8 things you didn’t know about this Country

Credit: Reuters

01

It gets hot

While you imagine Russia to experience winter around the year, just like any tropical country, Russia gets uncomfortably warm at times. This picture shows a fountain in Moscow where locals are trying to cool themselves when temperatures soared to 33 degrees Celsius in the month of July

Credit: Reuters

02

Feasting on reindeer

The Nenets, tribespeople of Russia's frozen Yamal peninsula have survived the age of the Tsars, the Bolshevik revolution and the chaotic 1990s, and yes they do love feasting on reindeer, only when they’re not using them as a means of transport

Credit: Reuters

03

Icy shower

No, this is not a grab from a reality show that urges contestants to defy nature or a tolerance experiment. These are just members of the local ice-bathing club drying up after having enjoyed a swim in the icy water of the Yenisey River at temperatures of around -26 Degrees Celsius (-14.8 Fahrenheit). Brain freeze? Yes, please!

Credit: Reuters

04

Step on kids and they won’t grow

Firstly, relax your concerns about this picture. It is just a priest baptizing a child at the Novopyatigorsk Lake near the Russian southern town of Pyatigorsk. Russians are a very peculiar lot and have a strong set of beliefs. One of them states that stepping on children will ensure that their growth would be stunted

Credit: Reuters

05

Move over, Dead Sea

While the world bows down to the Dead Sea mud’s ability to improve one’s skin, the Russians have their own. The mineral-rich blue mud on the banks of the Tus lake in Russia's Khakassia region, about 370 km (230 miles) southwest of the Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk is said to serve the purpose just as well. Russians from different regions annually arrive at the Tus lake rich with curative black and blue mud to live in a camp, bathe in the bitter-salty water and smear themselves with mud, which is said to have a healing property, in their opinion

Credit: Reuters

06

Back in 90 seconds

While Japan and China seem to lead the way, the Moscow metro falls in line as one for the fastest metros in the world. If you’re waiting for one, you won’t be waiting too long as there’s one coming along every 90 seconds

Credit: Reuters

07

Soviet souvenirs

While most tourists like to take home a piece of memorabilia from their travels, when in Russia that one thing could be a curious one. In the above picture, we see fridge magnets depicting communist era propaganda posters being sold at the Izmailovsky Market in Moscow

Credit: Reuters

08

Two New Years

Confirming to the beliefs of the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Russians celebrate two New Years, one on the Jan 1 and another on Jan 14. In the above picture, we see fireworks exploding over the St. Basil Cathedral at Red Square during New Year's Day celebrations in Moscow on January 1, 2010