Here another one... Now I am in Simferopol

[kievstar]

Brad, the best universities in the World are in the USA.  But Kharkov area is considered the best in Ukraine.  Really depends on what your studying.  But teaching Russian does not require billion dollar investments like science so many schools can do it very well.

[ECOCKS]

If it helps, think of it this way, if you wanted to learn English for a fluency program would it make any difference if you took lessons at Duke University, North Carolina or Boston College, Massachusetts? New York University or Aberdeen, Scotland? Both are excellent schools but in regions with stronger dialects than say, Stanford University, California.

The facts are that Ukraine is the home of the Rus and WAS a region of Russia/USSR for centuries just as people in certain areas of Poland, Switzerland, Czech Republic and France were at times part of Germany due to the vagaries of migration, war, conquest and political compromise. It's as pointless an argument as whether someone from Kyiv speaks better Russian than one from Rostov as it is whether a person in Florence, South Carolina speaks English better than someone from Kennebunkport, Maine.

Does this guy speak English?

http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=31142582

If the real question you are asking is can I learn Russian and pass myself off as a 3rd generation Muscovite? Well, I'd have to say, "No, you need to go to Moscow for that." If you are asking can I learn Russian as well as any American or Brit can in order to communicate with native Russians/Ukrainians or even apply for a job and classify myself as a bilingual Russian speaker well enough to be hired as a Foreign Service Officer by my government, the answer is, "Yes."

[Opprobrious]

  The OP is after a rush of excitement full of adventure and tales of sin and flesh. Do not deny yourself your cravings but do not fool yourself into overindulgence.

[brad5959]

Brad, the best universities in the World are in the USA.  But Kharkov area is considered the best in Ukraine.  Really depends on what your studying.  But teaching Russian does not require billion dollar investments like science so many schools can do it very well.

yes I know the best Universities are right here in the USA.  regarding Ukraine if you google for top Universities in Ukraine you will see that several universities in Kiev outrank those in Kharkov.  nothing wrong with Kharkov though, very liveable city with lots of pretty women!!

and of course many language schools in Ukraine teaching russian are just fine.

[Misha]

If the real question you are asking is can I learn Russian and pass myself off as a 3rd generation Muscovite?

Unless you are five when you move to Moscow, I really doubt you could do it even if you spent your lifetime living and studying in Moscow 

 

My wife was complaining to me yesterday that she is having a hard time understanding what her friends write from time to time. They use the latest slang and because my wife hasn't been living there for close to 4 years, she doesn't always understand some of the jargon they use when writing to her.... So, the moral of the story, is that learning any language is a lifetime endeavour 

[ECOCKS]

yes I know the best Universities are right here in the USA.  regarding Ukraine if you google for top Universities in Ukraine you will see that several universities in Kiev outrank those in Kharkov.  nothing wrong with Kharkov though, very liveable city with lots of pretty women!!

and of course many language schools in Ukraine teaching russian are just fine.

The very best Universities are about where you would expect given the population and economic power distribution. Europe is developing curriculum and programs to meet the needs of the New Age and getting to where they are pretty fairly represented in the rankings all things considered.

[swissfranky]

To the russian discussion.
Ukraine is not equal Crimea. Crimea was a part of Russia!!!!! Here everyone speaks Russian and do not speak Ukrainian. They hate ukrainian and thay want to be again a part of Russia.
It is obvious that in the different parts of Ukraine the accent is different. For example in western Ukraine they speak more ukrainian.

But: Do you think that in Sibiria they have the same accent as in Sotshi??

I will post later my imagine of my "perfect" woman.

[Opprobrious]

To the russian discussion.
Ukraine is not equal Crimea. Crimea was a part of Russia!!!!! Here everyone speaks Russian and do not speak Ukrainian. They hate ukrainian and thay want to be again a part of Russia.
It is obvious that in the different parts of Ukraine the accent is different. For example in western Ukraine they speak more ukrainian.

But: Do you think that in Sibiria they have the same accent as in Sotshi??

I will post later my imagine of my "perfect" woman.

  In most countries with a sizeable land mass to call their own, there will of course be different accents and dialogs. I fail to understand why this discussion has lasted as long, the answers you seek are the ones you must obviously know already, sans the OP.

