My wife left me!

[Bobalouie 0]

That's sort of true for Russian pronounciation being totally phonetic, but you have to know where the accent is in the word and certain letters will be pronounced differently when they're next to certain other letters. The orthography is pretty standard, but without knowing where the stress falls you won't pronounce it correctly, even if you know what sounds all the letters make. It is MUCH more standardized thaт english though.

we aim for communicating half the time in english and the other half in russian.

This is true. I got a curious look from Nadya the first time I said "kak DEE-lah" instead of "kak dee-LAH." This is where it's good to have a tutor.

Wait until you start using possessives...You have to think a couple of words ahead because the possessive words gender has to match the nouns gender, and the noun might not come for a word or two after the possessive. That is my biggest problem.

[visaveteran1 33]

I have to admire the good intentions to honor the Russian language and your spouses through the process. Good for you guys!

But if you really want to honor Russia in a serious way...why not live in Russia for a certain number of weeks or months each year? Immerse yourself in the culture annually and really use the language authentically...not merely as contrived chit chatting with your spouse once a week in the USA. And how far can you carry that Russian language only commitment...what language will you use when the phone rings or there's a knock at the door or your American kid's friends come over to hang out? That's easy....English.

I can see maybe learning Russian as a hobby but where oh where will i find room for another hobby? i can not even finish a good book anymore. For me learning Russian is not practical or worth the time i could be doing something for my wife to make her happy in my good old American way. I want to serve her now in a way that will have immediate positive impact...not many months or years down the road. I have a Russian vocabulary of about 30 words and i think that's about it for me. It's enough to survive in Russia at a base level and converse with my wife when we want to do a simple exchange in Russian. BUT I will never be able to do the rolling RRRR thing...my mouth just does not work that way. So I'm doomed to failure.

Besides, my father's ancestors spoke French...the most beautiful and romantic language in my judgment. When i hear Russians talk it always sounds like they hate each other even if it's a friendly discourse...or they're yelling at each other. French sounds like poetry even when people are cussing each other out.

Bonjour!

[irish44 0]

I got a Russian tutor before I went to Sochi and it sure paid off. Due to work and other daily drains, I don't take many lessons anymore.

To me, the language is both simple and complex. Tanya and Alina do appreciate that I try to speak in Russian to them but most of the time Tanya tells me "English only, please" on our daily phone conversations.

As I am helping her and Alina with their English lessons, I sure do appreciate how hard they are trying. Incredible how fast a 13 yo girl can learn English! Tanya does well also but like me, it is much harder learning as an adult.

My only motivation left is to learn enough of the Russian Language so I can understand when they talk to each other in "code"!

[eekee 182]

That's sort of true for Russian pronounciation being totally phonetic, but you have to know where the accent is in the word and certain letters will be pronounced differently when they're next to certain other letters. The orthography is pretty standard, but without knowing where the stress falls you won't pronounce it correctly, even if you know what sounds all the letters make. It is MUCH more standardized thaт english though.

we aim for communicating half the time in english and the other half in russian.

This is true. I got a curious look from Nadya the first time I said "kak DEE-lah" instead of "kak dee-LAH." This is where it's good to have a tutor.

Wait until you start using possessives...You have to think a couple of words ahead because the possessive words gender has to match the nouns gender, and the noun might not come for a word or two after the possessive. That is my biggest problem.

wait until you write an essay and your teacher says, "well, there are no grammatical errors" and then proceeds to mark the entire in red to fix non-idiomatic speech.

french men and italian men were recently rated the worst lovers. that's all i have to say about romance languages. i found studying them to be really boring. Наш язык лучше.

[Kazan' Tiger 1]

Strange... I feel the exact opposite!

Besides, my father's ancestors spoke French...the most beautiful and romantic language in my judgment. When i hear Russians talk it always sounds like they hate each other even if it's a friendly discourse...or they're yelling at each other. French sounds like poetry even when people are cussing each other out.

Bonjour!

[Bobalouie 0]

I have to admire the good intentions to honor the Russian language and your spouses through the process. Good for you guys!

But if you really want to honor Russia in a serious way...why not live in Russia for a certain number of weeks or months each year? Immerse yourself in the culture annually and really use the language authentically...not merely as contrived chit chatting with your spouse once a week in the USA. And how far can you carry that Russian language only commitment...what language will you use when the phone rings or there's a knock at the door or your American kid's friends come over to hang out? That's easy....English.

I can see maybe learning Russian as a hobby but where oh where will i find room for another hobby? i can not even finish a good book anymore. For me learning Russian is not practical or worth the time i could be doing something for my wife to make her happy in my good old American way. I want to serve her now in a way that will have immediate positive impact...not many months or years down the road. I have a Russian vocabulary of about 30 words and i think that's about it for me. It's enough to survive in Russia at a base level and converse with my wife when we want to do a simple exchange in Russian. BUT I will never be able to do the rolling RRRR thing...my mouth just does not work that way. So I'm doomed to failure.

