You wont hear anything from me for a couple of weeks as I'm off to Kyrgyzstan for a wee trip. Like all good travellers I've been reading up on the customs so as not to accidentally offend anyone. I thought some of you may find the advice on social drinking amusing.
"VODKA
First, find someone to drink with. Only alcoholics drink alone. Second, choose your vodka, the more you spend... the less painful your hangover. Third, choose your zakuska, something salty, dried, or fatty. This is so that the vodka is either absorbed by the food or repelled by the fat. Fourth, open your bottle... but be careful, once you open it you must drink it all (a good vodka bottle doesn't have a cap that can be replaced), now pour your shots. Fifth, you will toast! You must toast! Toast your friends, toast their futures, toast their sheep, toast their cars. Sixth, drink! Drink it all! Now chase it with a zakuska and repeat until you either can't see the bottle or it is empty!"
Mike