Residents in Moscow residents celebrated the pagan Maslenitsa festival on Sunday, marking the end of winter.
Usually, as part of the celebrations, Russians burn a scarecrow made from straw and eat pancakes on the weekend prior to the Orthodox Lent.
Moscow Gorky Park organizers surprised visitors this year by burning a mock bear’s lair which, when the fire had taken down the wooden walls, revealed a giant bear.
The process was meant to symbolize the awakening of a bear, commonly used as a symbol of Russia, after its winter sleep.