as one of us seekers. There are others that relocated to the FSU and lived
and worked there for decades, I assume they became fluent.


TwoBitBandit has a TR here
http://www.russianwomendiscussion.com/index.php?topic=11863.0

He has a post at the end of the TR answering one of your questions

[Trenchcoat]

Wow! I am shocked and surprised by TwoBitBandit:

"I speak Russian.  I wouldn’t say that I’m fluent, but I can carry on a conversation and know five thousand words.  My grammar is quite accurate, even when using more complicated grammar concepts like passive participles and verbal adverbs.  My reading and writing is pretty good.  I don’t get the opportunity to speak and listen as much as I’d like, but I have no problem carrying on a conversation.  I chat with Russian girls all the time on the phone in Russian.  It’s not a problem as long as the connection is clear.  I spend several hours a week studying Russian, and not just for the purposes of chasing girls."

5000 words! And the guy isn't quite fully fluent

I probably know in reality maybe around 10 percent of the words he knew back then lol. It looks like I have a mountain to climb in this regard. I haven't been able to put anywhere near the time input this guy has.

Still I really appreciate you posting this link to his thread Bill. It gives me a real insight into where I need to be and get to in my foreign language learning.

With that sort of effort & time input you don't want to mess up on the decision whether to learn Russian or Ukrainian language lol.

[Trenchcoat]

Just read the end of the thread. I'm surprised that TwoBitBandit wasn't able to lick it with a LTR in Russia, etc. It looks like in the end he ended up with pretty much full mastery of the Russian Language. I would have thought with that knowledge of the Russian language he would be way ahead out there and a long term relationship wouldn't be a problem.

[krimster2]

a trip to Ukraine, ain't exactly like "Stanley and Livingston" searching for the source of the Nile
in case ya didn't know, denial is a river in Africa

you white boys, should stick to big cities in western ukraine,
get the drone warnin app on yur iphone and nice comfortable Bt earbuds, and program it to alarm at night for a drone/missile warning
have a predetermined bomb shelter to go to, have a "snack box" all prepared
have clothes ready to quickly get dressed
that's all ya gotta do
if little kids in Ukraine can handle this, a big strong western bela malchick should do just fine

big cities in western ukraine have big universities, maybe 1/4 of the undergrads speak conversational English
higher for graduate students
some of the classes related to English, will have 100% speaker rate
in Ternopil State University, it's 100% English rate - all the students speak SOME level of English
if you are in yur early 40s, and are "presentable" in terms of appearance, at least upper middle class, educated, own yur own home
you can "hit on" these college girls, and you WILL NOT BE instantly rejected like you would in the USA
but the first time you see them naked, yur gonna be like a rabbit stunned by the headlights before his ass gets run over

Every woman in Ukraine has a nagging fear that RUSSIA MIGHT WIN THE WAR
as well as enduring/suffering  the "vicissitudes of war" on a daily basis
so they start thinkin about "an exit plan" to ESCAPE to some far away place that's always warm and sunny and has good shopping

and that's where you come in

to each according to their need
from each according to their ability

[2tallbill]

Wow! I am shocked and surprised by TwoBitBandit:

"I speak Russian.  I wouldn’t say that I’m fluent, but I can carry on a conversation and know five thousand words.  My grammar is quite accurate, even when using more complicated grammar concepts like passive participles and verbal adverbs.  My reading and writing is pretty good.  I don’t get the opportunity to speak and listen as much as I’d like, but I have no problem carrying on a conversation.  I chat with Russian girls all the time on the phone in Russian.  It’s not a problem as long as the connection is clear.  I spend several hours a week studying Russian, and not just for the purposes of chasing girls."

5000 words! And the guy isn't quite fully fluent

I probably know in reality maybe around 10 percent of the words he knew back then lol. It looks like I have a mountain to climb in this regard. I haven't been able to put anywhere near the time input this guy has.

Still I really appreciate you posting this link to his thread Bill. It gives me a real insight into where I need to be and get to in my foreign language learning.

With that sort of effort & time input you don't want to mess up on the decision whether to learn Russian or Ukrainian language lol.

He's fluent, he's trying to feign modesty/humility.

[krimster2]

for every rule, there is an exception
it's NOT an absolute requirement that you speak Russian/Ukrainian
to go "hunting" in Ukraine

this place REALLY IS EXCEPTIONAL cuz of the amount of English spoken there, probably the highest % English speakers in all of Ukraine
http://www.tdmu.edu.ua/en/
the best time to be there is early spring when the weather first turns warm
and they have nude sunbathers

can you imagine being a young American guy going to school there
can you imagine the sex life you'd have there?

sheeeeeeettttt holmes....

