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Published: June 26th 2008
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After the very long day we had had yesterday, I must admit that the alarm going off at 6.00 woke me up this morning. As a result, I was not able to have my morning cup of coffee. Really not a very good start to the day -- even in St. Petersburg. To rectify this situation, Lynn and I decided that we would raid the ship's buffet and take cups of coffee onto the coach with us. Oh dear me, but that did not go over very well with the driver. We were told in no uncertain terms that this was unacceptable behaviour. So, we went back into the customs booth and drank it down before getting back on the coach.
While we're on the subject of customs, I was surprised how easily we were able to get on and off the ship. Nowhere did we have to go through an immigration process, other than Russia. And, (again, other than Russia), the only stamp we got was in Belgium. But, the Russians more than made up for it. Mom and I tried getting Russian visas so that we could travel around the city on our own. What a nightmare. The
Summer Palace
The main entrance hall. only thing I could find was a company who was willing to do it for us, but at £350/$700 per person. Mom and I decided that, when multiplied by three, that number just did not make any sense so we decided to stick with the ship's tours. Even so, every time we got off the ship in Russia, we had to show our passports to women sitting behind bullet-proof glass. It became a game to try to make them smile or to get any kind of reaction from them at all. No dice.
So, passports duly stamped and coffee duly drunk away from the coach, we loaded into it again. Our first call this morning was the Petrodvorets, or Peter the Great's Summer Palace. About half an hour outside of town on the shores of the Gulf of Finland, he built it to rival Versailles. Now, I have never been to Versailles, but this was something to see. Again, room after room more ornate than the one before. And if that wasn't enough, the gardens were something to behold. Exquisitely manicured and one fountain after another. Unfortunately, the weather did not exactly cooperate today (it was freezing cold, cloudy
Summer Palace
A typical doorway. and windy), but we did manage a walk around the gardens before we got too cold.
On the grounds were loads of vendors hawking their wares -- again, capitalism has a firm foothold these days. Lynn saw a cap that she just had to own, so I dipped into my rubles and bought her the cap and the a matching tee shirt. There was some debate about whether we were going to stop for coffee, but as we would have had to drink it outside, we passed in favour of the warmth of the coach.
We drove back into town to see the Fortress of Peter and Paul. This is the church where all of the Romanovs are buried, even the last ones. Bones were discovered years after the revolution and DNA proved them to be of Nicholas and his family. What was left of the bones was then transferred to the church and they are now buried alongside their ancestors. For a family that lived and worshipped in such OTT splendour, their graves and the church where they are is very low key. I was very impressed with the elegance of the place.
It was now
Summer Palace
One of the bedrooms. more than time for lunch. We couldn't believe it. In a venue very similar to yesterday's, we were served the identical meal. There was a fair bit of grumbling about it, I'm here to tell you. However, during the course of that lunch I had the most memorable experience of the entire cruise. Sitting at our table was a young Russian woman, probably in her early 30s, who was the tour guide for another group. As a young girl, she had played in an orchestra that was invited to travel to the United States. They flew across and landed in New Jersey, where she was going to stay with a family. On the way from the airport, they stopped at a gas station. She went on about how the shop at the station had completely overwhelmed her. She had never seen piles of pencils or pens; she had never seen more than one newspaper or any kind of magazine; she had never seen a stuffed animal. She bought one for her sister. She also bought a Snickers bar and cut it into eight pieces -- one for every day she was going to be in the States. Her host family
Summer Palace
The table is laid for an informal (??) breakfast. gave her chocolate every day, but discovered that she was not eating it, but packing it to take home to show her family. They began to give it to her unwrapped so that she would eat it.
She went on to describe how up until that point, all she had known was empty shops and rationing. She had never dreamed that there could be so many things in one place that one could buy. She finished her story by telling us that she had photos developed at a KMart and was flabbergasted that it could be done so fast. Up until that point, the only photos she had ever seen had been developed by her grandfather in the family's bathtub. I sat listening enrapt by this young woman. I asked her what year it had been that she had gone over -- 1990. So, while I was breaking into the big, bad world of New York and moaning about the fact that I couldn't afford a bigger apartment, this young woman was impressed by a Snickers bar. Travel tends to put things right into perspective!
Our first stop after lunch was a place to shop. I have never
seen so much stuff in one place in my life! Rows and rows of nesting dolls, clothes (we saw a cap like the one that Lynn had, but not as good), vodka, caviar, jewellery, chess sets -- if it is a Russian cliche, it was in there. It made the story I had heard at lunch even more poignant.
Finally, we made our way over to the Yousoupov Palace. This one is famous because it is the venue where Rasputin was killed. Again, incredibly ornate, but interesting to feel part of that time in history. My favourite detail? Rasputin was killed on the 16th of December. Seems to be a fairly popular date for big events!
I must admit that by the time we walked out, I had had enough. I don't think I could have looked at another palace or church and done it any justice. However, I am so glad I have seen St. Petersburg and I would definitely go back -- if only to hang out at the Hermitage for days. So often, when one has built up something in one's mind, the reality is a disappointment. St. Petersburg more than lived up to expectations.
Summer Palace
The gardens again.
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