[Rina_G]

Hi swissfranky!
my opinion about your story
it's happend cause you have no experience in dating before
there are such mistakes which each can make at first time.
yes you had beleif and lost one
yes you spent money - each life lesson has price and beleive me - you rid of small blood
pluses: this first story was over, you're learning russian, you're in simferopol, now is summer
On your place I didn't look for girl in internet if you walk around them
Im Krym in summer there are so many good lonely girls from all former soviet union
 walk on street tonight, meet and practice in russia.
when foreing man tells
Hello I learn russian and can you help me?
nobody goes farer
you can choice great girl there till you're
good luck

  

[Stirlitz]

he is studying Russian in Crimea--that's all they speak and learn there.  let's get an expert opinion from Stirlitz if he is available.  Stirlitz, do you believe this statement that you cannot learn proper Russian in Ukraine??  I mean at a proper language school.

I don’t know much about studying Russian as I know it too well to study. But I do not think it would make any difference if you study Russian in Ukraine or another Russian-speaking country like Ukraine. In fact, Russian is the second language of Ukraine. (The government being ruled by hard-line nationalists who claim that Ukrainian is the only language has nothing to do with the people speaking Russian every day. It is as stupid as prohibiting the Swiss to speak German because it should only be spoken in Germany). Russian is the native language for many Ukrainians. Yes it could be different from the one spoken in Russia. However, differences in Russian are not so serious as in German on English and it does not really matter where you study it, Russia or Ukraine. In fact, Russian spoken in Moscow can be more different from Russian spoken in Voronej, than from Russian spoken in the Crimea or Odessa. The bottom line is people from Russia or Ukraine always understand each other even if they are from different regions. It really does not matter.

[He HATO]

NATO and the US military cycle Russian language specalists through Ukraine for final fluency training due to the easier travel situation (no visas, registrations or time restrictions). There is no practical difference in the Russian language spoken in Ukraine and Russia. Stalin, Brezhnev and Kruschev were all from the Ukraine, it doesn't get much more Russian than that.

Stalin was from Georgia Ed...  born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili or იოსებ ბესარიონის ძე ჯუღაშვილი   (in Georgian) Incidentally, he was born in the town of Gori which is in the Ossetia provence that was 'occupied' by the Russians in 2008...

[swissfranky]

I know it is nothing new but to hear it personally from the girls it is something different.

With the 19yo girl that I met on mamba (she is still my favorite!!!) I went to Yalta. In the night at the beach we was talking about everything and I told her also my story with the girl of the agency. She was loughing at me and she told me that she was also asked by an agency to chat with men. A friend of her accepted, and she is talking with a lot of foreigners, without interest, and receiving tons of gifts. For every man that visit her she receive a certain amount of money.

Another girl (25yo) I met (also found on mamba) she is a englich teacher and she told me that she was asked by an agency to help with translations. She accepted the job, and when she showed up to begin the work they told her to just answer the letters telling the men something..... she denied!

So that was it for this time.

[ECOCKS]

Stalin was from Georgia Ed...  born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili or იოსებ ბესარიონის ძე ჯუღაშვილი   (in Georgian) Incidentally, he was born in the town of Gori which is in the Ossetia provence that was 'occupied' by the Russians in 2008...

Oooops, my bad. Stalin was from Georgia and Kruschev came over as a youngster to live and work in Ratern Ukraine. The point is that Ukraine was Russia until 20 years ago. 

[brad5959]

I know it is nothing new but to hear it personally from the girls it is something different.

With the 19yo girl that I met on mamba (she is still my favorite!!!) I went to Yalta. In the night at the beach we was talking about everything and I told her also my story with the girl of the agency. She was loughing at me and she told me that she was also asked by an agency to chat with men. A friend of her accepted, and she is talking with a lot of foreigners, without interest, and receiving tons of gifts. For every man that visit her she receive a certain amount of money.

Another girl (25yo) I met (also found on mamba) she is a englich teacher and she told me that she was asked by an agency to help with translations. She accepted the job, and when she showed up to begin the work they told her to just answer the letters telling the men something..... she denied!

So that was it for this time.

just curious...did they specify which agency or agencies??

[swissfranky]

No they didn't specify. I didn't wanted to be to interested about. But maybe I should have asked.