Bumping Into Russians
At the airport. In the lobby. Suddenly I’m hearing Russian conversations all around me during my stay in Dubai, giving the war, for me, a new dimension.
I don’t speak Russian. But I know Russian speak, and I’ve been hearing more of it here in Dubai, where I have been living the past few months. The language can sound harsh. But when spoken in hushed tones it has a velvety, elegant, almost hypnotic quality that renders it unmistakable.
The title character played by Jamie Lee Curtis in A Fish Called Wanda was so taken by the language that she responded erotically when John Cleese’s character, Archie, spoke Russian gibberish in the hope of seducing her. I’m no Wanda. But I always take note.
Returning to Dubai after a recent flight, as I snaked through an endless line at immigration, a Russian father nearby was calling for his fidgety children to behave: “Deti vedut sebya!” he barked. Okay. I’m not sure that’s what he said. Because I don’t speak Russian. But his kids fell in line pretty darn fast.
Outside the airport, a young man who had been waiting with a colorful bouquet called out “Solnishko!” in obvious delight as he rushed to a young woman. I had to Google it. The translation was “little sun,” a common Russian term of endearment. Later, at the hotel, a Russian family was checking in as I passed the front desk.