#208: Pioneers...

I would not have written about this if I had not seen the firework near a cafe in Bishkek and later, as I was driving by, a group of people in their 30s wearing red berets, red ties, and white shirts, and the Pioneer pins (below). It was apparently the 86th anniversary of the creation of the Pioneers, which represented the one of the stages (Oktyabrenok in 1-4th grades, Pioneer in 5-10th grades, and Komsomol in university) in becoming a member of the Communist Party in the USSR.
I remember myself when in 3rd grade the whole system disappeared along with the Soviet Union. That year I was really excited that I was moving up from Oktyabrenok to Pioneer. I was really sad that I did not get to become a Pioneer and never wore the red tie. Not that I regret it now, but a lot of people feel pride in those "good ole times" when everything was (seemed) good.