2026 is the new 2016: Remembering Irkutsk a Decade Ago
We recall what happened in Irkutsk ten years ago through a series of nostalgic photographs.
The trend «2026 is the new 2016» is gaining popularity online. People are actively sharing photos from 10 years ago, recalling old memes, pulling skinny jeans and fidget spinners out of dusty closets, and nostalgically reminiscing about times long gone. We also indulged in memories of what 2016 was like for Irkutsk.
The frosty winter led to sparse attendance at the Gromnitsy festival on Yunost Island, a Belarusian holiday marking the meeting of winter and spring.
Celebrations for Sagaalgan days later were far more massive, with the 2016 Yohor being the fifth in a row.
That year«s Sagaalgan was also a fiery celebration, drawing large crowds.
Irkutsk joined the Creative Pelmeni party, a pelmeni-making flash mob spanning 63 cities in 12 countries at January«s end.
Baikal-Energiya«s bandy team won the 2016 Russian Super Cup by defeating Krasnoyarsk»s world champion Yenisey.
Angarsk«s Yermak hockey team reached the Higher Hockey League playoff quarterfinals, repeating an achievement from a year earlier.
Irkutsk also hosted the Russian billiards championship in 2016, attracting players nationwide.
After placing third at Eurovision 2016, singer Sergei Lazarev made Irkutsk his first post-contest stop.
A decade ago, Irkutsk«s traditional city day carnival drew thousands to Karl Marx Street, a festive atmosphere many feel is missing today.
The city was then celebrating its 355th anniversary with various events and festivities.
The MS-21 aircraft had a large-scale 2016 presentation with then-Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, though serial production is still awaited.
The Zamyatin estate on Surikov Street was decaying in 2016, and now even those remains are gone.
Popular rock musician Alexander Pushnoy regularly hosted the RoboSib robotics festival in Irkutsk for a time.
In 2016, the legendary play «A Praying for the Dead» returned to the Irkutsk Drama Theater stage.
