Old and young danced, sang, and marched from morning till morning in Krasnoyilsk, a village in southern Ukraine close to the Romanian border, to see in the new year according to the popular Malanka tradition — sometimes referred to as the Ukrainian Mardi Gras. Falling near the end of the month-long holiday season, Malanka is how Ukrainians celebrate Old New Year, according to the Julian calendar, on January 13-14. Although details differ from region to region, generally it entails lots of food, drink, caroling, concerts, parades, good-natured pranks, and garish costumes.

This post was originally published on Radio Free.