Skating and skiing

Vast fields, forests, and urban technologies let everyone choose an appropriate place for skiing or skating. As the winter temperature in Russia often falls below zero, it makes it possible to create open-air skating rinks with natural ice. Skating is one of the popular winter leisure activities amongst the locals, and a great number of outstanding Russian figure-skaters are probably a result of the love of ice. There are also several skiing resorts in Russia. The Urals or Caucasus, for instance, are now developed skiing zones, able to provide with all required equipment for this kind of sports activity. Hills and mountains in some parts of Russia can be easily compared with the Alps, with their picturesque views and snowy landscapes.

Banya and snow diving

As Russia is a country of contrasts, its leisure activities often combine pleasure and extreme. Russian banya (or bathhouse) is part of national traditions. It is normally built of wood, and mainly is different from sauna in temperature and the level of humidity. Heat and steam are produced by stones, situated in a special stove inside the banya building.

Apart from simply visiting banya, extreme-lovers can also get an experience available only in winter. It is also in Russian traditions to run out of the banya building, wallow in the snow, and swiftly run back into the banya building. The contrast of temperatures, a rapid change of heat to cold, has a really shaking impact on the human organism.

Ice fishing

Even if winter frosts are severe and stable enough, fishing is still one of the winter entertainments in Russia. There are a variety of water ponds or rivers, where fishing is ecologically acceptable. The most appropriate time for fishing starts when a certain period has passed since ponds and rivers froze and thaw is not expected. It goes without saying that one will need special equipment for ice fishing, and, moreover, some tips on how not to get cold during long hours out in the frosty weather.

All details of such leisure must be carefully thought over beforehand, especially the ways to keep warm: if the temperature is 30 degrees below zero, even vodka may fail to warm you up. The best way to organize nice ice fishing is to get direct advice from the local fishers, or, which is even better, to go fishing with them.

Exclusive ideas from Russians

It seems that Russian imagination and extreme thinking have no frames. Some days ago a young man bet with his friends from Yekaterinburg that he would go in for an untypical sort of entertainment – running marathon with no clothes on. Wearing only underwear, the young man committed a running trip in one of the central alleys of the city. After the guy won the bet, he and his friends went to the nearest bar to warm up.

Photo:
    ru.id-as.com
    www.ife.ee.ethz.ch
    www.grandviewlodge.com

Lavrentyeva Natalya