Where to take your children for festive season fun at a yolka party.

A recipe from Jay Close, chef de cuisine at Dzhusto Banya Dush.

Pivnaya Galereya must be doing something right, judging by its popularity. And it certainly is popular: A table is not to be had on Thursday, Friday or Saturday nights without booking in advance -- and not just a couple of hours in advance, but the day before.

Those watching President Vladimir Putin on television could not fail to see a change in his mood. After he decided on his partnership with First Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, he started to look like a different person.

Two questions hung over Russia: Whom would President Vladimir Putin appoint as his successor? What role would Putin play in that successor's government? We now know the answer to the first, and, to some extent, to the second. But these answers generate as many new questions as they put old ones to rest.

VimpelCom, the country's second-largest mobile phone operator, announced Friday that it would acquire fixed-line and Internet firm Golden Telecom for $4.3 billion, a deal that could give it a head start over its rivals in providing one-stop services.

Europe's second-biggest insurer, AXA, has made a major entry into Russia with a deal to buy a 36.7 percent stake in insurer RESO-Garantia for about 810 million euros ($1.16 billion).

Japanese auto giant Toyota on Friday opened an assembly factory near St. Petersburg to meet accelerating demand. The 5 billion ruble ($202 million) plant will put together 20,000 Camry cars next year and raise capacity to 50,000 vehicles in 18 months, Toyota president Katsuaki Watanabe said at an opening ceremony attended by Economic Development and Trade Minister Elvira Nabiullina, which was followed by a plant tour with President Vladimir Putin.

Gazprom this year held talks to join ExxonMobil's Sakhalin-1 oil-and-gas project, an unidentified person close to the gas giant said.

ExxonMobil has been denied permission to start work on a gas pipeline to China from Sakhalin-1 this year, the Industry and Energy Ministry said in a statement on its web site Friday.

Baltic Pipeline DelayKashagan Deal CloseRosneft Shares DumpedInflation Hits 2-Year HighFor the Record

Russians like their heroes homegrown, but this New Year's Eve, football fans will be toasting two middle-aged Dutchmen. Guus Hiddink led Russia to the Euro 2008 finals while fellow Dutchman Dick Advocaat steered Zenit St. Petersburg to its first national title for nearly a quarter of a century.

Uzbek President Islam Karimov looked relaxed as he voted Sunday in an election that is expected to extend his 18-year rule and has been condemned by the opposition as a one-man contest.

Badri Patarkatsishvili, the Georgian magnate challenging President Mikheil Saakashvili in next month's snap election, has promised to spend $1 billion of his own money to turn Georgia into a ""shining country.""

Kyrgyzstan's parliament held its first session Friday as police arrested several people demonstrating against a vote that strengthened President Kurmanbek Bakiyev but opened the door for further turmoil.