I was in Russia in 2019 and the bears did not walk the street. They took the metro.

"Russians don't love Vodka" Life of Boris lied to me..

We need more videos in-country, showing life in Russia! Those are great.

There is a problem in depicting other nations with stereotyping in movies (and guess who makes those) but the biggest problem is the people who learn life from the movies.

...the bear, vodka, spy and mafia stereotypes are more like a "joke" than real stereotypes (like believing that French people drink only wine and eat just cheese, or believing that all UK citizens drink tea at 5 p.m. every day or that Italians eat just pizza and pasta etc)...at least I hope that most people understands that those stereotypes are egzagerated :) however, amazing video :)

The spystereotype is really an US phenomenon I think. I'm from germany and nobody thinks that here. That Vodka thing is a pain in the ass. I always have to heavily cringe when we meet Russians and somebody rides that vodka stereotype home.

Been there, found the people really inviting, providing you try to communicate in Russian, even if it is basic or incorrect, the effort is appreciated, and be polite.

Thank you so much for these videos. I'm Canadian and currently living & running a business in Hong Kong with my wife and kids. We miss living in nature and want very badly to leave Hong Kong sometime after our 4th child is born later this year. We're very, very discouraged to see what's happening with society in North America. It's very sad to see the high crime rates and moral/ethical/political degradation. We feel that Russia may be a better fit for our family with our conservative views on family values. My eldest daughter and I have just started to learn to read, write & speak Russian with the goal of going to see if it's for us. Again, thanks!

Like they sing in the "Soviet March" in the epic game Red Alert 3: "столица, водка, советский медведь.."

Thank you for this video… i was adopted feom russia when i was a baby bc my parents werent suitable, so ive been learning russian to return one day… i really appreciate you breaking the illusions that western media like to create. спасибо!!!

Czechia beats Russia in alcohol consumption? Not sure if I should feel delighted or just go grab another beer.

Awesome video! I'm enjoying this new series! I hope to learn Russian.

Your channel is great. I’m going to recommend it to my German grandmother, I enjoy hearing about the Russian people and their culture.

На самом деле задумывался о том, насколько технологический прогресс проник в нашу жизнь за последние ~5 лет. Когда я опаздываю на работу, заказываю тэху, лень идти в магазин - заказываю самокат, лень даже готовить - заказываю еду. Всё оплачивается телефоном, в большинстве магазинов есть кассы самообслуживания, вон даже чтоб машину заправить выходить не надо

Спасибо, фидор! Я хочу поехать в Россию!

Ironically, in US metropolitan areas I live in or have visited (San Francisco Bay Area, Los Angeles, Seattle, New York), vodka has been extremely popular among people of many age ranges - young, middle aged, and old - for the last 20 years or more. From cheap brands that come in plastic bottles like "Popov" to classy ones in fancy glass bottles like "Grey Goose" and "Belvedere"

Great Video. The Demonstration really made the video more engaging. I was encouraged by your analysis if strength and stereotypes.

Awesome video!

Loving this thanks

Very funny about the bears! When we moved to Florida I had no idea there were bears, but we have them walking through our yard several times a year. We saw one today! I've seen more bears than alligators!

I see your effort in recent vids. Good job

Fedor 9/14/21 Tuesday Greeting from Orlando Florida. I like your and Victoria videos. This is a excellent video.

Hi, thank you for your lesson's as they are a huge help. Just one question, I'm living in England so will I still be able to purchase the BeFluent Class?

Great video. I also would like to see more videos of everyday life in Russia.

We Serbs have myth that we are the same people like Russians just much smaller...

4:20 Interesting technology, you still need to talk to someone despite putting in all the info in the app

Hahaha the bears walking in the streets I was like "okay that one's obviously the most" the you said "this one is actuakky based in truth" 🤣🤣

"I'm going to France, and it's gonna be drinking a lot everyday. You don't think about that too much." Lol, as a French guy I can safely say, yes people drink a lot everyday. Beer or wine for lunch and diner, cocktail hour (Apéro) between meals, beers at the bar with friends or colleagues after work...

Ok that pump ap, that, that is Really cool.

very good. perfect

@5:40: I'd say that people associate Russians with drinking vodka frequently because many believe that it was invented there. I guess the jury is still deciding if it was Russia or Poland but you get the point. France, for example, has a lot of wine - but you don't associate them with wine because it existed well before France did. Granted, it's obviously an untrue stereotype, in many cases, but I think this is a pretty reasonable explanation.

