The first day of school in Russia is traditionally September 1st, and it's a pretty big day for everyone involved. Except for the teary-eyed parents of kindergartners here in the U.S., or the rejoicing parents of 2nd graders (that would be moi), we don't raise a lot of hoopla about the first day of school.

Not so in Russia. They have much hoopla going on for this special day!

This blog entry gives a good description of a traditional 1st day of school celebration in Russia:

[T]he weather in Moscow was beautiful on September 1 and the children and their parents were able to enjoy the bright fall morning. Little boys were dressed in dark suits with ties, and the girls were just gorgeous in their lace dresses with large bows in their hair. Boys and girls carried large bouquets of flowers for the teachers and their parents proudly walked with them, often hand-in-hand, with cameras poised.

At the local school in my neighborhood, the school yard began to fill up around 8:30 a.m., and the recorded martial music started blaring from the loud speakers shortly after the crowds began to gather outside. Parents and grandparents were as excited as the children and the three groups continually mixed together, despite the efforts of the school officials.

Speeches are given, dignitaries, honored, and children perform. Finally,

The MC, dressed in a white suit with a bright red dress shirt and white tie, began reading off the class numbers and, as he did so, the teacher whose name he called would lead her students to the front steps and then into the school, to the cheers of the parents. Gradually the courtyard began to empty until there were only two groups of students left – the oldest and the youngest, who were then rearranged into a half-circle in front of the platform party, the little kids on the inside and the big ones behind them.

What we do here is so anticlimactic in comparison! We should do something like this...I don't know - have a parade or something!

The tragedy is that September 1st is also the date the school takeover by terrorists in Beslan in 2004...so for all Russians the 1st of September will always have a bittersweet memory.


Picture credit.