As many of you know we have been taking Russian lessons for the last several months. We always wanted to learn a second language and decided for an extra challenge it might as well be one of the most difficult! On the second day of classes, Erika didn’t have an afternoon class so she used her best Russian to ask the ladies in the kitchen if she could help cook supper. They were delighted! They spoke no English so it was both a cooking and language lesson for Erika. We found that we knew just enough Russian to make the Russians think we knew a lot more. It helped us in a few practical situations like getting clean towels at the hostel and finding the right bus.
The students who came to English class were very impressed with our Russian and we felt better knowing that even native speakers think their grammar is difficult. Anxious for practice we spoke Russian with everyone we could, including the ladies at the front desk of our hostel. This limited communication and our desire to try got us the keys to the private baths on the last day of our trip! There is only one shower room at the hostel with 3 stalls and with the hostel full of university teachers and students the line can get long at peak hours. We were at the back of the line when we were presented with the keys to the manager’s shower and bathroom. What a perk!
As many of you know we have been taking Russian lessons for the last several months. We always wanted to learn a second language and decided for an extra challenge it might as well be one of the most difficult! On the second day of classes, Erika didn’t have an afternoon class so she used her best Russian to ask the ladies in the kitchen if she could help cook supper. They were delighted! They spoke no English so it was both a cooking and language lesson for Erika. We found that we knew just enough Russian to make the Russians think we knew a lot more. It helped us in a few practical situations like getting clean towels at the hostel and finding the right bus. 
The students who came to English class were very impressed with our Russian and we felt better knowing that even native speakers think their grammar is difficult. Anxious for practice we spoke Russian with everyone we could, including the ladies at the front desk of our hostel. This limited communication and our desire to try got us the keys to the private baths on the last day of our trip! There is only one shower room at the hostel with 3 stalls and with the hostel full of university teachers and students the line can get long at peak hours. We were at the back of the line when we were presented with the keys to the manager’s shower and bathroom. What a perk!
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