Like a flustered society debutante putting on every single piece of jewellery she can find, Russia is desperate to look her best for the 50-odd foreign leaders expected on May 30th in St Petersburg. Celebrating its 300th anniversary, the city will glisten with fresh paint and new gold leaf (though the bright facades, like most ball dresses, conceal flimsy supports and hasty fixes). Unsightly birthmarks, such as the vegetable patches of people living in sight of the Konstantinovsky palace where the leaders will gather, have been forcibly removed. Even body odour will be banished: the authorities have encouraged locals to leave the city for the weekend.
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