The Russian word for Hawaii is Гавайи, and when you decline it, it has only plural endings, no singular:

Those are the forms to use if you are discussing the Big Island itself. If you are talking about the whole state or the whole chain of islands, then it's best to call them Гавайские острова The Hawaiian Islands. (Notice that in Russian we capitalize the first word but not the second.)

Because we are dealing with an island, we use the prepositions на and с to mean to/at and from:

The ending -йи is not typical for a Russian noun in the nominative, so the Russians are still slightly unsure of how to deal with it. Some people and references treat Гавайи as an indeclinable noun, but the current advice of style guides is to decline it.

The Russian word for engagement ring is обручальное кольцо. One of my Russian friends recently got married and told me the story of how her husband «сделал ей предложение» proposed to her. This unexpected surprise happened over winter break and Мила’s boyfriend Jake just came home from the war in Iraq. On a Saturday morning, he and Мила decided to go to the amusement park and were looking forward to riding one of the scariest roller coasters the park had to offer. (Roller coasters are called «амереканские горки» in Russian, which literally means “American mountains.” Weird, huh?)

They decided to sit in the very first seat and as the roller coaster began the long ride up the runway, Jake had the engagement ring tucked in the pocket of his jeans. As soon as they reached the top of the runway, Jake quickly pulled out the beautiful diamond ring and as he held it up in the air, he yelled out «Мила, ты будешь моей женой?» “Mila, will you be my wife?”. Before Мила had any time to answer, the roller coaster tilted over the edge, and they were off! I kept thinking that Jake was going to drop and loose the ring but fortunately he did not.

As the ride came to the end, Мила was so overwhelmed by emotion that she began to cry as everyone was exiting. One of the workers noticed Мила crying and thought that the ride scared her. He approached her and said «С вами всё в порядке?» “Are you alright?” She looked up at him and smiled as she showed him her new ring. Everyone began laughing and clapping as they said “Congratulations!” «Поздравляем!»

The Russian word for accordion is гармошка. The accordion is a very popular instrument in traditional Russian culture and is often played at large gatherings such as a wedding свадьба, birthdays день рождения, and many holidays праздники.

My uncle was one of the best accordion players I have ever known. Each time he played the instrument, everyone gathered around him and listened to the beautiful music. I always told my uncle that he played the accordion like a professional and that he would be able to make a very good living by doing so. «Дядя, ты очень хорошо играешь на гармошке. Ты можешь заработать много денег!» “Uncle, you play the accordion very well. You can earn a lot of money!”. During parties, everyone danced and sang as my uncle played the accordion! I remember one time when a few individuals at a party had too much to drink. They danced happily and suddenly, I saw them lose their balance and fall to the ground laughing like hyenas. My mom laughed and said to them «Я думаю что вам пора домой!» “I think it is time for you to go home.” I enjoyed hearing my uncle play the accordion and every time I hear someone play this beautiful instrument, I am reminded of my uncle’s great talent.

Don's additional notes: the other words in Russian for accordion are гармонь (feminine) and гармоника. Аккордеон is specifically a type of accordion with piano-like keys on the right side instead of smaller buttons. You'll also hear about the баян, which is vastly complex version of the instrument. A harmonica in Russian is specifically «губная гармошка» “a mouth accordion.”

The Russian word for shish kebab is шашлык. Shish kebabs are often made by American families but they are particularly special to me because they bring back the memories of camping in the mountains with my family when I was a child. In Russia, it was a tradition to make shish kebabs each time we went camping with family and friends and I always helped my dad when he made these wonderful treats. In my family, kebabs are usually made from sheep meat баранина and marinated with different spices and soy sauce to give the meat good flavor and texture.

One day, my family and a large group of friends took a trip to the forest лес. Once we came to our camp site, I helped my mom start the campfire костёр which was very comforting because the weather was very cold. My dad took out the raw shish kebabs and placed them into the campfire to cook. The amazing scent of the marinade overwhelmed me and I began salivating like a dog right in front of the fire! «Когда шашлыки будут готовы? Я очень голодная!» “When will the shish kabobs be ready? I am very hungry!”. While the cooking took place, I grabbed a blanket and sat down under a shady tree to play with my sister while the grown-ups enjoyed their cocktails. As the camp fire burned down, my mother threw in a few potatoes and once everything was ready, she called out to me and my sister «Девочки! Идите кушать. Шашлыки готовы.» “Girls! Come and eat. The shish kabobs are ready.” I jumped up like a spring and raced ahead of my sister yelling «Я первая!» “I’m first!”

The Russian word for dog is сoбака Dogs are very active animals who can be very demanding of their owner хозяин but also especially loyal, loving, and supportive.

My dad has a friend who is the owner of two dogs. These dogs are pure Bijon Frise breeds and have lived with the owner for many years. Every once in a while, the owner leaves town and asks me to take care of the dogs. I hated the idea of having to feed, bathe, and walk two dogs but I agreed because the owner paid me very good money. Most dogs are very active animals however, these two were incredibly lazy ленивые and rude which annoyed me because they spent most of the day sleeping on their huge, fluffy doggie beds instead of running around like dogs should.

On one bright morning, I decided to take the dogs for a walk around the neighborhood. I called out to them, «Где ваши поводки? Мы сейчас пойдём гулять» “Where are your leashes? Were going on a walk now!” I grabbed their old leashes and watched them as they began wagging their tails and barking loudly while circling me. During the walk, I saw another person with a large dog and to my surprise, one of my dog’s leashes jerked right out of my hand and I saw him running away from me with great speed. I panicked and frantically ran after the dog while dragging the other one after me. «Бени! Иди сюда» “Beni! Come here!”. I saw my dog approaching the other person and I screamed out «Остановите эту собаку!» “Stop that dog!” Luckily, the other owner caught Beni and a great wave of relief came over me. I was very happy that this story ended happily and that I did not have to inform the owner that I lost one of his dogs!