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INTRODUCTION Oxana: [Здравствуйте, с вами Оксана.] Eddie: Eddie here. Gengo Russian Season 1, Lesson 15. Your chance to be the life of the Russian party. Ok, speaking of which John is getting his first taste of business in Russia. Oxana: Well, he did have some business meetings in the last lesson. Eddie: True but come on, Axanna. Everybody knows that no business gets done without a table of food and some drunkenness. Oxana: That’s what you mean by “taste”. Got it. Eddie:But first let’s go over the day’s events of the last lesson. First off, I know he did a lot of things together with different businessmen and colleagues. Oxana: Yes, and to say that you did something with someone in Russian we use the word [с] and the phrase patterns as follows. Eddie:So remember, John met with three people. Oxana: [С представителем.] Eddie:With the representative. Oxana: [С менеджером.] Eddie: With the manager. Oxana: [С владельцем] Eddie: “With the owner.” He had so many things to do that we learned the expression for “a busy day” which was… Oxana: [Напряженный день.] Eddie: Well, after a day like that I think some relaxation is in order. Break out the vodka, Axanna. Oxana: Yes, that’s exactly what we need. Let’s listen in and find out whether John finds it as appealing as we do. Eddie: Let’s listen to the conversation. DIALOGUE Игорь Иванович: [Наконец-то можно расслабиться. Разрешите представить, это мой друг и партнёр по бизнесу Джон.] Igor Ivanovich: Nakonets-to mozhno rasslabit’sya. Razreshite predstavit’. eto moi drug i partnyor po biznesu John. Джон: [Добрый вечер, я Джон.] John: Dobryi vecher, ya John. Виктор: [О, здравствуйте Джон. Садитесь здесь. Вам нравится русская кухня? ] Victor: O, zdravstvuite John. Sadites’ zdes’. Vam nravitsya russkaya kuhnya? Джон:[Да, очень. Особенно борщ и блины.] John: Da, ochen’. Osobenno borshch i bliny. Виктор: [А как вам русская водка? ] Victor: A kak vam russkaya vodka? Джон: [Ну…] John: Nu… Виктор: [Давайте закажем. Девушка, пожалуйста, борщ, блины и 100 грамм водки. А мне…] Victor:Davaite zakazhem. Devushka, pozhaluista, borshch, bliny i sto gramm vodki. A mne… Eddie: Once again, more slowly. Игорь Иванович: [Наконец-то можно расслабиться. Разрешите представить, это мой друг и партнёр по бизнесу Джон.] Igor Ivanovich: Nakonets-to mozhno rasslabit’sya. Razreshite predstavit’. eto moi drug i partnyor po biznesu John. Джон: [Добрый вечер, я Джон.] John: Dobryi vecher, ya John. Виктор: [О, здравствуйте Джон. Садитесь здесь. Вам нравится русская кухня? ] Victor: O, zdravstvuite John. Sadites’ zdes’. Vam nravitsya russkaya kuhnya? Джон:[Да, очень. Особенно борщ и блины.] John: Da, ochen’. Osobenno borshch i bliny. Виктор: [А как вам русская водка? ] Victor: A kak vam russkaya vodka? Джон: [Ну…] John: Nu… Виктор: [Давайте закажем. Девушка, пожалуйста, борщ, блины и 100 грамм водки. А мне…] Victor:Davaite zakazhem. Devushka, pozhaluista, borshch, bliny i sto gramm vodki. A mne… Eddie: Once again, with the translation. Oxana: Ещё раз с переводом. Oxana: [Наконец-то можно расслабиться. Разрешите представить, это мой друг и партнёр по бизнесу Джон.] Eddie:Finally, we can relax. Let me introduce John, my friend and business partner. Oxana: [Добрый вечер, я Джон.] Eddie: Good evening. I’m John. Oxana: [О, здравствуйте Джон.] Eddie: Oh, hello, John. Oxana: [Садитесь здесь. Вам нравится русская кухня?] Eddie: Sit down here. Do you like Russian food? Oxana: [Да, очень. Особенно борщ и блины.] Eddie: Yes, very much. Especially borshch and bliny. Oxana: [А как вам русская водка? ] Eddie: And what do you think of Russian vodka? Oxana: [Ну…] Eddie: Well… Oxana: [Давайте закажем. Девушка, пожалуйста, борщ, блины и 100 грамм водки. А мне…] Eddie:Let’s order. Waiter, borshch, bliny and 100 milliliters of vodka, please. And for me… POST CONVERSATION BANTER Eddie: Drinking in Russia is not only an integral part of parties, but it’s also something you rarely can avoid in the company of two or more people. Russians are