Russia’s Paratroopers Day — an event that in previous years has been marked with street strolling, beer guzzling and general merrymaking — began as a quieter, more sober affair this year (at least while the sun was still up).
Ahead of the raucous roaming through central Moscow and fun in the fountains still to come, military parachuters marched in religious processions and put on a show of pomp and circumstance.
Here’s a look at what went on today: