{"id":8204,"date":"2023-01-10T21:00:53","date_gmt":"2023-01-10T19:00:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/expatkaliningrad.com\/?p=8204"},"modified":"2023-01-10T21:05:44","modified_gmt":"2023-01-10T19:05:44","slug":"zelenogradsk-christmas-decorations-win-first-prize","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/expatkaliningrad.com\/ru\/zelenogradsk-christmas-decorations-win-first-prize\/","title":{"rendered":"Zelenogradsk Christmas Decorations Win First Prize"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>\n

Zelenogradsk ~ streets ahead with imaginative decorations<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Published: 10 January 2023 ~ Zelenogradsk Christmas Decorations Win First Prize<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the UK, the festive season is well and truly over. Unless you had a better time than most, the last remnants of the New Year\u2019s Eve hangover will have sailed way into the ether, along with the memories you cannot remember and those you wish to forget. But here, in Russia, the festive holidays do not peter out until the morn of the 15th<\/sup> of January. This is because the Russian Orthodox Church follows the old Julian Calendar and not the Gregorian one, so, although some religious denominations still celebrate Christmas day on the 25th<\/sup> December and the big festive night for Russians is the same as that for the Scotties, New Year\u2019s Eve, Russians also celebrate Orthodox Christmas on the 7th<\/sup> January and Orthodox New Year\u2019s Eve on the 14th<\/sup> January. That\u2019s an awful lot of celebrations in one month, but it does mean that the municipal decorations remain intact until the middle of January.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Zelenogradsk Christmas Decorations Win First Prize<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Bearing this in mind, I took a trip to the Baltic seaside resort of Zelenogradsk on the 9th<\/sup> of January to shiver in front of the sea and say hello to what are without question the most inspiring display of Christmas decorations this side of the Russian border.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I have no idea whether Kaliningrad holds a Best Decorated Christmas Street in the Region competition, but if it did, the main street of Zelenogradsk would win hands down. Words like magical and enchanting easily spring to mind, along with novel, imaginative and even bizarre!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This year I took my camera along with me and, although the snaps that I have taken do not do the panoply near enough justice, they do manage to give an idea of the thought and effort that each shop, caf\u00e9, bar, restaurant, etc put into producing the best expression of Christmas joy. They certainly make my Christmas baubles look pathetic in comparison, even when lit with flashing lights.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Which of the Christmas ensembles along Zelenogradsk High Street would I nominate for first prize? That\u2019s a tough ‘un’. I\u2019ll leave it to you to decide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Christmas<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Zelenogradsk<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Olga<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Zelenogradsk<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Merry<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Zelenogradsk<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Zelenogradsk<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Log<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Amber<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Snowmen<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Christmas<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Vintage<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Zelenogradsk<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Zelenogradsk<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Christmas<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Zelenogradsk<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Zelenogradsk<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Zelenogradsk<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Unusual<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Copyright \u00a9 2018-2023 Mick Hart. All rights reserved.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some relevant links<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Zelenogradsk Lit Up Like a Christmas Tree!<\/a>
Amazed at the Museum of Skulls and Skeletons Zelenogradsk<\/a>
An Englishman Chilling in Zelenogradsk with a Bear and Beer<\/a><\/strong><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Zelenogradsk ~ streets ahead with imaginative decorations Published: 10 January 2023 ~ Zelenogradsk Christmas Decorations Win First Prize In the UK, the festive season is well and truly over. Unless you had a better time than most, the last remnants of the New Year\u2019s Eve hangover will have sailed way into the ether, along with […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8211,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_themeisle_gutenberg_block_has_review":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[110],"tags":[435,1496,534,537,506,1340,2070,536,2071,1465,1339],"class_list":["post-8204","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-kaliningrad-region-photo-gallery","tag-englishman-in-kaliningrad-russia","tag-expat-kaliningrad","tag-mick-hart-in-zelenogradsk-russia","tag-olga-hart-in-zelenogradsk","tag-zelenogradsk","tag-zelenogradsk-christmas","tag-zelenogradsk-christmas-decorations","tag-zelenogradsk-houses-streets","tag-zelenogradsk-in-kaliningrad-region","tag-zelenogradsk-kaliningrad-region","tag-zelenogradsk-lit-up-like-a-christmas-tree"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/expatkaliningrad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Zelenogradsk-Xmas-Decorations-Signpost-feature-min.jpg?fit=896%2C1200&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":2790,"url":"https:\/\/expatkaliningrad.com\/ru\/zelenogradsk-lit-up-like-a-christmas-tree\/","url_meta":{"origin":8204,"position":0},"title":"Zelenogradsk! 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