In Brezhnev’s Soviet Union

One evening, after a concert by Duke Ellington, my wife Ann and I were driving home in the office car, a large black Chevrolet Impala that seemed indecently ostentatious next to the Spartan little compacts that Russians chugged around us. To my surprise, one knot of young couples gaily hailed us despite what I had presumed were the risks of unauthorized contact with foreigners. So we picked them up. As we drove toward their part of town, they impulsively invited us in for a drink.

It was a very Russian encounter. All of them, men and women, were doctors or graduate students in medicine, married and in their mid-thirties. Misha, a slender, pale-faced, thoughtful young man who turned out to be our host, spoke quite passable English. We parked kitty-corner from their apartment building rather than right out front. Misha cautioned us not to speak English as we entered the building and slipped past the dezhurnaya, the old woman robed in baggy sweaters, sitting by the elevator, watching the building’s comings and goings.

Misha’s apartment, the first Russian home we had seen, was small and sparsely furnished but comfortable for two — one bedroom-living room, a tiny kitchen, a hall, a washroom, and a toilet. Nine of us sat in a tight little group on and around the bed, which did double-duty as a couch. Misha and his almond-eyed wife, Lena, newly wed, had little to offer except what Russians considered most necessary: a couple of bottles of vodka carried off from the restaurant under someone’s coat, two large pickled cucumbers still wet with brine, and a heel of brown bread. A motley assortment of jiggers, juice glasses, and cups materialized for the vodka, which, according to Russian custom, we drank neat — tossing back the head to knock down a shotful in one quick gulp. So it went, very innocently, until vodka ran out — at about three in the morning. Before we parted, we all exchanged phone numbers and heart-warming expressions of friendship. “We must get together again,” Misha insisted.

Over the next few weeks, I phoned several times. Misha was always out — at work, away on a trip, visiting his parents. But Lena always sounded happy to talk. Once we even discussed where we might meet when Misha was free. One evening when I called, Lena told me I could catch him at his parents’ apartment and make the arrangements. She gave me the number. When I called, Misha answered. But when I gave my name, he hung up. I tried again. The phone was busy. I called Lena back and told her that obviously Misha did not want to see us again, and I apologized for bothering them. “I’m sorry,” she said. “You understand?” I hung up, discouraged but wiser. (Smith, The Russians 1976 abridged)

1. What kind of car did the couple drive in?

2. Why were the Americans surprised by the young people’s hailing them?

3. What was unusual about their invitation for a drink?

4. What were those young people like?

5. What was Misha’s apartment like?

6. Why did Misha caution the foreigners not to speak English?

7. How does the author classify the apartment? How do Russians refer to such an apartment?

8. What food and drink had Misha and his wife?

9. What kind of glasses did they use for vodka?

10. What did strike the foreigners about the manner of drinking vodka?

11. What arrangements did they make for the next meeting?

12. Why couldn’t they meet once more?

EXERCISE 18. Find in the original text the counterparts of these bits of the Russian translation.

1. казалась вульгарно роскошной <>

2. маленькие компактные машины <>

3. несанкционированный контакт с иностранцами <>

4. пригласили нас к себе <>

5. чисто русская встреча <>

6. старшекурсники медицинских вузов <>

7. возрастом за тридцать <>

8. неплохо говорил по-английски <>

9. предупредил нас <>

10. проходили мимо дежурной <>

11. укутанная в свитера <>

12. наблюдала за всеми входящими и выходящими <>

13. наблюдала за всеми входящими и выходящими <>

14. выполняла двойную функцию <>

15. молодожены <>

16. еще влажные от рассола <>

17. по русскому обычаю <>

18. (пить) не разбавляя <>

19. выпить залпом <>

20. договориться <>

EXERCISE 19. Cut down the previous 461-word text to 200 words (formal style).

EXERCISE 20. Translate this text into Russian. Find suitable Russian counterparts of the expressions marked by the bold type. §74-76; 79.2