mas-luh-NEE-tsuh

or Maslenitsa.

or Масленица.

The coming of Spring! A few weeks ago. Celebrated a little early, if you ask me.

Actually, I think the real celebration is supposed to be "the last week before Lent". Then, the Soviets came and abolished religion, so people had to use the pagan reasoning, and celebrate "the imminent end of winter" (I'm getting this from wikipedia, by the way).

Now, it's just like any other holiday - an excuse for a party!

And a party we had!

Complete with a clown, an accordian, singing and dancing babushkas,

the Snow Maiden (who is technically Father Frost's helper to deliver the presents on New Year's Eve - I guess I forgot to tell you about how they don't really celebrate Christmas here...), sledding, blini (similar to crepes - round and golden, like the sun), and a scarecrow!

It's a tradition to burn the scarecrow at the end of the festival, but we left before they may or may not have done that.

And here are our kids with their friends. What are they watching? The fire. Completely uninterested in any of the Russian singing and dancing going on around them.

Dave was singing though. And I had some yummy blini.

And I have yet to see the end of winter. Maybe their definition is a little different...