Press Ctrl+F Or ⌘F To Do A Quick Search!

Ladies and gentlemen, Alexander Rusakov as Russian Levi. You're welcome.

"trying to pronounce мягкий знак (ь)

(didn't succeed)"

this post isn't about translation or Improvisation. it's just a couple of pictures I took in Moscow so far.

I'll be back home this Sunday. my next translation is half done already. thank you for your patience!

I’m not gonna lie, this is probably my favourite episode from Evening Urgant. This is a bit from the interview with Stephen Colbert.

What are they talking about? Stephen and Ivan are referring to the so called ‘White Nights’ (Белые ночи), which Saint-Petersburg is famous for. It’s a night when it is never properly dark. The White Nights’ season usually takes place from June 11th to July 2nd. By ‘the bridges’ Ivan meant the Palace Bridge, which draws at 1:10 AM and 3:10 AM.

A picture from Wikipedia taken in Saint-Petersburg. June 23rd, 2009, 11:49 PM

The Palace Bridge during White Nights

The original video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WT3VFQ8wYZg The cut version they showed at Stephen’s show: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zWnVV3-0wgw

Just a fun fact

The word 'очевидец' is a combination of an old Russian noun 'очи' (eyes) and verb 'видеть' (to see). Just like that, the word itself means 'eyewitness'.

Dmitri Prigov’s visual poetry

Dmitri Prigov (1940-2007) was a Russian conceptual poet, artist, and dissident. One of the things he is famous for is his стихограммы (стих ‘poem’ + грамма (’gram’, a part of words like phonogram or program, from Greek γράμμα ‘recording’)) 

I don’t understand much about poetry, and probably neither do you, but I mean look at that 

Как я весел! Как я мил! – How cheerful I am! How nice I am! Смерть рядом – Death is near

Ин вино веритас – ‘In vino veritas’ (Latin), In wine there is truth А в пиве что? – And what’s there in beer?

В начале было слово, и слово было у Бога, и слово было Бог (сentral circle) – In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God  И свет во тьме светит – And the light shines in the darkness

Если враг не сдается, его уничтожают – If the enemy does not surrender, he must be destroyed Нет – No Враг – Enemy

И восстанут они все из могил своих, и призовут нас всех к ответу – And then they will all rise up from their graves and bring us all to justice

THIS ONE. This is my favourite episode of Improvisation. Hands down. I strongly recommend to watch this one with sound on! * — wooden spoons are actually a Russian traditional musical instrument. Nope, not joking. Here's a cool video that shows what these spoons look like and what they sound like: Russian Wooden Spoon (Musical Instrument Sound).

here's a comp of completely random pictures in russian that make me giggle: pt 1??

(news article) a blogger got lost in a forest shooting a video on how to not get lost in a forest

um so whens this gonna turn into crab flavored lays

"please, don't knock on the glass! Dusen'ka is resting!"

-aha, you've got lack of tea and sweets -i knew it

a poet Valery Bryusov sitting under a table because he likes it

and my personal favorite that doesn't need a translation:

have a great holiday!

Slang Word of the Day: рукожоп

Рукожоп - literally, "ass-hand", "arms attached to the ass", somebody who can not do anything well, who makes everything very poorly, cannot fix anything, breaks everything, all-thumbs;

Какой рукожоп банку это приложение написал? What an idiot/all-thumbs made this app for my bank?

Is there a word for this in your mother-tongue?

"Crocodile Gena" (1969) and "Cheburashka" (1971) are puppet cartoons, based on the book of Eduard Uspensky. Crocodile Gena works in a zoo as a crocodile. He is very lonely. Gena finally decides to make friends. Animals and people react to his announcement. Soon, Cheburashka comes to his place, and together they begin to do good things.

«Крокоди́л Ге́на»» (1969) и «Чебурáшка» (1971) - ку́кольные мультфи́льмы, сня́тые по моти́вам кни́ги Эдуа́рда Успе́нского. Крокоди́л Ге́на рабо́тает в зоопа́рке — крокоди́лом. Он о́чень одино́к. Наконе́ц Ге́на реша́ет завести́ себе́ друзе́й. На его объявле́ния отклика́ются зве́ри и люди. Вско́ре к нему́ прихо́дит Чебурáшка, и они́ вме́сте начина́ют де́лать до́брые дела.

Among his multiple talents, Gena plays accordion and sings. On a rainy day, which happens to be his birthday, he sings the following song:

Песня Крокодила Гены

Пусть бегут неуклюже,

Пешеходы по лужам,

А вода по асфальту рекой.

И неясно прохожим,

В этот день непогожий,

Почему я весёлый такой.

Я играю на гармошке,

У прохожих на виду,

К сожалению, день рожденья,

Только раз в году.

Прилетит вдруг волшебник,

В голубом вертолёте,

И бесплатно покажет кино,

С днём рожденья поздравит,

И, наверно, оставит,

Мне в подарок пятьсот эскимо.

Я играю на гармошке,

У прохожих на виду,

К сожалению, день рожденья,

Только раз в году.

Gena the Crocodile's Song

Never mind that the clumsy pedestrians

are jumping over rain puddles.

And that the water is streaming down the street.

And never mind that the passers-by can't make sense of

Why is it that I'm so happy on such a dreary day.

Yet I'm playing my accordion

In front of everyone on the street.

It's so sad that a birthday

Can only happen once a year.

A wizard will suddenly appear

In a blue whirlybird,

And will show me free movies.

He'll say Happy Birthday

And just before he flies away

He'll probably leave 500 ice cream cones for me.

Yet I'm playing my accordion

In front of everyone on the street.

It's so sad that a birthday

Can only happen once a year

(https://youtu.be/lUBNtYixTSs)

Russians use some phrases from this cartoon in speech:

Некоторые фразы из этого мультфильма русские используют в речи：

Мы строили, строили и наконец построили. Ура! (We built, built and finally finished. Hooray!)

Чебурашка, ты настоящий друг.(Cheburashka, you are true friend)

Опять чебурахнулся*. Ух ты, Чебурашка какой. (*ЧЕБУРÁХНУТЬСЯ - Упасть с шумом /this verb means to fall with a big noise. The name Чебурашка is derived from the verb чебурахнуться)