RUSSIA: Tsarkoye Selo...go ye to a nunnery

Europe » Russia » Northwest » Saint Petersburg
November 14th 2019

Published: November 14th 2019

My lasting memory of Russia is a hand washing plate of Catherine the Great in the Patriarch's Palace and Church of the Synaxis of the Twelve Apostles of the Moscow Kremlin that of the 29 Aussies we were probably the only ones to see...'cos they let Denise & I to slip in without tickets. Twas the most elaborately carved, jewel encrusted gift to her Greatness...vertical sides...about 4 cm deep...I ... Read Full Entry

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15th November 2019

Ake Och Emma
Ake Dahllof and Emma Holmbro

We've beaten the Russians too, you know?
I'd like to point out that the Swedish army from time to time beat the c**p out of the Russians and we have also been known to take thousands of POW:s. And in recent years we regularly beat the Russians in ice hockey. Btw, thanks for telling me that we can't take photos in the Amber Room. I've been thinking about going to St Petersburg just to see it. I would have been disappointed if I had gone there and not known about the no photo policy. So, what happened to the original Amber Room? Nobody knows. Most likely it was sent to Germany on a train. In the chaos of war time Europe the information on which train it was sent with got lost. The train with the amber room got bombed and burned up and there was no trace of the Amber Room once the fire was put out. That's the boring answer. But what we all really want is that the train car holding the amber room actually reached its destination. We want the crates to have been offloaded and put deep inside an abandoned mine that was later sealed. We all want the legendary Amber Room to still be in that mine today waiting for us to rediscover it. Don't we? /Ake

15th November 2019

Dancing Dave
David Hooper

We've beaten the Russians too, you know?
The Swedes were also the dominant power in the Northern Baltic for three or four hundred years before the 21 year Northern 18th Century War, Ake. And a major power in Europe from at least the beginning of the 16th Century when my hero Gustavus Adolphus led the Protestant armies to crush the Catholic armies in the 30 Years War thus shifting cultural and religious balance in Europe. I've got a bit of Swedish in my blood too!

15th November 2019

Dancing Dave
David Hooper

The Amber Room
Thanks for the extra info Ake. I stated in my blog, "In 1942 the Nazis stripped the amber decoration from the walls and transported them to Konigsberg where in 1945 they disappeared without trace." Now I know the train that may have been carrying the amber stripped from the Catherine Palace was blown up, I wanna know where. If the pieces are not held in underground vaults, how cool would it be to collect fragments from the side of train tracks where the train was blown up. There would be millions of pieces to choose from! Still worth the visit even if you can't take photos in the Amber Room. The room has an aura of reverence and the admiration one feels for the restorers by just being in there, is overwhelming.

15th November 2019

Janice Waller
non-member comment

great blog about a complex and long involved history
a great blog that also brought back wonderful memories of our time in St. Petersburg - thanks

16th November 2019

Dancing Dave
David Hooper

a complex and long involved history
Thanks Janice. As you sail your 40 ft yacht from Albania to Greece I appreciate that you make the time to read my blog and post a comment. It's also nice that it can bring back great memories of your own time in St Petersburg. Happy sailing!

16th November 2019

Mumtraveller
Lynne Brown

Art treasures galore!
Thanks for your wonderful photos ,whittled down no doubt, Dave.... I bet you’ve got hundreds ! There was so much wealth , riches we cannot imagine. In Dresden this summer we experienced another collection of great art and treasures , work for the skilled artisans no doubt but what appalling conditions the serfs and peasants lived in here in Europe and what history of cruelty from the aristocracy and leaders. It’s been great to read your blogs on this dismal winters day .... hope you haven’t had bush fires near you .

16th November 2019

Dancing Dave
David Hooper

Bushfires in Oz
Thanks for thinking of us Lynne. I presume you are snuggling to be warm on an English winter day, while we watch out for bushfires in what beckons as an horrific summer. Over 400 homes have been lost in the Eastern states so far and it is only the middle of Spring and there are also fires in South and Western Australia. Bordering National Park in northern Sydney we are preparing for the worst but as many fires are intentionally lit it is a lottery that we prefer not to have to face. In Oz if you border bushland we have to have a Bushfire Plan in the event we need to evacuate or stay to fight. Yet compared to the California fires we seem to get off lightly which is a blessing in a way.

16th November 2019

Dancing Dave
David Hooper

Art treasures galore!
Ahh the history of Russia and the wealth of the Tsars, Lynne. I guess as you live in England, royalty and its treasures are well known to you. I was absolutely gobsmacked by the opulence of the Tzars. Tsakoye Selo with its palaces and gardens is a fine example. Really hard to capture the enormity with a camera lens but the snatches of golden facades and ceiling art that I show in Catherine Palace gives a glimpse of their lifestyle. We were told there are or were about 600 palaces in St Petersburg as there had to be one for each of the numerous royal children as well, plus 870 mansions for members of the aristocracy, so even more poignant to think my pics are just a smidgen of royal excesses that were out there. Everywhere we went in Russia there were art treasures galore. Watch this space.

