Helpwithsomequestions?

[Denis Akhapkine]

Dear Zita,

> Point 2.  Advertising. What things are advertised in Russia on billboards?
> Snickers were advertised all over the place when I wrote the first edition of
> the book.  Now, are they still being advertised?  I understand that
> cigarettes, drinks, travel agencies are big.  What else? Computers? Cars?

V Peterburge (pomimo piva i sigaret, kak Vy verno zametili) mnogo reklamy
internet-provaiderov, restoranov i kazino (v osnovnom na Nevskom prospekte).
V metro posle avgusta 1998 stalo bol'she reklamy rossijskih tovarov (v
osnovnom prodovol'stvennuh (maslo, pel'meni etc.)
Nuzhno otmetit', chto chasto, k sozhaleniju, nadpisi na reklamnyh shchitah
importnyh tovarov ploho perevedeny s anglijskogo - i eto novaja cherta.
Vidimo, poka ih bylo nemnogo perevodom zanimalis' professionaly, a s
uvelicheniem kolichestva etim staly zanimat's'a sluchajnyje ludi. Chasto
anglijskij tekst prosto perevodits'a poslovno, naprimer:
LUCHSHIJ ZVUK CHEREZ ISPYTANIJA (kolonki BOSE) - (Best sound through tests)
'through', estestvenno,  dannom sluchaje nikak ne mozhet perevodit's'a kak
'cherez'. Etc.
Reklamy kompjuterov prakticheski net. Avtomobili byvajut, no redko (sejchas
pojavilos' nekotoroe kolichestvo reklamnyh shchitov VOLVO)

>
> Point 64. The Telephone. I have received conflicting reports whether
> telephone directories, especially with residential phone numbers, exist.
> Some Muscovites say that they do, and that they even can be purchased, as
> well as found in libraries and offices.  Others say this is not true.  I
> realize that yellow pages type of telephone books do exist.

Yellow pages (Zheltyje stranicy) sushchestvujut, po krajnej mere v Moskve
i Peterburge. Oficial'nyh spravochnikov domashnih telefonnyh nomerov net
(v Peterburge - tochno, v Moskve - kazhets'a). Takije spravochniki ja
videl tol'ko v ochen' malen'kih gorodkah (napr. Pushkinskie Gory v
Pskovskoj oblasti). Mozhno uznat' nomer telephona chastnogo lica v
spravochnoj sluzhbe telefonnoj seti (dl'a etogo nado znat' polnoe
im'a i god rozhdenija). A mozhno kupit' s ruk piratskij CD-ROM s
polnoj milicejskoj (ukradennoj iz milicii:( bazoj dannyh adresov
i telephonov zhitelej Peterburga (stoit okolo $3)


>
> To obtain a phone number from 09 in 1993 cost 125 rubles and there was no
> charge for non-government business phone number information. Has that changed?

Sejchas eto besplatno

> Point 67. Toilets.
> I understand that the situation has improved
> significantly with the advent of paid toilets. Any comments on this point
> will be appreciated.

Sejchas prakticheski vse tualety platnye (ot 2 do 5 rublej). Zato ih stalo
bol'she. Takzhe stalo bol'she zakusochnyh McDonald's - moi studenty govor'at,
chto vsegda idut v takih sluchajah tuda (besplatno):)

Vsego dobrogo
(izvinite, chto pishu po-russky - po-anglijski mne nuzhno v tri raza
bol'she vremeni)

Denis


Denis Akhapkine                                 phone +7 (812) 552-9750 (home)
Department of Russian Language                  e-mail denis at da2938.spb.edu
Faculty of Philology
Saint-Petersburg State University
Universitetskaya nab. 11
Saint-Petersburg
199034, Russia