Russian Babushkas Take to the Street

Hundreds of Russian old ladies, affectionately called "babushki" (grandmothers) in local speak, gathered on Sunday for a walk down central Moscow's main street to mark the end of a two-week festival dedicated to the traditional whole-fruit preserve, varenye.



Varenye, which takes its name from the Russian word for "to boil" (???°?€???‚??, "varit"), is similar to jam and typically made during the summer harvest. The "Moscow Varenye" festival featured literally tons of the preserves, as well as singing, dancing and other merrymaking.



Sunday's "Babushka Parade" started at Pushkin Square in the middle of downtown Moscow's main thoroughfare, Tverskaya, then continued down to the Kremlin until arriving a block away, at Revolution Square.



The event included the naming of Moscow's "best" babushki, in a contest that included some modern cultural trivia like how to use Twitter, how to take a selfie, as well as describing the telltale signs of a hipster.



See our previous Photo Gallery:

Varenye Gets Its Own Festival in Moscow