[Trenchcoat]

a trip to Ukraine, ain't exactly like "Stanley and Livingston" searching for the source of the Nile
in case ya didn't know, denial is a river in Africa

you white boys, should stick to big cities in western ukraine,
get the drone warnin app on yur iphone and nice comfortable Bt earbuds, and program it to alarm at night for a drone/missile warning
have a predetermined bomb shelter to go to, have a "snack box" all prepared
have clothes ready to quickly get dressed
that's all ya gotta do
if little kids in Ukraine can handle this, a big strong western bela malchick should do just fine

big cities in western ukraine have big universities, maybe 1/4 of the undergrads speak conversational English
higher for graduate students
some of the classes related to English, will have 100% speaker rate
in Ternopil State University, it's 100% English rate - all the students speak SOME level of English
if you are in yur early 40s, and are "presentable" in terms of appearance, at least upper middle class, educated, own yur own home
you can "hit on" these college girls, and you WILL NOT BE instantly rejected like you would in the USA
but the first time you see them naked, yur gonna be like a rabbit stunned by the headlights before his ass gets run over

Every woman in Ukraine has a nagging fear that RUSSIA MIGHT WIN THE WAR
as well as enduring/suffering  the "vicissitudes of war" on a daily basis
so they start thinkin about "an exit plan" to ESCAPE to some far away place that's always warm and sunny and has good shopping

and that's where you come in

to each according to their need
from each according to their ability

Indeed, you've got it spit on I think Krim, from eyes and ears on the ground (not me) the temperament of many in Ukraine is to want out of the situation. The bombardment continues, the war continues, the economy is in a bad way, food, drink and rent prices are rising and on top of that the electricity grid is screwed, that means power blackouts and high electricity costs, separate individual generators if lucky enough.

So all that seems to have moved things back to immediate post Soviet years, of Ukraine (Russia also) being a bad place to be and the women once again wanting out! Just think it took Putler and a few years of war to bring back that mindset in FSW. I think earlier in the war they were hopeful of a end to the war before things got too f*cked up and things before too long returning to normal. Now in Ukraine the deverstation has gotten too much, the economy too far gone and everyone knows it. It will take probably well over a decade maybe two or more to get back into a decent situation.

When I was in Kyiv in the Summer of 2019 Kyiv was looking increasingly prosperous, it was not me but others that were over there at the time and we were all saying the same thing - girls in Kyiv were no longer hanging out with much older guys, this sighting seemed to be becoming a rarity. I think it was Gaunty & DK/Japs who reported much the same as me on that one. It was kind of a forget that there, I myself didn't really pick up on much interest from the women there. Most of the younger women were with local young guys around the same age, but now that prosperity is gone. Even those Ukrainians who are abroad who wanted to return to Ukraine no longer do so, the mood has changed significantly, they would rather now not return as the place has become so f*cked up.


Well anyway to resurrect a previous idea my plan if I was still looking for a Ukrainian girl would be to get a cheap place in Corfu to do up. Get a place not too far from Corfu Town with it's shops, quaint atmosphere and convenient airport. In the depths of winter around Christmas time it never really gets colder than 13 degrees there, so everyday walking around weather without shivering uncomfortably like you would in the UK or Ukraine.

That would be my preference, others like Mobers choose Cyprus. I have heard of many foreign dudes operating out of Cyprus for FSW. It's ok if you like year round heat without much let up and you and/or your girl like shopping, very many new modern and large shopping malls just out of town on the Greek side of the Island, the Turkish side I don't know. Anyway all the big western brand name clothing shops there. With the way things are in Ukraine I would guess that no materialistic Ukrainian girl would want to return to Ukraine after that. Lots of Russian ex-pats out in Cyprus also.

Finally I guess there is Turkey, close to Ukraine and familiar to many Ukrainians. A different religion to Orthodox if religion is there thing but again year around heat in a big way. For many Russians, Ukrainian women and UK guys Turkey may be a good choice if wanting to life there permanently as it is easy access and staying there a longer while may be easier. I don't have any pull particularly for Turkey I would much prefer Corfu or even Greek Cyrus but whatever suits I guess.

[Trenchcoat]

for every rule, there is an exception
it's NOT an absolute requirement that you speak Russian/Ukrainian
to go "hunting" in Ukraine

this place REALLY IS EXCEPTIONAL cuz of the amount of English spoken there, probably the highest % English speakers in all of Ukraine
http://www.tdmu.edu.ua/en/
the best time to be there is early spring when the weather first turns warm
and they have nude sunbathers

can you imagine being a young American guy going to school there
can you imagine the sex life you'd have there?

sheeeeeeettttt holmes....

I know, I guess I am kind of onto wanting to get immersed in the culture more in learning Russian better. I think I kind of gotten to the point where I don't just want to be a guy on the prowl out there for a FSW again no need at present anyway but I just want to feel what the country is all about. At the end of the day I know England like the back of my hand and it's culture so there is nothing to learn there. In dating a Ukrainian girl though I would really like a deeper understanding of Ukrainian/Russian culture to feel at one with it.