Unique photos of New Year celebrations in Astana 55 years ago
Tengrinews.kz - Perhaps everyone has childhood memories of New Year's parties, gifts under the tree, and fun rides on the hills with sleds. The son of the famous Tselinograd photojournalist Nurmukhamat Imamov, Rinat Imamov, has been digitizing his father's photos for many years. Recently, he published a whole series of black-and-white memories of children's New Year's parties in Tselinograd (that's what Astana was called from 1961 to 1992 - ed.), walks to the ice town, and skating on the Ishim River. What the New Year's atmosphere was like in Astana 55 years ago, you will find out in this photo report by Tengrinews.kz.
Let's move to 1969. December. Kindergarten "Zolotoy Klyuchik."
The morning performances of those years were probably very similar to each other: a decorated Christmas tree, teachers dressed as Ded Moroz (Santa Claus) and Snegurochka (Snow Maiden), prepared scenes, reciting poems, and presenting a gift.
And also musical accompaniment - playing the piano.
"I remember the joy of the approaching New Year from my childhood," says Dmitry Glukhikh, a local historian and creator of the Instagram group "Photos of Akmolinsk-Tselinograd." "The tree at home already smells of pine needles, with glass toys and garlands on it. And such a poignant anticipation of the holiday: well, there will be presents! And the more Christmas tree shows you go to, the more presents you get, and even more presents at home from your parents, from your grandparents. And most importantly, from Ded Moroz (Santa Claus)! It's pure and boundless childhood happiness! But you have to prepare for this. Learn a rhyme. Well, and everyone knows the song about the Christmas tree."
"In kindergarten, in front of everyone, heartily and expressively read something about a bunny, about the New Year, which is rushing by... And mothers have so many worries: to make these bunny ears for the child, to sew a costume. And for girls - a snowflake dress or a fox costume... It's all not easy. Here, dads also join in, either making a tail, or constructing an astronaut's helmet from papier-mache. Now you can go and buy any costume without any worries. But before, the New Year brought the whole family together with creative searches and handicrafts."
"It really is a feeling of a holiday, for which they prepare for a month: from searching for tangerines to fabric for a costume. Mom's sewing machine is clattering in the bedroom, Dad is grumbling in the kitchen and gluing a naughty tail, and Grandma is teaching you a poem in the hall... And, finally, the morning party. Joy and fun. And then - a toy from Ded Moroz, a treasured bag of candy... The child's life was a great success," recalls Dmitry Glukhikh.
In the comments under New Year's posts on social networks, you can find some very funny memories of those morning parties.
"And in kindergarten №6 "Ogonyok" I was not a snowflake or a fox, but a horse with a plume on its head. And we rolled Ded Moroz in a sleigh. Modern parents would be fainting now! Not a princess, but a horse."
And this whole atmosphere was created and is still created by kindergarten teams.
Let's go back to 1970. The Tselinnikov Palace. Children's New Year's parties were held here every year.
This is how Dmitry Glukhikh remembers them.
"The first time I went to a party at the Tselinnikov Palace was around 1979. The Christmas tree was in the central hall, there were children around, a traditional performance, they shouted: ‘Little Christmas tree, light up!’"
"Why do I still remember all this at 50? Because I remember getting ready, reciting a poem, and the happiest moment was when I was allowed to choose a gift from the bag myself. I pulled out a red truck. It's funny, but I still have it. It was such a vivid impression of my childhood. And the invitation card always had a tear-off edge, and it said ‘gift’ on it. And after the performance in the lobby and the play in the assembly hall, my dad went to get a sweet gift. And it's such absolute happiness when you go home after visiting the ‘Elka’, impressed and with gifts in your hands."
In the pictures in the same Palace of Tselinnikov, but from 1976, you can appreciate how the hall was decorated.
Everything literally sparkled, glittered, and glowed.
There was another New Year's tradition in the city: the train of Ded Moroz and Snegurochka. A Facebook user with the nickname Frese Lilia shared her memories of this.
