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world, rivers and forests teeming with fish and wildlife, awe inspiring volcanoes,
and towering mountains. Russia is the largest country of the Earth, with
enormous tracts of land, its natural and cultural heritage waiting to be discovered.
Russian culture has a long history and tradition and Russians are very proud of it.
Russians consider themselves as a well educated nation. They read a lot, books
are available, and one can afford to buy 5-10 books a month without serious
damage to a family budget. Their general knowledge is very good: they know a
little bit about virtually everything. At secondary schools, they study not only
literature and history of Russia but also the world history, including American
and European history, world literature, world music, and world geography. Many
books of western authors are mandatory reading in the course of literature.
Having a university or college degree is common. Russia has the highest
educational level in the world (more than 40% of the total population has college
or university degree).
Russians are also fond of live performances at theatres and since tickets are
affordable, they enjoy attending theatres: opera, musical, ballet, drama etc.
Usually every big city has a few theatres.
Movie theatres are also popular in Russia and they are equipped with the most
modern sound systems. When Russian people talk about movie theatres, they
usually say "cinema"; if they talk about "theatres", they mean live performances.
The majority of Russians consider themselves as Christians, and belongs to
Russian Orthodox Church. People usually attend the church to light a candle and
pray, to ask God for something or remember a close person who is dead.
Russians are very straightforward. They usually do not hesitate to say what they
think in a way that doesn't leave room for any misunderstanding. When they meet
or phone each other, they seldom spend time on questions like "How are you?"
and go straight to the point. They are not rude; it's just a way of doing things.
Russians are smart. They have so many difficulties and problems in life, that they
can easily find a way-out for anything. They don't have a deep respect towards
any law, including traffic rules. Russians are the most reckless, but at the same
time skillful, drivers, and the most careless pedestrians in the world.
Russians like to emphasize their different attitude towards material values and
consider themselves as sincere, cordial, understanding and unselfish. They like to
talk about "specifics of Russian soul" or "mysterious Russian soul", and repeat
the famous phrase of a Russian poet "You can't understand Russia with your
mind".
Russians love their country. They can criticize it severely, but if you try to do the
same they will defend it furiously. They feel like citizens of the largest country in
the world, which has rich history and deep cultural roots.
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There is a point of view that the main difference in Russian and western way of
life comes from those base beliefs: western life is built on the cult of "enjoy",
Russian life is built on the base of "God endured, so we have to endure too".
But it doesn't mean Russians don't know how to have fun! They do know, and
many Russians abroad miss exactly Russian limitless fun. Russian people do not
have fun on purpose. Fun is just something that happens without plans, when
people are happy and cheerful. In general, Russian people are much more
spontaneous and playful than westerners.
5. The following characteristics of Russian character are given by Russian
people. Read them carefully and say which ones you agree with, which are
humorous and which ones don’t go with Russians.
• If you're invited for a meal, expect that the hosts will feed you until you feel
completely full and not capable of moving. If you think that's dangerous for your
health or you're on a diet, we advise you to emulate satiety, otherwise you will
end up badly.
• We value generosity. We can give you the last piece of bread we have if we
believe you really need it. And we expect the same in return.
• ... and most of us are very proud. Don't talk to us about our vices, we won't
listen anyway. And don't dare to criticize the way our country is -- Russia is the
best place and we will prove it to the whole world very soon.
• Some of us are quite emotional, but somehow it’s all kept inside most of the
time. We may seem a bit cold and too much to ourselves at first, but when you
get to know us better, we're like a volcano.
• We love trends – even though we're not the global trend-setters, we take them to
the extremes. Give us the latest Dazed & Confused and we'll show you how to
turn avant-garde to mainstream and even make good money on it. By the way,
same goes for technology and the internet. We get it later, but we make it better.
• Smoking is a national sport, but many people understand it's not good for health
and will always agree to turn off their cigarette if it bothers you. Many people
have a positive attitude towards healthy lifestyle and have a daily morning
exercise routine or run in the park.
• We are not politically correct, we take pleasure in talking our opinions out loud
and we will not use fancy words to conceal our real feelings.
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• We don't feel easy about talking to strangers on the street, but if you start
conversation saying that you're from another country or ask for some help, there's
a good chance we will be very open, because we are naturally curious about
foreigners.
• When you are invited to the party, bring something with you - beer is usually
accepted with pleasure.
• If you invited a girl or a woman somewhere be prepared to pay for her
everywhere. If you invited a man, he’ll pay for himself, and there's a good chance
he'll pay for you as well without telling you about it.
• Russians are hooligans. It's not because we're bad - we just like everything
extraordinary. But too often we don't express this feeling enough, so when it
comes out, it's like a volcano. That's why you hear our tourists singing folk songs
at 3am and that's why we make a revolution every 80 years.
• Yes, we are superstitious. And if you want to shake our hand, you can never do
it through the doorstep: you have to come in, otherwise we will quarrel. If you
come back to your house just after you left - look into the mirror, it's for your
own good. If you're sitting at the corner of the table, you won't be married for
next 7 years. If a fork falls, a woman is going to come, if a knife falls, a man will
certainly appear.
6. Project work. Use different media sources to find out what foreigners think
about Russians. Make up a presentation on the following topics: a) people
of what nationality misunderstand Russians most of all; b) what traits of
Russian character are admired by foreigners most of all; and c) what are
the most unattractive features of Russian character from the foreigners’
point of view.
UNIT 2
Tourism: Places of Interest in Russia
Lead-in
1. Answer some questions.
a) What type of holidays do you prefer?
b) Do you think tourism is a type of holidays?
c) Which holiday would you choose to go on: in Russia or abroad?
d) What attracts foreigners in our country? What cities are most visited?
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