convinced that every foreigner must try their national product of pride – vodka. But they’re also convinced that a rare foreigner can handle it well. What actually amuses them is watching people struggling with their glasses of vodka and winching after every shot. Therefore you can either break the stereotype and show your strength or you can entertain Russians with your weakness of getting drunk quickly. The option of just saying “no” also works. No one will pressure you to drink if you don’t want to. VOCAB LIST Eddie: And let’s take a look at the vocabulary for this lesson. Oxana: [Наконец] Eddie:Finally. Oxana: [Наконец] Eddie:Next. Oxana: [Можно] Eddie: Can, may, allow to, possible. Oxana: [Можно] Eddie: Next one. Oxana: [Расслабиться] Eddie: To relax. Oxana: [Расслабиться] Eddie: Next one. Oxana: [Разрешите представить] Eddie: Let me introduce… Oxana: [Разрешите представить] Eddie: Next. Oxana: [Друг] Eddie: Friend. Oxana: [Друг] Eddie: Next. Oxana: [Партнёр по бизнесу] Eddie:Business partner. Oxana: [Партнёр по бизнесу] Eddie: Next. Oxana: [Добрый вечер] Eddie: Good evening. Oxana: [Добрый вечер] Eddie: Next. Oxana: [Садитесь] Eddie:“Sit down” – polite command form. Oxana: [Садитесь] Eddie: And next. Oxana: [Здесь] Eddie:Here. Oxana: [Здесь] Eddie:Next. Oxana: [Нравится] Eddie:To like. Oxana: [Нравится] Eddie:Next. Oxana: [Кухня] Eddie:Cuisine, food, kitchen. Oxana: [Кухня] Eddie:Next. Oxana: [Очень] Eddie: Very. Oxana: [Очень] Eddie: Next one. Oxana: [Особенно] Eddie:Especially. Oxana: [Особенно] Eddie: Next. Oxana: [Борщ] Eddie: [Borshch] Oxana: [Борщ] Eddie: And next. Oxana: [Блины] Eddie:Pancakes. Oxana: [Блины] Eddie:Next. Oxana: [Как вам] Eddie:How do you find, what do you think of. Oxana: [Как вам] M1: Next. Oxana: [Давайте] M1: Let’s. Oxana: [Давайте] Eddie: And next. Oxana: [Заказать] Eddie: To order, to book, to reserve. Oxana: [Заказать] Eddie: Next. Oxana: [Девушка] Eddie: “Girl” or, in a restaurant, “waitress”. Oxana: [Девушка] VOCAB AND PHRASE USAGE Eddie:Now that’s a menu to be salivated over, huh? Oxana: I know, I miss that kind of food. Eddie:But it’s not so difficult to make at home, right? Oxana: Yeah. And moreover most of the Russians think that if you really want to try an authentic Russian food don’t go to a restaurant. Homemade food is considered to be the best. [борщ], for example, is supposed to be cooked for six hours according to some recipes and what restaurant would ever bother to do that? Eddie: [Блины] is also something that has thousands of different recipes, right? The restaurants don’t use the most sophisticated ones, I guess. Oxana: Well, it’s just better to go to the places that are famous for certain dishes. Some of them are really good, but any Russian middle-aged housewife would insist that her cooking is the best. So if you have a chance to take part in Russian home party, agree immediately. It’s not going to be just Cola and chips, trust me. M1: Ok, now let’s take a look at the vocabulary. Oxana: [Наконец-то] Eddie:“Yes, finally”. Actually the ending [то] makes this word sound very colloquial. In the written language you’ll find [наконец] most of the time. Oxana: Yes, [наконец-то] sounds very conversational but it’s not impolite in any way so don’t worry about using it inappropriately. Eddie: The next word we heard is… Oxana: [можно] Eddie: Which can be translated with all English words that indicate something is being allowed such as “can”, “may”, “it’s ok”, “allowed to”, “it’s possible” and so on. Oxana: The word doesn’t require any pronouns. It doesn’t refer to anyone in particular, but just generally shows that something is allowed. For example, [Можно курить]. Eddie: It’s allowed to smoke. Oxana: [Можно расслабиться] Eddie: We can relax. It’s ok to relax. Oxana: [Можно купить.] Eddie: “It’s possible to buy.” And the next phrase will allow you to seem well-mannered and educated when meeting someone new. Oxana: [Разрешите представить.] Eddie:Which literally means “let me introduce”, then you just say the name of the person you’re