"From December 25 to December 31, I drove along the streets of Tselinograd. I was lucky enough to take part in this as Snegurochka in 1975 and 1976. Ded Moroz and Snegurochka with their retinue in a rocket mounted on a truck, a car with speakers in front, and a radio studio bus behind."
"We drove along the city streets and congratulated all residents on the upcoming New Year through a loudspeaker and invited them to the square for New Year's parties, throwing candy to passersby. Along the way, we stopped at industrial enterprises, where we congratulated the best workers, arranged a small concert for them, and presented them with gifts. Then we returned to the square and there we held a party with poems, songs, round dances around the Christmas tree, and gifts from Ded Moroz. There was a very joyful festive mood," she recalls.
And, of course, where would we be without New Year's activities in the fresh air? Both now and 50 years ago, ice and snow towns were built in the city on the square, and slides were organized on the Yesil River.
December 1970. The embankment behind the Tselinnikov Palace.
Some on oilcloth, some on sleds. And the main thing is that you don't feel the cold at all, because after you've slid down, you have to climb up a steep slope. And this is the kind of physical activity that's not a burden. At least for the kids.
The police (then called the militsia) keep order, both then and now.
And, of course, a photo with the family as a keepsake.
We're moving to the square in front of the Esil Hotel (now it's the square in front of the city akimat - ed.). 1974.
You definitely had a hat like this as a child.
In front of the main city Christmas tree are snow busts of Ded Moroz and Snegurochka. And many more heroes from fairy tales.
"It should be noted that the builders and architects took our slides seriously. Every year they tried not to repeat themselves. And the slides themselves were sometimes wooden, sometimes made of snow, sometimes of ice. Sometimes it was Ruslan's head, sometimes a little house, sometimes a house, and sometimes an entire ice palace. And you only have time to step over and jump over the rushing children from these slides," recalls Dmitry Glukhikh.
"In the snow town on the central square we would always meet up with boys and girls - and start competing to see who could slide down faster. Who on their feet, who could do it more times. And not without some stupidities: I remember, I was sliding down on my feet and fell, and I got a split lip. But that didn't diminish the joy. And some would come back from the holidays with a cast, laughing heartily, telling how they fell down on the slide."
Photo: Nurmukhamat Imamov from imamov.kz.
Let's move to 1969. December. Kindergarten "Zolotoy Klyuchik."
The morning performances of those years were probably very similar to each other: a decorated Christmas tree, teachers dressed as Ded Moroz (Santa Claus) and Snegurochka (Snow Maiden), prepared scenes, reciting poems, and presenting a gift.
And also musical accompaniment - playing the piano.
"I remember the joy of the approaching New Year from my childhood," says Dmitry Glukhikh, a local historian and creator of the Instagram group "Photos of Akmolinsk-Tselinograd." "The tree at home already smells of pine needles, with glass toys and garlands on it. And such a poignant anticipation of the holiday: well, there will be presents! And the more Christmas tree shows you go to, the more presents you get, and even more presents at home from your parents, from your grandparents. And most importantly, from Ded Moroz (Santa Claus)! It's pure and boundless childhood happiness! But you have to prepare for this. Learn a rhyme. Well, and everyone knows the song about the Christmas tree."
"In kindergarten, in front of everyone, heartily and expressively read something about a bunny, about the New Year, which is rushing by... And mothers have so many worries: to make these bunny ears for the child, to sew a costume. And for girls - a snowflake dress or a fox costume... It's all not easy. Here, dads also join in, either making a tail, or constructing an astronaut's helmet from papier-mache. Now you can go and buy any costume without any worries. But before, the New Year brought the whole family together with creative searches and handicrafts."
"It really is a feeling of a holiday, for which they prepare for a month: from searching for tangerines to fabric for a costume. Mom's sewing machine is clattering in the bedroom, Dad is grumbling in the kitchen and gluing a naughty tail, and Grandma is teaching you a poem in the hall... And, finally, the morning party. Joy and fun. And then - a toy from Ded Moroz, a treasured bag of candy... The child's life was a great success," recalls Dmitry Glukhikh.
