The annual festival is traditionally celebrated in Moscow in September's first weekend to commemorate the first mention of Moscow in historical records, dating back to 1147 when the city's founder, Grand Duke Yuri Dolgoruky, invited his relative, Grand Duke Svyatoslav, to Moscow for a war council.
Held over the first weekend in September, Moscow celebrates the birth of the Russian capital with a series of parades and entertainment events. The celebrations begin on the Saturday with a procession of floats and city officials along Tverskaya Street and finishing at the Kremlin. Other celebratory events taking place over the weekend include fun fairs, street entertainers, sports contests and live music; and there are plenty of food and drink stalls lining the streets. The city parks are also popular places to celebrate the occasion with many families choosing to enjoy a picnic in one of the beautifully maintained parks.

In Moscow region warm weather begins in May, but according to the calendar summer starts in June. Most Russians like countryside with its huge forests, rivers, grass, birds, squirrels, foxes, hedgehogs... Deep in the forest there are lots of wild animals. Some people also like going camping and sleep in tents. Russian nature is good for a soul and for a body. Russians like such activities - boating, fishing, picking up berries, nuts and mushrooms in the woods. Barbeque is also a summer pastime for Russians, because Russia is a cold and rainy country, and we can make barbeque only 2-3 months a year.

For very long years people in the FSU (former Soviet Union) lived behind the notoriously known Iron Curtain and knew practically nothing about the life abroad. Russian people couldn’t just buy a ticket and go to any other country just for fun, it was impossible. Rare people went abroad on state business. And when they came back to Russia they were remarked from the first sight by their compatriots for trendy jeans, fashionable sneakers, bright plastic bags and picturesque stories about shopping and advertisements.
That’s why when the Iron Curtain fell the interest for traveling abroad got extremely high. Everybody wanted to see everything with their own eyes. Besides, Russia is rather a cold country, there are not so many sea resorts in it. And rare Russian girl misses a chance to go to a warm beach country and have a good time there.
Nice small towns and big cities, such as Barcelona with its unusual Gaudi architecture, handsome English-speaking policemen, comfortable ‘Bus Turistic’, park ”Aventura”, full of attractions, ‘singing fountains’, rather cheap shopping – everything is appreciated by Russians. Appreciated, loved, but not greatly surprising or even shocking as in the times of the far away 90s. Not any more.
There is no Russian who doesn’t like traveling. But there is no place like home.

Most Russian people usually go on holidays - mountain-skiing, beach resorts - one or two times a year, for 7-10 days (most of Russians prefer Turkey or Egypt). Besides, nearly all of us in our country (and our family too) love to have a rest in Russia. As for us - we prefer middle Russia.
In August we usually leave for a camp site in Kaluga region, which is situated in two hundred kilometers from Moscow. The camp site is deep in the wood, so if you want to reach the place the only way possible is to go there by car or on foot. This is an extraordinary beautiful place: a mighty forest, a picturesque river, boundless fields. A nice place for those who loves nature and countryside, for those who is tired of city life. There we stay in small wooden houses, without the drains, hot running water, central heating and the Internet, of course.But there are Russian baths there. And which Russian doesn’t like baths? So, the nature is really good there, because it’s rather far from cities and towns. Even mobile connection is almost not available in the place.