Another spending spree is going on now, during the new week-long May Day holiday (May 1 to May 7), but it is a different phenomenon altogether.

CNN: From Our Correspondent: Spend, Spend, Spend

This year, for example, it stretched the holiday out with a week-long roster of parades and attractions.

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The holiday of Maslyana usually falls on the last week before the 40-day long fast that precedes Easter.

BBC: Pagan holidays in modern Ukraine