For the third time Russia’s cultural capital St. Petersburg hosted the international Fontanka-SUP festival, named after one of the city’s rivers: The Fontanka .

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And for all those who have no idea what SUP means: Standup paddleboarding .

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Despite the fact St. Petersburg’s waterways are pretty cold and not the cleanest, on Aug. 12 more than 500 people from the likes of Russia, Finland, Cyprus, and Poland dusted off their paddles, with many sporting fancy dress.

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"Gorgeous carnival! We've met so many costumed characters: Priests, Roman legionnaires, KGB agents, sheikhs - that was amazing, next year we for sure will get aboard the SUP too!" one spectator wrote in social media .

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Participants paddled a total of 8 km along both the Moika and Fontanka rivers, including the Kryukov and Griboyedov canals.

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Read more: 10 photos along with 10 reasons to stay in St. Petersburg forever

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