As an American I have never once heard the stereotype that bears walk the streets of Russia. Instead I have heard the stereotype that Russians are strong enough or give no rats but enough to actually fight Bears themselves or take them for their own personal labor uses

8:05 Of course Fedor is NO spy.... his english is toooo good !😆

Great

first time seeing this format. i thought the intro was another ad and was looking for the skip button. 😅

7:04 lmfao

Incredible video! Hope one day I can visit this beautiful country. Btw, do you have in mind a good place in Russia to visit with a girlfriend?

8:06 that's what a spy would say Hahaha just kidding . Love your vids

Hello!

4:26 Яндекс... есть ли что-то, чего он не может сделать? 😊😊😊😊

That’s interesting: “давай” has a general “OK” and “go ahead” kind of meaning.

I’m 18 and Russian Love vodka but not everyday Sometimes you want a very strong drink and string effect after it And you can drink vodka with juice or energy drink - it’s quite good After vodka the wine tastes so good too Just like a grape juice lol

It's a life goal to visit Siberia. It's like Canada, but with tigers! What's not to love?

Bro, could u explain, why in some words they add за and по, please?

Молодец.

I can't count the number of times Germans (we live in Germany) would play into the alcohol stereotype, not only joking about it but also believing they know more about Russian culture than you do. The ones making such "jokes" (direct insults as well) are the ones partying and drinking several times a week, sometimes even passing out or throwing up in school. I have experienced this several times and found it quite ironic. The Russians I know (including my family), on the other hand, consume alcohol only on special occasions and gatherings, not even lots of wodka. My family strongly opposes alcoholism or frequent drinking.

8:03 sounds like something a spy might say 🤔

love Russian from Egypt

Does anybody knows a good barbershop in St Petersburg? I'm new here 🙂

Do you have access on your phone to an app that helps you vote for an opposition candidate?

I am not sure what to say. I was in Russia and I had vodka. Younger people tend to drink more beer these days, but I think vodka still has a presence. The vodka in Russia also somehow just tastes better imo.

Well, hopefully, as the Russian economy grows with all of the new development going on, people’s salaries will also increase.

Hi my name is Aleksandar from Bulgaria im considering relocating in Russia im a profesional truck driver what kind of income i can expect if i find myself a truck driving job in russia and can i live of that income thanks in advance

someone tell me why should i choose Russia over other countries for higher studies in IT?

Hahaha I've never heard about the spy stereotype, but it doesn't surprise me from Americans 😂

Haha while pointing out that Russia is only #18 on the list for alcohol consumption you have the graph crooked.. classic Love your videos.. спасибо большое

The drinking stereotype is related to the 90's, as Russian folks (men in particular) were suffering from alcoholism.

Eghhhh. Whiskey? Really? I'm disappointed. Idc what anyone says: Vodka > Rum + Whiskey. But honestly, I prefer to stick with beer because you can ride a light buzz for the whole night without getting too wasted.

Сейчас вся мафия ушла под пагоны или в кресла чиновников. В следующем эпизоде будет рекламная вставка про банковские приложения и сервисы которые по своей прогрессивности на десять лет вперёд всего мира.

Some of these made me laugh. To be fair I've seen a lot of videos where babuskas are always pushing their vodka onto people I guess that's why I personally thought Russians love vodka. Love this series can't wait for the next one I definitely want to visit Russia one day.

Sometimes nations contribute to their own stereotypes. An example is the Russian film левиафан.

Yep I say the same thing, vodka is not our favorite. It's whiskey :D

The Mafia told you to say that...haha jk jk , love your videos .

После видоса в Россию захотелось поехать.

As an American, I'll say that if people were asking you if you were a spy, they were probably joking. It's an overused trope from Cold War-era fiction, we like to laugh about it. Our humor can be a bit insensitive and clichéd at times (what's the difference between making fun of a cliché and just using it?), but if somebody actually thought you were a spy, it wouldn't make any sense to tell you.

Bears : look, fresh russian meat for us Russian : What are you looking for ? Bears : oh emm emmm no we are just take a walk. have a good day !

Surprise surprise Ireland makes the list 😂😂😂😂

The fact is that there are a lot of Russian men with alcohol problems.

I am skeptical. I think that improvements are granted by the government. If you think and speak in a supportive way, you are blessed by those above. If you oppose, you are cursed.

Почему это видео нет по-русски? Привет из Чехии.

