Moscow marked the Day of St. Patrick, Ireland's patron, for the 12th time. The parade keeps growing more and more fanciful.
An hour before the parade the Arbatskaya metro station turned into a huge make-up room. Hundreds of laughing and crying boys and girls were putting on red wigs and drawing the Irish flag and shamrocks on their cheeks. Dashing guys wearing Irish kilts drank whisky and dances to the flute music.
Everyone entering Novy Arbat street had to pass through a metal detector.
A group of bagpipe-players opened the parade. Men with gray beards wearing kilts played intricate tunes on the exotic instruments. They were followed by fans of the Lokomotiv football club and long-haired Arbat frequenters. A crowd of teenagers dressed like medieval knights and Vikings rode at a considerable distance from them.
Maskers walked on stilts after that.
Irish tunes were often interrupted with Kalinka-Malinka song played by the Navy's brass band, Russian folk songs and ardent speeches of the organizers.
When the wind grew stronger, people headed for neighboring bars.
