A few somewhat belated notes on Victory Day.

Victory Day is a massive day of celebration in Russia.

If you are based in Moscow then you won’t have much chance of getting into Red Square unless you are in the army, the government or are a close friend of Putin. The square itself and many of the surrounding streets are closed to the public for the parade.

Other cities though, such as mine, are much more open.

My town square becomes alive with a funfair, market stalls and an evening concert, rounded off with a rather decent firework display(Salut).

During celebrations such as these it often seems as if the entire town has turned out, everybody from children to pensioners wander around enjoying the carnival atmosphere.

The evening sees the square morph into an outdoor drinking venue, the drinking continues until well into the night.

Incidentally, if you really want to annoy a Russian, simply suggest that Russia didn’t win the war alone, tell them “England(or the US) won the war” and wait for their reaction!