http://rbth.ru/rubrics/surprised.html Russia Beyond the Headlines en http://rbth.ru/articles/2010/09/07/office_politics_russian_style.html The blistering heat that plagued central Russia for two straight months affected different people in different ways, but possibly the strangest reaction to the heat was exhibited by the head of an agro-industrial complex that produces dairy products. Tue, 07 Sep 2010 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/articles/2010/07/07/the_man_who_refused_a_million_dollars.html What everyone has been talking about for so long and couldn’t quite believe has now finally happened. The Russian mathematician Grigory Perelman has officially refused the Millennium Prize of $1 million awarded him by the Clay Mathematics Institute in Cambridge, Mass., for proving the Poincaré conjecture. Perelman’s explanation for this refusal was as surprising as his actual refusal. He disagrees with the decision of the mathematics community: “I do not like their decision, I consider it unfair,” he said. “I consider that the American mathematician [Richard] Hamilton’s contribution to the solution of the problem is no less than mine.” What Hamilton thinks about this is not yet known. Wed, 07 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/articles/2010/06/28/a_russian_paradise_in_turkey.html One of the singularities of the Russian soul is its genuine belief in the possibility of heaven on earth. This faith has been passed down from one generation to the next. Even in Russian fairy tales miracles happen not “long long ago” as they do in Western European tales, but in the “thrice-nine kingdom”. The tie to a place is palpable. A place where dreams come true, somewhere nearby, you just have to find it. So let’s look. In tsarist times peasants went in search to the East, to Siberia, thereby expanding Russian territory. Mon, 28 Jun 2010 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/articles/2010/05/31/ivanushka_the_little_fool_as_a_symbol_of_the_russian_national_character.html “It’s a horrible film, absolutely revolting, don’t ever see it.” “Total gibberish.” “Now I know why we won the Cold War, if that’s the sort of movie Russians like.” “I wouldn’t be surprised if that movie was one of the reasons why the Soviet Union collapsed.” Mon, 31 May 2010 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/articles/2010/05/05/russian_bachelors_look_west.html Let’s talk about Russian men. A strange new tendency is in evidence: more and more Russian men are looking for a bride on the side — that is, abroad. Wed, 05 May 2010 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/articles/2010/04/06/dont_call_her_a_feminist.html Call a Russian woman a “feminist” and she will most likely take umbrage, or at least start making excuses Tue, 06 Apr 2010 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/articles/2010/03/16/160310_worry.html I have this blouse. It’s one of my favorites, but absolutely impossible to wear in public. No, it’s not see-through and not even form-fitting. But on the back, for decoration, it has a pair of laces that are forever coming undone. And if I wear this blouse with a short skirt, the ends of the laces hang down in a rather amusing way. Tue, 16 Mar 2010 00:00:00 +0300 http://rbth.ru/articles/2010/02/02/02022010holi.html The winter holidays are barely over and already there’s another slew in the offing: Men’s Day (Feb. 23), Women’s Day (March 8), Valentine’s Day and, of course, Maslenitsa — a week of merrymaking and pancake eating ahead of Lent. Tue, 02 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0300 http://rbth.ru/articles/2010/01/11/110110_happy.html Seventy-two percent of Russians report that they are happy Mon, 11 Jan 2010 00:00:00 +0300 http://rbth.ru/articles/2009/12/17/171209_vodka.html Ask the average European or American what sorts of associations the word “Russia” calls up, and 9 out of 10 will say roughly this: vodka, caviar, and snow Thu, 17 Dec 2009 00:00:00 +0300 http://rbth.ru/articles/2009/10/22/221009_doctors.html "Malakhov Plus", a popular morning show on Russian national television, is hosted by Gennady Malakhov, an ebullient 50-something ready to cure all comers of any and all diseases. There is some basis for his claims: Malakhov is a famous healer who has spent years collecting different prescriptions and published several books on folk medicine. Thu, 22 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/articles/2009/10/06/061009_psychoanalysts.html "Well, what does your analyst say?" That innocent question in a foreign film invariably brings a smile to the lips of Russian moviegoers. Still, donґt ever ask a Russian acquaintance that. Theyґll be mortally