conversations.from: human
conversations.value: Do you know a description for a book titled Russian Phrases For Dummies about Hundreds with the genre: Reference, Foreign Language Study & Reference?
conversations.from: assistant
conversations.value: Hundreds of useful phrases at your fingertips
conversations.from: human
conversations.value: Do you know the first five paragraphs for this book?
conversations.from: assistant
conversations.value: Russian Phrases For Dummies
  Speaking more than one language is like living more than one life, one of the ancient philosophers said. And it's true — traveling in a foreign country such as Russia suddenly becomes a lot more exciting when you can engage in elegant small talk with a hotel receptionist, compliment your tour guide's dress, or actually read the menu and order the food that you really want. Being able to ask for things instead of pointing at them, and being able to get directions from the locals instead of staring at a map, are some of the little things that make you feel at home.
  You don't even need to cross the ocean to immerse yourself in Russian culture; you can find little Russian neighborhoods (or even pretty big ones!) in many American cities. Whether your colleagues, your neighbors, or your friends speak Russian, the best way to win their hearts is to speak their language to them.
  Another thing you don't need to do is memorize long vocabulary lists or grammar rules. We give you ready-made phrases; you just need to read them and start using them right away to impress your Russian friends!
  From famous Russian writers to a polite way to decline an invitation, this icon marks a wide variety of curious and useful facts about Russian culture.
  If you're curious about how the Russian language works, and if you want to expand your command of Russian to the extent of making up your own phrases, these bits of grammatical information may be of interest to you.
conversations.from: human
conversations.value: Do you know two more paragraphs?
conversations.from: assistant
conversations.value: What do people talk about when they first meet? The topics are highly predictable: You usually talk about yourself.
  After a Russian finds out your country of origin, he may ask you where in the country you're from (such as a city or a state). You may hear questions like
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conversations.value: To express surprise, dismay, admiration, gratitude, or even pain — pretty much any strong feeling — Russians say **Oj!** (ohy). Use **oj** when in English you would say "oops," "ouch," or "wow," or make a facial expression. You can confidently use **oj** in any of the following sentences:
  You can use **S lyogkim parom!** humorously: Say it to someone who got caught in the rain or someone who spilled a drink. Yes, it sounds mean, but Russians have a dark sense of humor.