Saint Petersburg

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Can one travel from Toronto, Canada to Saint Petersburg, Russia and back in 4 days? Yes! At first, the idea of going to Russia for a weekend seemed quite crazy, but now that I'm back, and still a bit tired, I can say that it was definitely worth it!

Where do I begin? Should I tell you how everything seemed so big, vast, far away or that the city is full of history, contrasts, beautiful churches and palaces? Yes, and that's what I expected, but actually being there and seeing it yourself is something quite different and wonderful, as any traveller can tell you. And there are many tourists in Sankt Petersburg, which you'll notice on my pictures. Unlike some tourists, we tried to see the main attractions, but not all, which is impossible in three days. We took time to enjoy the city by strolling through the main avenue Nevski Prospekt, enjoying coffee breaks at many of the downtown cafes (iced melon cappuccino sounds weird but it's a nice discovery!), and as usual, trying real Russian food at some very good restaurants (borscht! - yummmy, another surprisingly tasty delicacy, if you love beets and sweet & sour soups).

I must admit I have split feelings about "white nights", the natural phenomenon, since it's both great to have daylight till midnight and just a couple of hours of night, but it's also tricky, because you forget about time and the fact that you've been walking all day long and I mean loooong. On the other hand, the White Nights Festival, filled with ballet, opera, music and various performances (see the huge stage in front of the Winter palace on my pics), is a great idea, especially since you really can't sleep much because of the prolonged daylight. I wonder how many meals they have, 'cause if it's daytime for 21 hours, I could eat and have snacks and eat ...

Since I was born in an eastern European country, I found some of the old Soviet buildings and monuments quite familiar, and maybe that's the reason why I had this strange feeling that I'm not abroad, but I didn't feel like home either. It was quite an unusual feeling, yet it didn't stop me from genuinely enjoying the city.

Would I go back? Yes, to see other things and enjoy everything else again. I'll let my photos speak for themselves ...

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Photos

One of many canals
the Venice of the north, that's what St Petersburg is also called

Peter the Great
this is the symbol of Saint Petersburg, which was built by Catherine the Great

Kazan Cathedral
orthodox but modeled after the St Peter's basilica in Rome

Church on Spilled Blood
Alexandar II was assasinated on that spot on which the church was later built

Saviour on Blood
another name for it, but whichever name, it's quite impressive outside and inside

Church inside
after being completely destroyed it was restored in 1997

Palace square
which is huuuge and the Alexander Column

Winter Palace
impressive and beautiful

Winter Palace - Hermitage
a glimpse of pre-revolutionary, imperial Russia

Hermitage
one of the world's lagest museums

Palace square & stage
stage for the White Nights festival

Inside Hermitage
just the begining ...

A room
not the largest or 'gold-est' one

Furniture
not too much in the museum as much was destroyed or stolen on various occasions (WWII, October revolution, etc.)

Royal crimson
various colours in various rooms

Reception room
with a small throne

Dancing room
party!!!

Roooms
from red to green to blue to yellow to ... I bet they wish they had roller blades

St Isaac's Cathedral
built in 1858 and turned into 'anti-religious museum' in the Soviet years, and now is still officially a museum weighing 300,000 tonnes!

Comments

[Bibian]

Thank you
Isidora, Thank you so much for sharing this experience! What an amazing opportunity and you made the best out of it! I demand more explanation of each picture over a glass (well maybe more) of wine. Bibian Ps. We miss you at the office very, very much

[Megan]

What an amazing trip!
Isidora, only you could do this trip, and do it this much justice! The buildings are gorgeous, and as you said, Italian-ey! Glad you had such a great time, even if you were up all night with the sun! Thanks for sharing, Megan