offended: "Do I look like Iґm crazy?" Meanwhile, theyґll probably be thinking to themselves that the crazy one is you. Tue, 06 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/articles/2009/09/23/230909_sons.html The top news, judging by television and press reports, is who will get little Deni. Let me explain. Deni is no ordinary 11-year-old boy. He is the son of a famous singer, but, far more important, he is the grandson of the Most Famous Singer in Russia, who celebrated her sixtieth birthday this spring on a truly national scale, complete with congratulations from Putin and Medvedev. Wed, 23 Sep 2009 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/articles/2009/08/19/190809_wives.html According to the SuperJob website, only 7% would still agree to marry a non-native, 12% are undecided, and the rest are adamantly against any such arrangement. The general consensus was summed up by the respondent who wrote: "Russian men may be coarser, but theyґre our own." Wed, 19 Aug 2009 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/articles/2009/08/04/040809_tourism.html Every year at the start of the tourist season sociological research centers in various countries consider the question of how tourists of different nationalities feel about one another at resorts. Or rather, who irritates whom more? Tue, 04 Aug 2009 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/articles/2009/07/02/070209_mademoiselles.html Not long ago a deputy in the European Parliament had a brilliant idea: abolish all gender-specific appeals to colleagues of the female sex - "Miss", "Madame", and "Mademoiselle", also "Fraulein", "Señora" and so on - and replace them with the unisex "Deputy So-and-So". Thu, 02 Jul 2009 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/articles/2009/06/25/250609_youth.html According to popular opinion, Russiaґs super-rich are solely interested in material things and only a handful of subjects: oil, metals, Courchevel, and offshore. These rumors may have some basis in fact. But times are changing. Not that Russiaґs billionaires are suddenly thinking about things eternal, about their souls. But something along those lines has begun to interest them: the secret of eternal youth. Thu, 25 Jun 2009 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/articles/2009/06/09/090609_wedding.html The traditional Russian wedding season runs from just after Orthodox Easter through the end of summer. This means that every Saturday morning the typical resident of the typical apartment building must be prepared to be woken by the protracted honking of shrill horns Tue, 09 Jun 2009 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/articles/2009/05/26/260509_bestjob.html A little while ago the whole world (or rather, that part of the world that has easy access to the internet) was jealously following the progress of a competition to get the best job in the world. Tue, 26 May 2009 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/articles/2009/05/21/210509_dacha.html As soon as spring arrives, one can observe roughly the same picture every Friday afternoon in any large Russian city. From about 4 oґclock on, all the roads leading out of the city are jammed with cars. Thu, 21 May 2009 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/articles/2009/05/06/060509_eurovision.html Moscow is pulling out all the stops for Eurovision Wed, 06 May 2009 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/articles/2009/04/23/230409_hooligans.html The annual Fashion and Style in Photography festival is on in Moscow: 28 separate exhibitions around the city, including "Hooligans of the `80s". Thu, 23 Apr 2009 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/articles/2009/04/16/160409_easter.html A notice has been hanging on our office door for two weeks now: "Order your Easter cake at the café on the 12th floor". This year, Orthodox Easter falls on April 19, a week after Catholic Easter. Thu, 16 Apr 2009 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/articles/2009/04/13/130409_bicycles.html Spring has come to Moscow. As usual, Mayor Yuri Luzhkov has suggested local residents start getting around the city on bicycles. He does this every year. No one is surprised and no one reacts. The man has a dream - let him dream. Mon, 13 Apr 2009 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/articles/2009/04/06/060409_beauty.html Imagine an early weekday morning in Moscow or somewhere in the Russian provinces. Tens, hundreds, even thousands of working women are rushing out of their homes to trains, bus stops and the Metro. Yet half of them look like theyґre going not to a job, but a cocktail party. Mon, 06 Apr 2009 00:00:00 +0400