In the comments under New Year's posts on social networks, you can find some very funny memories of those morning parties.
"And in kindergarten №6 "Ogonyok" I was not a snowflake or a fox, but a horse with a plume on its head. And we rolled Ded Moroz in a sleigh. Modern parents would be fainting now! Not a princess, but a horse."
And this whole atmosphere was created and is still created by kindergarten teams.
Let's go back to 1970. The Tselinnikov Palace. Children's New Year's parties were held here every year.
This is how Dmitry Glukhikh remembers them.
"The first time I went to a party at the Tselinnikov Palace was around 1979. The Christmas tree was in the central hall, there were children around, a traditional performance, they shouted: ‘Little Christmas tree, light up!’"
"Why do I still remember all this at 50? Because I remember getting ready, reciting a poem, and the happiest moment was when I was allowed to choose a gift from the bag myself. I pulled out a red truck. It's funny, but I still have it. It was such a vivid impression of my childhood. And the invitation card always had a tear-off edge, and it said ‘gift’ on it. And after the performance in the lobby and the play in the assembly hall, my dad went to get a sweet gift. And it's such absolute happiness when you go home after visiting the ‘Elka’, impressed and with gifts in your hands."
In the pictures in the same Palace of Tselinnikov, but from 1976, you can appreciate how the hall was decorated.
Everything literally sparkled, glittered, and glowed.
There was another New Year's tradition in the city: the train of Ded Moroz and Snegurochka. A Facebook user with the nickname Frese Lilia shared her memories of this.
"From December 25 to December 31, I drove along the streets of Tselinograd. I was lucky enough to take part in this as Snegurochka in 1975 and 1976. Ded Moroz and Snegurochka with their retinue in a rocket mounted on a truck, a car with speakers in front, and a radio studio bus behind."
"We drove along the city streets and congratulated all residents on the upcoming New Year through a loudspeaker and invited them to the square for New Year's parties, throwing candy to passersby. Along the way, we stopped at industrial enterprises, where we congratulated the best workers, arranged a small concert for them, and presented them with gifts. Then we returned to the square and there we held a party with poems, songs, round dances around the Christmas tree, and gifts from Ded Moroz. There was a very joyful festive mood," she recalls.
And, of course, where would we be without New Year's activities in the fresh air? Both now and 50 years ago, ice and snow towns were built in the city on the square, and slides were organized on the Yesil River.
December 1970. The embankment behind the Tselinnikov Palace.
Some on oilcloth, some on sleds. And the main thing is that you don't feel the cold at all, because after you've slid down, you have to climb up a steep slope. And this is the kind of physical activity that's not a burden. At least for the kids.
The police (then called the militsia) keep order, both then and now.
And, of course, a photo with the family as a keepsake.
We're moving to the square in front of the Esil Hotel (now it's the square in front of the city akimat - ed.). 1974.
You definitely had a hat like this as a child.
In front of the main city Christmas tree are snow busts of Ded Moroz and Snegurochka. And many more heroes from fairy tales.
"It should be noted that the builders and architects took our slides seriously. Every year they tried not to repeat themselves. And the slides themselves were sometimes wooden, sometimes made of snow, sometimes of ice. Sometimes it was Ruslan's head, sometimes a little house, sometimes a house, and sometimes an entire ice palace. And you only have time to step over and jump over the rushing children from these slides," recalls Dmitry Glukhikh.
"In the snow town on the central square we would always meet up with boys and girls - and start competing to see who could slide down faster. Who on their feet, who could do it more times. And not without some stupidities: I remember, I was sliding down on my feet and fell, and I got a split lip. But that didn't diminish the joy. And some would come back from the holidays with a cast, laughing heartily, telling how they fell down on the slide."
Photo: Nurmukhamat Imamov from imamov.kz.