Sunday 29 January 2012

Be afraid; children's birthday parties - Moscow Style

I've changed my mind. Not so long ago on this blog, I wrote that the point of disconnect between cultures is music. But I've been giving it some thought, and actually I think I have another contender. It's that old favorite: kids' birthday parties.



I suspect that wherever you go in the world, the goalposts for little Johnny's birthday party have moved somewhat over the last 30 years. Even in sleepy Britain, it's no longer enough to invite his best friends, play a game of pass the parcel or British bulldogs, serve up some cheese sandwiches with crisps, and dish out the chocolate cake after a rousing rendition of “Happy Birthday”. No, if you are foolish enough to offer up your home to the masses nowadays, in many parts of the world entertainers are standard, a glass of wine for any accompanying parents is expected, and party bags are non-negotiable. And don't even think about trying to get away with just putting some stickers and a piece of cake inside it, you cheapskate. Not unless you want to be unmasked as such by a pint-sized monster who rips the bag ungratefully out of your hand before commenting loudly on the contents.



But that, my friends, is nothing. That is plain vanilla. For now we are in Moscow, and you ain't seen nothin' yet...



Children's parties in this city are, to many non-residents, unbelievable. When I regale friends back in the UK with tales of 'Incredible Russian Children's Birthday Parties I Have Seen', invariably they don't believe me. Or, if they do believe me, I'm afraid it only goes to fuel the internationally held image of Russia as a country of extremes.



My back catalogue of recent party stories includes but is not limited to: those with added animal entertainment (not rabbits in hats and dogs jumping through hoops, but performing monkeys, look-but-don't-touch crocodiles and bears on bicycles; on one memorable occasion, Mummy Bear was even—heart-wrenchingly—accompanied by her cub); themed events that take all day with a 15-to-20-strong team of entertainers; 5-to-10-minute-long professional firework displays in honor of the birthday child; fully catered sit-down meals for both parents and children; sushi for the kids (in itself, not a bad idea, but I just can't get past the fact that we are many, many miles from the nearest sea); pink champagne for the parents; stunt policemen turning up complete with guns and handcuffs to arrest a wrongfully accused stunt Spiderman; 30-foot inflatable climbing walls in the back yard; and one borrowed anecdote from a friend who glanced into her neighbors' yard some time last year to see the 5-year-old birthday boy sitting resplendently in the seat of his present: a full-sized Hummer with a bow on top.



As an expat living here I couldn't hope to compete, and, indeed, I wouldn't want to. So our recent offering of a low-key party for one of my sons and his classmates consisting of snow games, pizza, chocolate cake and musical chairs was determinedly retro. The children all appeared to have a great time, and I even got a dose of exercise from jumping up and down directing musical statues. You might have almost thought we were back in 1970s Britain (except for the international backgrounds of the guests and the fact that the music was better, obviously), until one of the mums present mentioned that a couple of days previously one of her neighbors' children had had a party with not only all the requisite Moscow whistles and bells, but also the ultimate in animal entertainment.




They had a Siberian tiger, on a leash.




Ah, Moscow...



This post first appeared on my other blog, 'Diaries of a Moscow Mum' over at The Moscow Times

7 comments:

  1. Yikes!

    I've just booked the school hall, bought some union jack bunting and am organising a kind of "Sports Day" Olympic party for my daughter. Not good enough, Working Mum!

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  2. Wow....

    We had a retro-type party for Littleboy 1's birthday this year - at our house, just old-fashioned party games etc. One mother told me her daughter had said it was the best party she'd been to. I think it's actually a novelty these days to do a party like that, most of them take place in a bouncy-castle type place with pizza.

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  3. Better than "Chirpy Chirpy Cheep Cheep'? How is that possible?

    You should have gone for TWO Siberian Tigers. NOT on leashes. That would have been keeping up with the Joneses.

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  4. Hi,


    Really nice to hear such ideas from a person.Thanks for your post.

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  5. Crikey!

    Laughing at Iota's comment :)

    i am a big fan of traditional jelly and ice-cream party
    x

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  6. Hey, thanks. There are some great ideas there and eldest's birthday is just looming up on the horizon. It won't matter if she doesn't like crocodiles, will it? The other parents'll be impressed!

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  7. Talking crocodiles, we recently attended a kids reptile party in Melbourne and half the kids were afraid and the others wanted to hold the animals.
    By the end however you couldn't get the snakes and lizards off any of the children as they all wanted to hold them!

    ReplyDelete

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