VOLOGDA, February 06, /ITAR-TASS/. Russian Ded Moroz (Father Frost, or Grandfather Frost, to be more exact), a key figure of the New Year celebrations in Russia, will open his official residence in Sochi, the capital of the Olympic Winter Games, on February 5. It is located near the Medal Plaza sports area and the Iceberg and Fisht Olympic stadiums. During the Games it will become one of the main attractions for children and foreign guests, as its aim is to familiarize them with the self-identical Russian culture, and is expected to welcome up to 75,000 visitors.
"We are planning to present an exhibition of the cultural and historical heritage of the Vologda region, including such traditional crafts as birchbark painting and platting, Vologda lacemaking and filigree enamel silver products," Oleg Kuvshinnikov, the Vologda governor said. "They say these handicrafts are lost although all these crafts are maintained and prosper in our provincial region, in the Vologda region. Apart from that, guests will have an opportunity to see the region’s beauties and places of interest in an interactive regime.”
Father Frost will welcome at his residence heads of a number of foreign delegations, and officials from the Russian Olympic Committee and the Sochi-2014 organizers.
The construction of Father Frost’s residence started in September 2013. It looks like a mini replica of the Vologda home of the Russian New Year magician. The house has domes and its exterior is decorated with wooden carvings. Beside its two floors, there are dressing rooms for actors and a stage ornamented with Vologda wooden laces. Inside the residence, there is a five-meter-high New Year tree.
During the Games, Father Frost's workshops will operate in the residence where visitors will see traditional Russian handicrafts.
After the Olympic and Paralympic Games are over, the house will be disassembled to be brought to the Vologda region. It will be places in one of Vologda parks.
The Vologda region in north-western Russia is believed to be the home to Father Frost, as he has an official round-the-year residence in the olden city of Veliky Ustyug there.