introducing. Oxana: [Разрешите представить, это Эдди.] Eddie: Thanks, Axanna. And if I want to introduce myself what should I say? Oxana: [Разрешите представиться] Just add [ся] in the end. Eddie: Let me try. [Разрешите представиться, я Эдди] Oxana: Ok, enough of you, Eddie. Although let me use you one more time in our next phrase. [партнёр по бизнесу] Remember the particle [по]? As long as you remember the structure, you can use any nouns with the word [партнёр] which means “partner”. For example, Eddie is my recording partner so in Russian I can call him [партнёр по записи]. Eddie: How about [партнёр по теннису]? Oxana: Sounds great. Sometimes “partners” also mean boyfriends, girlfriends, husbands and wives and are called [партнёр по жизни] meaning “life partner”. It sounds rather formal though. Eddie: Ok. After John has been introduced, he greets the people in the restaurant, probably friends and family of Игорь Иванович, who wants to show off his foreign partner. What does John say? Oxana: [Добрый вечер] Where [добрый] is “kind” and [вечер] is “evening”. And altogether they stand for the phrase “good evening”. [Добрый вечер] Eddie: And the crowd greets him back. Oxana: [Здравствуйте, Виктор] Our well-known hello for all possible cases. Eddie:There’s this guy, let’s call him Victor, who has a place next to him, and he’s excited for John to take that place. Oxana: [Садитесь здесь] Eddie: The word [садитесь] should be familiar to you from the second lesson where Ileana invited John to sit down. And [здесь] means “here”. Oxana: But don’t confuse it with another “here” that we’ve learned before, [вот]. [Вот] only indicated “here” when you’re pointing at something or giving something to a person, more in the meaning of “here you are” or “here it is”. And [здесь] is the word to indicate a place, the literal “here”. Eddie: So Victor has John next to him and the ice-breaker in the restaurant is asking about food, obviously. Oxana: [Вам нравится русская кухня?] Eddie: Where [вам] means “to you” and [нравится] means “like”. But literally the phrase translates as “is something to your liking?” Oxanna, how do we use the phrase [нравится] with other pronouns when we want to ask whether he likes or they like something? Oxana: Ok, here’s the list of examples. [Мне нравится] Eddie: I like. Oxana: [Тебе нравится] Eddie: You like. Oxana: [Вам нравирся] Eddie: “You like” – plural or polite form. Oxana: [Нам нравится.] Eddie: We like. Oxana: [Ей нравится.] Eddie:She likes. Oxana: [Ему нравится.] Eddie: He likes. Oxana: [Им нравится.] Eddie:“They like.” Oxanna just read them all as statements. To make questions out of these phrases simply raise your intonation at the end. Oxana: Then we have a phrase [русская кухня] which literally means “Russian kitchen” but it implies food, of course. Russian food or Russian cuisine. Eddie: And John was obviously ready for this question. He answers… Oxana: [Да, очень.] Eddie:Yes, very much. Oxana: [Особенно борщ и блины.] Eddie: Especially [борщ] and [блины], which are pancakes. This is a very common answer which basically means he hasn’t tried anything else of Russian food, otherwise he’d named something fancier and really special. [борщ] and [блины] have always been the dishes everyone could afford, therefore they’re the most popular, but they’re definitely not the most outstanding representatives of Russian cuisine. Oxana: Moreover, [борщ] is originally a Ukrainian soup cooked with beet root and therefore has its particular red color. It also has a much richer taste than Russian [борщ]. The Russian version of it is called [щи] and the main ingredient there is cabbage. It has a very light, green color and light veggie taste. Eddie: Well, no matter how simple these dishes are, they will be offered to you in Russia as a must to try. It’s still delicious, especially [блины] with red or black caviar. Oxana: Right. You will also be offered, if not forced, to try Russian vodka. Eddie: But first Victor is asking John’s opinion about this fire drink. Oxana: Not that the