Emma, who is learning Russian while living in Boston, once complimented her friend's blue dress, but called it "синее" (a darker blue). Her friend gently corrected her, saying the dress was "голубое" (a lighter blue)...
During one of his first Russian lessons, Mark, who had come to Moscow from Chicago, pointed to his hand and asked what it was called.
You've probably seen this face before. A round, as if inflated, ball of gray fur, tiny pressed ears, and a gaze full of such universal discontent,...
The mere mention of the word "tiger" conjures up images of a sweltering tropical forest, vines, heat, and a striped predator stalking through the tall grass...
Every year, on January 31st, Russian vodka is congratulated on its birthday on the internet. The date is tied to Mendeleev's dissertation, which supposedly...
It's difficult to crack the top ten novels of all time, even with one book. Leo Tolstoy managed it with two right off the bat...
In the July heat, the kitchen smells of dill, a dewy pitcher sits on the table, and six-year-old Grisha points a finger at a bowl of sliced items and...
Imagine Lake Baikal in winter. The vastest, deepest lake on the planet is frozen over, with hundreds of kilometers of silence, snow, and frosty...
Open almost any Russian novel, and on the first few pages, your head will spin from the names. Here's a character named Ivan....
Russian culture has one curious paradox. A country known for being harsh, perpetually freezing, and living a difficult life has given the world...