This week, education is worth fighting for; corrupt officials go for all-or-nothing; and Lenin's mausoleum makeover is cancelled.

This week, we're abandoning all pretense of mature adulthood. We've got cool shotguns, exploding caves, and a teacher who just couldn't wait. Gosh, mom, get out of my room!

This week: education! Tests for hopeful investors, savings for college, and learning what exactly is in sausage. 

A pensioner was fined for highlighting voter fraud in Russia's recent round of constitutional amendments.

This week, Lukashenko turns action hero; chocolate is serious business; and a classic Russian author is proven to be right all along.

What unites Khabarovsk and Minsk?

The Mari People * Life in Isolation * Russia's Discovery of Antarctica * Raspberry Picking * Semyonovsky Revolt * Battle on the Ugra * Sergei Bondarchuk * Table Russian * Bird Language * Apple Fritters * Chicks the TV Series * Kamchatka and Belarus

Some statistics to illustrate recent trends in Russian society.

A hospital in Kursk is under investigation after a woman awoke post-surgery in the morgue.

The smallest ethnos in the Russian Federation is an Avar sub-culture in the Caucasus.

This week: cereal jingles go viral, animal crossings save critters, and paratroopers take a swim in a fountain in celebration. Sounds pretty run-of-the-mill.

This week, mammoths are ripe for the picking; fishy business practices turn violent; and a TV show is labelled a bad influence on Russian families.