Maslenitsa

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_0j_38Tda0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vIP0i4JyMRk&feature=fvw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yM2N984PcDM

Maslenitsa

Maslenitsa we say in Russia, in America it is known as Butter Week, or Pancake week. It is a religious Russian folk holiday. It is celebrated during the last week before Great Lent that is, the seventh week before Easter. Maslenitsa it is a Sun festival, celebrating the end of the winter. The most characteristic food of Maslenitsa is bliny (thin as a paper, sometimes sweet pancakes), people say it symbolizes the sun. Round and golden, they are made from the rich foods such as a butter, eggs, and milk.

Maslenitsa includes masquerades, snowball fights, sledding, riding on swings and plenty of sleigh rides. In some regions, each day of Maslenitsa has traditional activities: one day for sleigh-riding, another for the sons-in-law to visit their parents-in-law, another day for visiting the godparents, etc. People laugh, sing, dance, and eat tons of pancakes. The mascot of the celebration is usually a brightly dressed straw effigy of Lady Maslenitsa. Lady Maslenitsa is made from dry grass and represents winter. As the culmination of the celebration, on Sunday evening, Lady Maslenitsa is stripped of her finery and set ablaze. People hold each other’s hands and walk around the big fire. A long time ago in villages, young ladies and guys jumped over the fire. Any remaining blintzes are also thrown to the fire, and Lady Maslenitsa's ashes are buried in the snow to fertilize the crops. Now Maslenitsa is mostly about pancakes. Almost no one celebrates the end of the winter, and bliny is not a surprising food anymore. To me bliny is just one more negative factor to my figure.