Unlike Americans who think of a decorated holiday tree as a Christmas tree (рожде́ственская ёлка), Russians always call it a New Year...

How could America get through the holiday season without the sparkling romantic music of Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky's "Nutcracker" (Rus....

I made a trip to a Russian store in Salt Lake City a few weeks ago and was surprised by the number of different 'sweet' gifts for kids in...

Almost everybody knows that tea and vodka are the most popular drinks in Russia. However, not too many people are familiar with a variety...

It’s common for Russian students to say «Ни пу́ха ни пера́!» to each other before exams. It literally means "Not a bit of down, nor a...

What is the corresponding Russian phrase for ‘final exam’? It cannot be literally translated as ‘фина́льный экза́мен'. The final exam...

I don't get enough sleep. Is it because the nights are short, or I sleep so fast? Are you tired and feel the same as the cat in the...

Introduced to Russia in the 17th century, tea has become one of the most popular beverages. Nowadays, it is considered the national...

‘Russian Samovar’ is a little Russian island one block away from Broadway, where culture and tradition stay untouched. Joseph Brodsky...

The podstakannik (подстака́нник, literally means "thing under the glass") is a holder with a handle, most commonly made of metal that...

Samovar (самова́р) is a Russian word that consists of two roots – sam (сам), meaning ‘self’, and var (вар), derived from varit’...

The Russian word ‘натюрмо́рт’ came from the French ‘nature morte’ that means ‘dead nature’. In English, this genre of painting is known...