Besides, my father's ancestors spoke French...the most beautiful and romantic language in my judgment. When i hear Russians talk it always sounds like they hate each other even if it's a friendly discourse...or they're yelling at each other. French sounds like poetry even when people are cussing each other out.

Bonjour!

I plan to do exactly that. I hope to transfer to Moscow within 3 or 4 years. The company I work for has an office there and they are always looking for Russian speakers. I hope to live in Russia for about 3 or 4 years and then return home for a few years, then back, etc.

[Satellite 1]

Come on guys, Russian isn't as hard as Chinese or Hebrew!

Russian is великий и могучий! If you try hard, you can learn it. The only problem might be age... the older you are... the harder it is to learn the language.

The cases and conjugations aren't as bad as they seem to be. You just need someone to explain how they work. I've had lots of american students who now speak very good Russian.

Learning Russian is NOT impossible!

seanconneryii,

Why didn't you find a French lady then? I find your words very offensive. Feel sorry for your spouse too. Do you think it's easy for her to say such simple words as "Better" or "water" in English?

-Olga.

Edited March 3, 2008 by Satellite

[visaveteran1 33]

Strange... I feel the exact opposite!

Besides, my father's ancestors spoke French...the most beautiful and romantic language in my judgment. When i hear Russians talk it always sounds like they hate each other even if it's a friendly discourse...or they're yelling at each other. French sounds like poetry even when people are cussing each other out.

Bonjour!

I agree, French is a beautiful language. My daughter speaks it, and she sounds angelic speaking it. But to me Russian is also a beautiful language for different reasons. It still sounds romantic to me, but a more primitive, earthy romantic. I dig them both.

I have to be honest and maybe contradictory...I like hearing my wife speak Russian.

[visaveteran1 33]

I have to admire the good intentions to honor the Russian language and your spouses through the process. Good for you guys!

But if you really want to honor Russia in a serious way...why not live in Russia for a certain number of weeks or months each year? Immerse yourself in the culture annually and really use the language authentically...not merely as contrived chit chatting with your spouse once a week in the USA. And how far can you carry that Russian language only commitment...what language will you use when the phone rings or there's a knock at the door or your American kid's friends come over to hang out? That's easy....English.

I can see maybe learning Russian as a hobby but where oh where will i find room for another hobby? i can not even finish a good book anymore. For me learning Russian is not practical or worth the time i could be doing something for my wife to make her happy in my good old American way. I want to serve her now in a way that will have immediate positive impact...not many months or years down the road. I have a Russian vocabulary of about 30 words and i think that's about it for me. It's enough to survive in Russia at a base level and converse with my wife when we want to do a simple exchange in Russian. BUT I will never be able to do the rolling RRRR thing...my mouth just does not work that way. So I'm doomed to failure.

Besides, my father's ancestors spoke French...the most beautiful and romantic language in my judgment. When i hear Russians talk it always sounds like they hate each other even if it's a friendly discourse...or they're yelling at each other. French sounds like poetry even when people are cussing each other out.

Bonjour!

I plan to do exactly that. I hope to transfer to Moscow within 3 or 4 years. The company I work for has an office there and they are always looking for Russian speakers. I hope to live in Russia for about 3 or 4 years and then return home for a few years, then back, etc.

That's great you can do that.

[visaveteran1 33]

Come on guys, Russian isn't as hard as Chinese or Hebrew!

Russian is великий и могучий! If you try hard, you can learn it. The only problem might be age... the older you are... the harder it is to learn the language.

The cases and conjugations aren't as bad as they seem to be. You just need someone to explain how they work. I've had lots of american students who now speak very good Russian.

Learning Russian is NOT impossible!

seanconneryii,

Why didn't you find a French lady then? I find your words very offensive. Feel sorry for your spouse too. Do you think it's easy for her to say such simple words as "Better" or "water" in English?

-Olga.

Pride in my ancestors language has nothing to do with who I married. Besides Russian women are more beautiful than French women (Brigette Bardot excepted)! You're right though..."better" sounds like "bitta" from a Russian. I do l smile at hearing "more bitta" comments.

of

Hey, don't be offended...we put up with your "joke" shenanigans...you can put up with mine too. Just having some fun with the language issues. i wish i could speak 5 languages...but I'm still struggling with English. I still can't diagram a sentence...my 7th grade teacher is probably rolling over in her grave.

If i learn more Russian, I'll probably learn it by osmosis. Somehow the words and phrases and grammar structures will find their way into the cells of my brain...as my wife talks on the phone to her mom and friends back in Siberia. Or maybe subliminal tapes as i sleep?

[eekee 182]

Come on guys, Russian isn't as hard as Chinese or Hebrew!

Russian is великий и могучий! If you try hard, you can learn it. The only problem might be age... the older you are... the harder it is to learn the language.