All these stereotypes are really old. You missed Russians are stern and humorless, think Ivan Drago from the movie Rocky IV (1985). And the KGB has everybody under surveillance. "Your papers, please". I enjoy your channel enormously. I'm just starting to learn Russian. I use an app to learn the language then I view your channel to learn what I'm doing wrong. Duolingo should be paying you.

7:55 Haha nice try, you're not fooling me

Tiktok is full of russians who play with bears 😭😭😭

We understood the point with alcohol but don’t French drink every lunch a glass wine? Could be a stereotype

All Russians aren't spies? That's the last time I get my news about Russia from moose and squirrel!

Russia Great✊✊✊✊✊✊✊✊✊🌟🚩❤️🌟

I'm from the Arctic region of Russia and people still ask me if we have penguins and live in wigiwaams 🥴

What are the time zones in Russia? (explained to a European)

Would you ever talk about the politics in Russia such as your political stance? Putin? Navalny? I know it may seem very personal but I am very interested to hear about what you have to say. Keep up the vids.

7:59 Yeah, nice try, Russian spy! :D

Yes you are absolutely right Russian people are strong and so united while the US is more divided than ever

One more thing: every russian play balalaika :)

This stereotypes are really funny, but that's truth, that Russia has a bad reputation in many countries. Not just because of american films, but because of history as well. For example, in Hungary almost every family keep dreadfully terrible stories from that time, when russian soldiers were here. So people maybe believe bad stereotypes easily, although russians left our country more than thirty years ago, and Russia has changed a lot (and of course, communism had more russian victims than hungarian)

Are most of the russians selfish about their life ? Thanks for answering.

Having build rezidential flats and malls doesn't mean improvements in an society and special in Russia ! , What about teachers and police salaries ? Corruption ? You have no idea if there is mafia in Russia , maybe yes maybe not who knows ? Putin?

Sounds like what someone in the mafia would say....

What about homosexuality?

Regardless of our political differences and issues, Russian guys are so hot, hard working and smart!! I’m currently talking to an exchange student coming here to Seattle to become a doctor and he’s everything!! Romantic and smarts. Damn lol ♥️🥰

I never thought about that but yes it’s popular to assume all Russians are spies😂😂😂

I'm American and I will be honest with you. I like how Putin is keeping in check very extreme western liberal policies. I hate how the West tries to push them to the world. Russian military is awesome. Keep Russia strong!

Great video, but I got to stop you on the Russian military or rather the Russian Federation’s military, because they ARE big and have a lot of resources and assets, but they’re under funded, under developed, under equipped, outdated and over politicized. Let me explain; first the population is not interested in serving, they also don’t have much say as to where federal money is spent. Second, the soviet union’s reign held back infrastructure and created many enemies and few allies. The reason they’re on the global stage is due to have nuclear weapons. Meanwhile the nato countries are creating alliances and sharing technologies. Let’s take Swedens military for example. Similar long history to that of Russia, but a lot less active personal. Even for being a conscription state. However every soldier has the best of the best of modern equipment, including updates to armor and aircraft. Sweden also must prepare for a Russian invasion, not to mention the backbone of their allies namely the United states and its massive naval fleet and budget. The Russian military has its might in propaganda and historical events. The Russian landscape is that of legends even beating the likes of nepolian, hitler, and even the Swedish empire in the past, notably when the Russian military was at a severe disadvantage. I don’t personally think that leadership is to blame. The soviet government set the country back very far, and sacrificed a lot of soldiers that would still be of age to serve today. They’re on track to be a formidable force, but they’re statistically in a bad position. But again, the Russian fighting spirit and determination is like no other and for that I offer respect

i thought you are going to talk about yury belkin deadlift because that guy is just apeshit stromg

I have never heard of these bear stories you and other Russians speak of . Not till I started watching Russian videos .I think this is a made up Russian myth .

Most of these answers are solely based on your anecdotes

First

On the subject of vodka, if you go into a Russian supermarket you will find a very large selection of various varieties.... so someone is drinking vodka in Russia. Are Russians alcoholics? I know where I have lived the sale of alcohol has been banned between 23.00 and 07.00. On certain days the sale is completely banned. Also statistics can be manipulated, if like for like comparisons aren't made. Mafia? May be still in Yekaterinburg. The ability to pay for items by phone is not something new or exclusive to Russia. The spy thing works both ways, I've been asked am I a spy when I was in Russia.

Communist propaganda

That sounds like something a Russian spy would say! I know you're hiding something! Jk