Kaleidoscope of Russian Life

Amateur and professional skiers take part in a traditional mass competition 'Moscow ski-track'.

Young students of the model school affiliated with a famous model agency in Bashkiria participated in the "Mini-Miss Ufa 2013" contest, that took place in Ufa, Republic of Bashkortostan for the 2nd time.

Biathlon. Russian Cup. Women's pursuit in Ufa, Republic of Bashkortostan.

Kristine Opolais as Tatyana Larina in a scene from Pyotr Tchaikovsky's opera Eugene Onegin staged by Andrejs Zagars, director of the Latvian National Opera, at Moscow's Bolshoi Theater.

Secretary-General of the Arab League Nabil Elaraby, second right, speaks to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, third left, as Lebanese Minister of Foreign Affairs Adnan Mansour, second left, Egyptian Foreign Minister Mohammed Kamel Amr, left, and Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari, right, look on during their news conference after the Russian-Arab League meeting in Moscow. Russia and the Arab League are offering to broker talks between the Syrian government and opposition to end the two-year civil war ravaging the country

Christiane Lagarde, second right, the chief of the International Monetary Fund looks at the media prior the summit of financial ministers and heads of central banks of the G20 group of nations ahead of their key meeting this weekend in Moscow, Russia, Friday, Feb. 15, 2013. Russia’s President Vladimir Putin has called on financial chiefs of the world’s leading industrial and developing nations to consider political and social implications of the crucial policy steps they take.

The Russian Airforce aerobatic display team, Russian Knights arrive in formation in their Sukhoi Su-27s on the third day of the 9th edition of the Aero India 2013 at Yelahanka Air Force station in Bangalore on February 8, 2013. India, the world's leading importer of weaponry, opened one of Asia's biggest aviation trade shows February 6 with Western suppliers eyeing lucrative deals and a Chinese delegation attending for the first time.

Russia's President Vladimir Putin visits the "RusSki Gorki" Jumping Center at the Krasnaya Polyana resort near the Black Sea city of Sochi. The complex is expected to host ski jumping and Nordic combined competitions during the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympic Games next February, according to organisers.

Burevestnik 24, a new ekranoplane (ground effect vehicle, GEV) classified by its designer, OOO Nebo i More, as an amphibious boat, undergoes trials at Pirogovo Reservoir, some 8km north of Moscow.

Andrei Vinokurov, 37, a wrestling trainer, poses for a picture in the village of Tomtor in the Oymyakon valley in northeastern Russia. The coldest temperatures in the northern hemisphere since the beginning of the 20th century have been recorded in the Oymyakon valley, known as the 'Pole of Cold', where according to the United Kingdom Met Office a temperature of -67.8 degrees Celsius (-90 degrees Fahrenheit) was registered in 1933.

Badger Barbara eats from a bowl marked "Early Spring" in a private zoo "Sadogorod", Vladivostok. Zoo keepers make weather forecasts by watching the animal's behavior.

Chefs at a traditional medieval "Long Sausage Feast" at the Royal gate of Kaliningrad grill sausage on the barbecue.

A gorilla holds her baby in Moscow Zoo, Russia. The baby gorilla was born at Moscow Zoo last Wednesday

Royal tigers led by trainer Nikolai Pavlenko perform during the circus in Sochi, Russia.

A herd of deer at the Saranpaulsky reindeer farm in Tynagota village, Khanty-Mansi autonomous okrug.

Couples compete during the"Kiss on the Ice" contest to share the longest kiss on the eve of the Valentine's Day in Russia's Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk

A child looks across the frozen Yenisei River in the taiga area some 52 km (32 miles) south of Russia's Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk.

Muscovites on Red Square during a heavy snowfall.