22 December 2011

Russian Holidays

Happy holidays from Russia, where due to an historical anomaly of having the Julian calendar run shorter than the Gregorian calendar used by most places, Christmas and New Year fall two weeks later than in the west.

So Russian holidays start early and run long. The Russian foreign ministry will be closed from 31 December 2011 through at least 9 January 2012. This means no vouchers, invitations or telexes will be processed by the Russian government.

The Russian Embassy and consular offices in canada will also be closed for extended holidays. Now is definitely NOT the time to try for Russian visas.

Just so you will know, the Julian calendar has 365 days, whereas the Grgorian caendar has 365.25 days, or a leap year every four years. The Julian calendar has been fixed to the Gregorian so it no longer shifts every four years.

Click here for Russian forms.