Maslenitsa is one of the most fun and spectacular festival of the Russian people. It lasts a week, and the dates differ in each year: it is the best to compare them according to the calendar of Russian holidays for the current year. The roots of Maslenitsa are pagan. It symbolizes the beginning of spring and the farewell to winter. By the way one of the Msalenitsa rituals is the burning of an effigy symbolizing Winter. Maslenitsa festivities take place on the streets of cities. Actors dress up in folk costumes, arrange comic first fights,storming snow fortresses, dance and sing. Concerts are held in the squares. The main dish is a pancake. They abound in restaurant menus, they are prepared at home, but the most relish is to taste pancakes from from a festive tray outdoors, enjoying the contrast of hot dough with the cold outside. Usually such trays are located in places of folk festivals and street concerts. The best combination drink hot tea with pancakes. Maslenitsa is especially picturesque in an ancient Russian cities, because there, like nowhere else, you feel close to the primordial tradition.