The cases and conjugations aren't as bad as they seem to be. You just need someone to explain how they work. I've had lots of american students who now speak very good Russian.

Learning Russian is NOT impossible!

seanconneryii,

Why didn't you find a French lady then? I find your words very offensive. Feel sorry for your spouse too. Do you think it's easy for her to say such simple words as "Better" or "water" in English?

-Olga.

Как Ломоносов написал:

Карл V, римский император, говаривал, что ишпанским языком с Богом, французским с друзьями, немецким с неприятелем, италианским с женским полом говорить прилично, но если бы он российскому языку был искусен, то к тому присовокупил бы, что им со всеми оными говорить пристойно, ибо нашёл бы в нём великолепие ишпанского, живость французского, крепость немецкого, нежность италианского, сверх того богатство и сильную в изображении краткость греческого и латинского языка.

Karl V, Roman emporer, said that Spanish language is best for speaking with God, French with friends, German with enemies, Italian with women, but if he knew Russian well, he would speak in Russian to everyone, because it would be possible in Russian to find the highness of Spanish, the liveliness of French, the strength of German, the tenderness of Italian, and additionally the richness and strength in the brevity of imagery of Greek and Latin.

I'm not so good at translating from such a old style, but you get the idea.

[visaveteran1 33]

Come on guys, Russian isn't as hard as Chinese or Hebrew!

Russian is великий и могучий! If you try hard, you can learn it. The only problem might be age... the older you are... the harder it is to learn the language.

The cases and conjugations aren't as bad as they seem to be. You just need someone to explain how they work. I've had lots of american students who now speak very good Russian.

Learning Russian is NOT impossible!

seanconneryii,

Why didn't you find a French lady then? I find your words very offensive. Feel sorry for your spouse too. Do you think it's easy for her to say such simple words as "Better" or "water" in English?

-Olga.

Как Ломоносов написал:

Карл V, римский император, говаривал, что ишпанским языком с Богом, французским с друзьями, немецким с неприятелем, италианским с женским полом говорить прилично, но если бы он российскому языку был искусен, то к тому присовокупил бы, что им со всеми оными говорить пристойно, ибо нашёл бы в нём великолепие ишпанского, живость французского, крепость немецкого, нежность италианского, сверх того богатство и сильную в изображении краткость греческого и латинского языка.

Karl V, Roman emporer, said that Spanish language is best for speaking with God, French with friends, German with enemies, Italian with women, but if he knew Russian well, he would speak in Russian to everyone, because it would be possible in Russian to find the highness of Spanish, the liveliness of French, the strength of German, the tenderness of Italian, and additionally the richness and strength in the brevity of imagery of Greek and Latin.

I'm not so good at translating from such a old style, but you get the idea.

"Touche!"

[NYGirl 0]

Come on guys, Russian isn't as hard as Chinese or Hebrew!

Russian is великий и могучий! If you try hard, you can learn it. The only problem might be age... the older you are... the harder it is to learn the language.

The cases and conjugations aren't as bad as they seem to be. You just need someone to explain how they work. I've had lots of american students who now speak very good Russian.

Learning Russian is NOT impossible!

seanconneryii,

Why didn't you find a French lady then? I find your words very offensive. Feel sorry for your spouse too. Do you think it's easy for her to say such simple words as "Better" or "water" in English?

-Olga.

My husband speaks 4 languages fluently and is learning English now. According to him English is sooooo difficult and hard and confusing and Hebrew is piece of cake. I guess to each it's own. I think Hebrew is too complicated and he always laughs and tells me it makes more sense than English. Go figure!

Edited March 3, 2008 by NYGirl

[visaveteran1 33]

Come on guys, Russian isn't as hard as Chinese or Hebrew!

Russian is великий и могучий! If you try hard, you can learn it. The only problem might be age... the older you are... the harder it is to learn the language.

The cases and conjugations aren't as bad as they seem to be. You just need someone to explain how they work. I've had lots of american students who now speak very good Russian.

Learning Russian is NOT impossible!

seanconneryii,

Why didn't you find a French lady then? I find your words very offensive. Feel sorry for your spouse too. Do you think it's easy for her to say such simple words as "Better" or "water" in English?

-Olga.

My husband speaks 4 languages fluently and is learning English now. According to him English is sooooo difficult and hard and confusing and Hebrew is piece of cake. I guess to each it's own. I think Hebrew is too complicated and he always laughs and tells me it makes more sense than English. Go figure!

I don't know...it's all Greek to me!

[eekee 182]

My husband speaks 4 languages fluently and is learning English now. According to him English is sooooo difficult and hard and confusing and Hebrew is piece of cake. I guess to each it's own. I think Hebrew is too complicated and he always laughs and tells me it makes more sense than English. Go figure!

I asked one of my friends which is a fluent, but non-native, speaker of both which was harder to learn, russian or english. he said russian.