Thread: Sochi 2014 - Olympic Winter Games (official site)

The opening ceremony was very beautiful, but the idea to show the alphabet history was some strange I think)

Originally Posted by capecoddah

Coverage in USA sucks. NBC has a soap opera on. NBC Sports has bass fishing. Opening Ceremonies via computer.

Let me congratulate Americans on the first Olympic gold medal (although, considering behavior of the US media you don't deserve this).

это было круто! Браво, россияне!

Great men's downhill today. I loved the overhead camera shots. Well done, Mayer!

Twitter collections of humorous photos showing various (alleged!) problems in Sochi -- for example, apartments and hotel rooms in the Olympic Village that are STILL under construction, urinals not yet connected to the water and sewage lines, and the now-famous "twin toilets".

https://twitter.com/SochiFails
https://twitter.com/SochiProblems

True, a few of the photos are obvious fakes by people poking fun at "backwards Russia"... and some photos that may have been taken somewhere else in Russia, not in Sochi... and some that aren't evidence of EPIC FAIL by the Russian organizers, but simply show certain realities that Western visitors aren't used to, like the sad problem of homeless dogs.

I did laugh at this one, however:

I'm more interested in the state of the snow for the events. The piste for today's cross-country sprint was awful and there were some terrible falls. I'm worried that all the construction work (including the removal of vast swathes of trees) has affected the "micro-climate" so that the ski area is too warm...

I'd really like to ski there but on tv here (in Switzerland) all the presenters are complaining about the crazy prices - e.g. ten dollars for a coke. Until I become an oligarch I think I'd better steer clear...

Originally Posted by edvalais

[...] ten dollars for a coke. Until I become an oligarch I think I'd better steer clear...

Allegedly, there's free beer for Canadians in Sochi, eh?

Belorussian Women's Biathlon!

I forgot the word "Belorussian" in a previous post. I almost called a Gold!
One of my Summer Kids is related to a team member.

I am sorry I don't have a flag from Belarus.

My Kids.

If anyone wants to give me the official Russian Olympics gear (shapki, kurtki i t.d.) I won't say no.

I wonder if there's some deep psychological significance in routinely detecting homosexual associations in images. Maybe this says more about the observer than the thing looked at. I advise several forumchane to take a Rorschach test as a matter of urgency.

(Кстати, Паша, ты спер мое слово!)

Off-topic posts have been moved to Off-topic posts from http://masterrussian.net/f55/sochi-2014-olympic-winter-games-off

My prediction for the slalom:

1. Neureuther
2. Hirscher
3. Matt

If I'm right, I expect a very big beer as a reward.

Originally Posted by edvalais

My prediction for the slalom:

1. Neureuther
2. Hirscher
3. Matt

If I'm right, I expect a very big beer as a reward.

In the immortal words of Meat Loaf, two out of three ain't bad!

All-in-all, I thought the Olympics were great. I liked the joke in the closing ceremony where the fifth ring didn't open for a while. Who said the russkies don't have a sense of humour (joke)?

But was it worth $50bn?????

Originally Posted by edvalais

But was it worth $50bn?????

Ok, let's see:
2 new automobile roads that will last for another ten years at least (including 35 tunnels and bridges)
1 railroad line
2 gas pipelines
1 power plant + 17 substations to provide energy
43 hotels (20K+ guests)

1 Stadium
1 Skiing center
1 Skating center

Well, it's a total waste of money!

Now, about these $50bn. The real figure is only about $6bn (I mean the money spent directly on the Olympics, not the infrastructure that will last for the next few decades).

I'm sure that there are a number of Russians who are exceedingly pleased that the Olympics took place - and now much much richer. The Russian Forbes article on the road built between Sochi and the ski area was very entertaining...

Would I want to ski there? Yes, but only if someone else was paying.

edvalais,
Because of corruption the EU lose 120 bil. every year. It's not a doubtful article in Forbes (I can't get it seriously after the anti-Russian orgy in the western media), it's official information. Of course, those guys who get this 120 bil. every year are very happy, too.

But was it worth $50bn?????

Of course not. It was just an ambition of one person. Anyway, money spent wouldn't be directed to good purposes, it's just the way it is in Russia.

Originally Posted by Paul G.

edvalais,
Because of corruption the EU lose 120 bil. every year. It's not a doubtful article in Forbes (I can't get it seriously after the anti-Russian orgy in the western media), it's official information. Of course, those guys who get this 120 bil. every year are very happy, too.

Sure, corruption isn't a Russian disease - look at Vinci's role in the Moscow - St P road.

I hope you sense, Pasha, that I admire and respect Russia and her culture. I'm PRO-Russia. But when I see photos of the imperial villa in Gelendzhik which some claim belongs to Putin, or I see him wearing fabulously expensive Swiss watches (not air-brushed out like Kirill's), or I read descriptions of Yakunin's luxury villa outside Moscow, I worry about where Russia is heading. Nevertheless I managed to laugh when Navalny (talking about Yakunin) cited Saltykov-Shchedrin: "Во всех странах железные дороги для передвижения служат, а у нас, сверх того, и для воровства."

I'm sure this also goes for the rail-link between Sochi and Krasnaya Polyana.

люблю вашу отчизну я, но странною любовью...

But when I see photos of the imperial villa in Gelendzhik

А в Швейцарии зато десятиминутная поездка в общественном транспорте стоит столько, что омский пенсионер за эти же деньги может кататься целый месяц, не вылезая из автобуса.