Rusija

Christmas in Russia

1. Russians celebrate Christmas on the 7^th of January
2. Russian Church still uses Julian calendar instead of Gregorian calendar. In everyday life, however, they use the Gregorian calendar.

New Year in Russia

1. New Year is celebrated on the same day as in the rest of the world. This means that in Russia the New Year celebration comes before Christmas. 
2. In recent years the New Year has become more important than any other holidays. 
3. New Year is the main holiday for most Russians. 
4. The New Year’s tree (Novogodnaya Yolka) is decorated with tinsel and sweets. 
5. Old Man Frost (D’ed Moroz) and his granddaughter Snowgirl (Snegurochka) bring New Year’s presents and put them under the tree; to get a present children must sing a song or read a poem for Old Man Frost. 
6. Food for the New Year table contains Olivie salad (meat, potatoes, pickles, green peas, onion, carrots, mayonnaise), the most common drink is champagne. 
7. It is quite common to have New Year party with colleagues from work several days before December 31^st.

Old-Style New Year

1. New Year celebrations usually end after January 13^th, when the country celebrates the so-called Old-Style New Year. 11.
2. Style New Year is an unofficial, but very popular holiday, and represents the beginning of the new year according to the Julian Calendar.

Labor Day

1. May 1^st is Labour Day. Labour Day emerged as a public holiday in the Soviet era but it retained its status even after the collapse of the communist regime. It’s lost now much of its ideological meaning. Many people now retreat to their dachas on this day to spend a day gardening.
2. Political parties use the occasion to promote their agendas.

Unity Holiday

1. Unity Holiday is a new holiday which is supposed to help unite the country under a new patriotic banner. Everyone hopes that this new holiday will become a tradition in Russia.

The Victory Day

1. The Victory Day is a national holiday which remembers the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II and honours 20 million Soviets who died in the war.
2. On this day the President of Russia sends congratulating letters to all the veterans, there are parades, feasts, presents and flowers to give thanks to those who fought for the defense of Russia. 
3. In all Russian cities there are meetings in which leaders or the mayors of the city give speeches about the achievements of people in the war and the veterans talk about their adventures in the war.