May 18, 2020

"Victory Day" Sung from Balconies


"Victory Day" Sung from Balconies
Victory Day is traditionally celebrated with a parade. Image by Svetlana Novikova via Pixabay

This year was the 75th anniversary of Victory Day, celebrated on May 9 in Russia. This major holiday is very important to Russians, and usually is marked by a huge parade in Moscow. This year, however, the holiday looked a little different, due to the novel coronavirus pandemic.

Instead of the traditional parade, people took to their balconies or stood in front of windows with pictures of relatives who had participated in World War II. After a moment of silence at 7:00 PM, people all over Russia joined together in song, singing the song “Den Pobedy” (“Victory Day”). While people were singing, TV channels showed various people joining in.

President Putin has promised that a parade will occur once the situation with the coronavirus pandemic is more under control. For this year’s 75th celebration, 75 planes and helicopters flew over Moscow. Many other cities in Russia, such as Yekaterinburg, Samara, and Volgograd, also used aviation shows to mark the holiday, with over 600 planes and helicopters participating in air shows all over Russia. In St. Petersburg, there was also a naval demonstration.

You Might Also Like

In the Trenches of Stalingrad
  • May 01, 2020

In the Trenches of Stalingrad

On the 75th anniversary of the end of WWII, we offer two excerpts from a new translation of Viktor Nekrasov’s In the Trenches of Stalingrad.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals
[INVALID]
[INVALID]

Some of our Books

A Taste of Chekhov
December 24, 2022

A Taste of Chekhov

This compact volume is an introduction to the works of Chekhov the master storyteller, via nine stories spanning the last twenty years of his life.

Woe From Wit (bilingual)
June 20, 2017

Woe From Wit (bilingual)

One of the most famous works of Russian literature, the four-act comedy in verse Woe from Wit skewers staid, nineteenth century Russian society, and it positively teems with “winged phrases” that are essential colloquialisms for students of Russian and Russian culture.

Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices
May 01, 2013

Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices

Stargorod is a mid-sized provincial city that exists only in Russian metaphorical space. It has its roots in Gogol, and Ilf and Petrov, and is a place far from Moscow, but close to Russian hearts. It is a place of mystery and normality, of provincial innocence and Black Earth wisdom. Strange, inexplicable things happen in Stargorod. So do good things. And bad things. A lot like life everywhere, one might say. Only with a heavy dose of vodka, longing and mystery.

Moscow and Muscovites
November 26, 2013

Moscow and Muscovites

Vladimir Gilyarovsky's classic portrait of the Russian capital is one of Russians’ most beloved books. Yet it has never before been translated into English. Until now! It is a spectactular verbal pastiche: conversation, from gutter gibberish to the drawing room; oratory, from illiterates to aristocrats; prose, from boilerplate to Tolstoy; poetry, from earthy humor to Pushkin. 

The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas
October 01, 2013

The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

This exciting new trilogy by a Russian author – who has been compared to Orhan Pamuk and Umberto Eco – vividly recreates a lost world, yet its passions and characters are entirely relevant to the present day. Full of mystery, memorable characters, and non-stop adventure, The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas is a must read for lovers of historical fiction and international thrillers.

 
The Latchkey Murders
July 01, 2015

The Latchkey Murders

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin is back on the case in this prequel to the popular mystery Murder at the Dacha, in which a serial killer is on the loose in Khrushchev’s Moscow...

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955