Our Second Date

Today I met again with Anastasia, and this time, we were really clicking. There was little-to-no awkwardness, a feat for me in any situation. I am still beaming from this fact because I have a special gift to make any situation uncomfortable. So props to me.

We started off the discussion with celebrities, clearly an intellectual conversation. She told me how Russians have many adaptations of American reality shows, including Dancing with the Stars and Big Brother. Anastasia mentioned how "J-wow-wow and Slookie" are celebrities even in Russia, a fact which made me a tad ashamed of American culture.

The conversation then transitioned to movies, particularly comedies. While Russians produce their own films, they also enjoy American movies as well. "People always ask me if we watch the movies in English," remarked Anastasia, "and I'm like no, we have translators." They digitally alter the mouths of the actors to make it appear as though they are speaking Russian. They also change some of the jokes in accommodate the Russian audience and their different sense of humor an aspect of translation I had never considered.

Anastasia then had a question for me about friendship. She explained to me how they go to school their whole lives with the same people and live in the same place until they go to university. They have known their friends for many years, know their entire families, and have a very deep relationship. She asked me how we make and keep friends if we switch schools and move around, another difference between Russian and American culture.

After explaining how we tend to develop different groups of friends from each phase of our lives, we determined there is a difference in the meaning of the word "friend."

Friend (United States) noun : a person you enjoy spending time with, does not specify how deep your relationship is (could range from acquaintance to confidant)

Friend (Russia) noun : a person you like spending time with, a buddy

The people we consider a friend in America, they consider a buddy in Russia. Friend has a much deeper meaning in Anastasia's country, with the connotation that you share secrets, spend a great deal of time together, and are important parts of each other's lives.

This conversation with Anastasia was very interesting and highlighted differences between our two cultures and lifestyles that I had never thought about before. I can't wait for our next meeting aka the third date, when things get serious.