answer really matters to Victor, but there it is. [А как вам русская водка?] Eddie: It’s a very useful and very simple phrase. [как вам] Literally it means “how to you”, but it can be translated into English as “what do you think about” or “how do you find”. You can replace [вам], “to you”, with the less formal word [тебе]. Then you just add whatever you want an opinion about. Give us some more examples, Axanna. Oxana: Eddie, [как тебе Москву]? Eddie: [Ну…] Oxana: Eddie’s long [ну] or “well” means he’s looking for words to tell me that he’d seen better but is afraid to offend me. The same is true with John and vodka. He’s obviously not excited about the prospect of getting drunk in unknown Russian company or he just doesn’t find this drink as terrific as Russians do, but he can’t say no directly to Victor’s excited face. Eddie:But either Victor is not a very perceptive man or the answer didn’t really matter to him as he shouts out… Oxana: [Давайте закажем.] Eddie: Which is “Let’s order!” Then he’s calling for a waitress. Oxana: [Девушка] Oxana: Which literally means “a girl”. And if you say [моя девушка] it will even mean “my girlfriend”, but it’s also a way to call for a waitress in a restaurant. It’s definitely more polite than the literal word for “waitress” in Russian. They are girls after all. And what of it’s a waiter? Oxana: Then you should refer to him as “a young man”, which in Russian is [Молодой человек]. Eddie: Victor starts his order with the word “please”. Oxana: [Пожалуйста] Eddie: The same “please” as the English one at the end of a request. But as we know, Russian word order is pretty flexible so you can choose whether to put it at the beginning or at the end of your request. So what did Victor order for John? Oxana: [Борщ, блины и 100 грамм водки.] Eddie: Which is [борщ], pancakes and 100 milliliters of vodka. Liquids in Russia are measure in liters and milliliters, but when it comes to vodka it’s grams. Before, Russians didn’t even say “to drink vodka” but “to eat vodka”. This is how special it’s always been. And then Victor orders for himself… Oxana: [А мне…] Eddie: Which literally means “and to me” or “and for me” and then who knows what he orders. It will be his little secret.

Lesson focus

Eddie: Now let’s take a look at the grammar. The focus is on the verb [давайте] or “let’s”. Oxana: You can also make it sound less formal by dropping the end [те], leaving [давай]. So [давай] and then… Eddie: And then the difficult part – the verb in the future tense used in the form of the first person in the plural, which is “we”, like in the sentences “We will read” or “We will watch”. Literally, your phrases with “let’s” will sound like “let’s we will read” or “let’s we will watch”. Here are some examples. Oxana: [Давай почитаем] Eddie: Let’s read. Oxana: [Давай посмотрим] Eddie: Let’s watch. Oxana: [Давай спросим] Eddie: “Let’s ask.” This will be difficult at first and, while it is, you can use a simple form of a suggestion. You can just say [давай] and then a verb in the dictionary form like [давай читать] and [давай смотреть]. Oxana: People will understand you perfectly well.

Outro

Eddie: That just about does it for today. [До свидания!] Oxana: [До новых встреч. Пока!] Eddie: [Пока!] Игорь Иванович: [Наконец-то можно расслабиться. Разрешите представить, это мой друг и партнёр по бизнесу Джон.] Igor Ivanovich: Nakonets-to mozhno rasslabit’sya. Razreshite predstavit’. eto moi drug i partnyor po biznesu John. Джон: [Добрый вечер, я Джон.] John: Dobryi vecher, ya John. Виктор: [О, здравствуйте Джон. Садитесь здесь. Вам нравится русская кухня? ] Victor: O, zdravstvuite John. Sadites’ zdes’. Vam nravitsya russkaya kuhnya? Джон:[Да, очень. Особенно борщ и блины.] John: Da, ochen’. Osobenno borshch i bliny. Виктор: [А как вам русская водка? ] Victor: A kak vam russkaya vodka? Джон: [Ну…] John: Nu… Виктор: [Давайте закажем. Девушка, пожалуйста, борщ, блины и 100 грамм водки. А мне…] Victor:Davaite zakazhem. Devushka, pozhaluista, borshch, bliny i sto gramm vodki. A mne…