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Maslenitsa festivities: Moscow bids farewell to winter

This year, Maslenitsa Festival is held from February 21 till March 1 at 29 venues all over Moscow

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Maslenitsa scarecrows installed near the Kremlin for Maslenitsa Festival in Moscow

© EPA-EFE/YURI KOCHETKOV

Actors in scary masks and bear costumes performing during the Maslenitsa Festival near Red Square in Moscow

© EPA-EFE/YURI KOCHETKOV

Bulgarian folk musicians performing in Moscow

© EPA-EFE/YURI KOCHETKOV

Pancakes cooked during the 2020 Moscow Maslenitsa Festival in Manezhnaya Square in Moscow

© Sergei Bobylev/TASS

Tourists walking at a holiday market during Maslenitsa celebrations in front of the Historical Museum on Revolution Square near the Kremlin Wall in Moscow

© AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko

An actor dressed in folk costume sitting next to a bread oven during the Maslenitsa Festival in Moscow

© EPA-EFE/YURI KOCHETKOV

Bulgarian folklore musicians performing near Red Square in Moscow

© EPA-EFE/YURI KOCHETKOV

Cooking pancakes during the 2020 Moscow Maslenitsa Festival in central Moscow

© Sergei Bobylev/TASS

The festival is held from February 21 till March 1 at 29 venues all over the city

© Sergei Bobylev/TASS

People in ethnic costumes taking part in the 2020 Moscow Maslenitsa Festival in central Moscow

© Sergei Bobylev/TASS

Maslenitsa is a traditional Eastern Slavic religious and folk holiday marking the end of winter that dates back to the pagan times. Maslenitsa is celebrated during the last week before Great Lent, preceding Orthodox Easter. This year, Maslenitsa Festival is held from February 21 till March 1 at 29 venues all over Moscow.

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