19th November 2019

Mary Lawrence
non-member comment

Russian Ramblings
Thanks for your blog David - a refresher course in the history & great photos. Our trip seems ingrained in my DNA - sometimes I even speak with a Russian accent! Yes, it made a big impression - as I’m sure it did to all the curious & bold travellers. I trust everyone is watching “Catherine the Great”! Cheers Mary

19th November 2019

Dancing Dave
David Hooper

Russian Ramblings
It's kinda weird Mary but when we plan a trip, Foxtel makes me think Siri is not the only one listening in. Shows like Art of Russia and Peter the Great pop up and now it's over Catherine the Great emerges as I write my blog! In BB Kings House of the Blues in Moscow the band's banter was in Russian and Denise & I felt quite at home. And now I hear you slip into a Russian accent yourself. I can picture Peter smiling. Our trip was special in so many ways and it is my pleasure to bring back memories for me and you. Thanks for commenting.

20th November 2019

D MJ Binkley
Dave and Merry Jo Binkley

Click, click, click
As I read this blog I could hear your camera clicking away, wait Den... just one more, no over here, ok one more. Smile. A summer house with just 30 rooms... sad really. Man's inhumanity to man goes all around the world. So many brutal stories to tell. Thanks for the timeline. That was very helpful. A country rich in history. Thanks for sharing your story. MJ

20th November 2019

Dancing Dave
David Hooper

Click, click, click
I have to smile MJ as you have seen my camera in action in Tajikistan but there it was for jaw dropping landscapes and the odd portrait here and there. In Tsarkoye Selo it was an extravagance of gold gilding, candelabra, family paintings of the Tsars, elaborate ceilings and parqueted floors. room after room glittering and dripping with wealth. And there was Denise with her iphone outdoing my camera's pics as is her way! Lucky I got some good ones too...and lucky with the thousands of other tourists being herded through those halls that I got some clear ones.

20th November 2019

D MJ Binkley
Dave and Merry Jo Binkley

Opulance
A grand hall indeed.

20th November 2019

Dancing Dave
David Hooper

Opulence
My camera could not capture the enormity of the halls and rooms MJ but that pic gives a hint. Just add elaborately painted ceilings with mythological scenes, gold gilding all over the walls and architraves, and each room having a different design in the inlaid parqueted floors and you get the picture.

20th November 2019

D MJ Binkley
Dave and Merry Jo Binkley

Lovely
Nice colors and you can sense the movement.

20th November 2019

Dancing Dave
David Hooper

Lovely
A small section of ceiling art, MJ. There were even some scenes of Catherine the Great in mythological scenes as if her image of herself was her sharing heaven with cherubs and angelic beings. I can picture her or other royals supervising the work to ensure their greatness was adequately expressed.

20th November 2019

His Dudeness
Ralf Kreuze

Why aren't the Dutch mentioned!?
I am sure we beat the c**p out of the Russians at some point... Oh, wait no we didn't, we just helped Peter build his fleet. We fought the Swedes though, that should count for something. Ah the Czars and their opulence, even by European royalty standards they were a bit much, though the French were pretty good at it as well, while it lasted.

20th November 2019

Dancing Dave
David Hooper

Why aren't the Dutch mentioned!?
I forget to mention the Dutch did I, Ralf? Peter the Great spent time with the Dutch learning ship building and returned to Russia and created St Petersburg as a naval base and made the men cut off their shaggy beards to look more civilised in his Dutch influenced eyes. Other major Dutch influence on Peter the Great and Catherine the Great I share in my next blog. Watch this space.

27th November 2019

Crannster
Theresa and Dave

A Gem of a Nation
Many folks seem to have an unreasonably skewed perception of Russia. It is a fascinating, diverse and beautiful country - one of my favourites. You really brought some of the history alive... Nice work as always.

28th November 2019

Dancing Dave
David Hooper

A Gem of a Nation
It's kinda easy for some folks to let perceptions of unknowing cloud desires such that they miss the knowing. But hey...we're not like that !!! Gotta agree Dave..Russia is a fascinating, diverse and beautiful country. And the more I see...the more I want to know. Here's to eyes opening and like your Canadian tundra...may first light reveal extraordinary days..

17th January 2020

Tommy No Papers
TWR

Is this the face of Russia?
I love this photo. So friendly and full of hope.

20th January 2020

Dancing Dave
David Hooper

Is this the face of Russia?
One of my first portraits in Russia, Tommy. One of so many with a smile on his face. Russia was a revelation in so many ways as my blogs attest. Enjoy!

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RUSSIA: Tsarkoye Selo...go ye to a nunnery

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