Maslenitsa at Polytech: Students Bid Farewell to Winter with Pancakes and Round Dances

On Sunday, February 22, the Student Campus on Lesnaya burst into bright colors and merriment. Lively Maslenitsa festivities unfolded there, organized by the Student Club and the United Student Council of Dormitories. The holiday plunged students into a whirlwind of folk traditions and spirited, yet friendly, competitions.

It all began with a Maslenitsa quest, where 14 teams from the dormitories competed in strength, agility, and ingenuity. Students dressed up Maslyona — an improvised effigy — demonstrated heroic prowess, briskly bargained during skomorokh-style quizzes, and cleverly navigated tricky obstacles. The main event was the «Pancake House» — a final culinary and creative showdown in which pancakes were transformed into works of art.

The jury, headed by vice-rector for communications, youth policy, and security Maxim Pasholikov prefixed, evaluated the intricate pancake structures: flowers, cottages with wells, military vehicles, and Maslenitsa dolls. The winners of these first spring games were the teams from dormitories No. 4a, 16, and 1.

It is a joy to see that SPbPU students know how not only to study diligently but also to have sincere fun, creating an atmosphere of warmth and friendship. This holiday unites us all as one big university family. Take care of each other, respect traditions, and remember that it is you who create the unique spirit of our university! — Boris Kondin, Head of the Directorate of Cultural Programs and Youth Creativity, addressed the students.

The atmosphere at the venue was created by Polytech’s best creative groups: the lively skomorokhi from the Student Theater, the energetic vocalists of the musical shows «Don’t Sleep!» and «Polytech Stars.» The lively accordion folk tunes swept both adults and children onto the dance floor. And to earn «pancake tickets» for treats, guests stormed the creative stations set up by the Trade Union, «Black Bears,» KVN, the Adapters, and the organizers of «Don’t Sleep!»

The festivities concluded with the traditional burning of the Maslenitsa effigy in a large, friendly round dance. According to the organizers’ estimates, 4,000 pancakes were eaten over the course of the day — that’s how the Polytech students turned up the heat on winter and welcomed spring!