Blogs from Russia, Europe - page 8

There were 600 palaces in St Petersburg before the Russian Revolution but only members of the Russian Royal family lived in them. The Tsars had heaps of children and it was only right that each had their own palace. There were also 870 Aristocratic families in St Petersburg before the Russian Revolution. They were not Royals and did not live in palaces but lived in mansions. That's what we were told at the secure vaults of the Hermitage. But this dancer knows better. Elizabeth, Peter the Great's daughter, the one who ordered the Summer and Winter Palaces be built, gifted Anichkov Palace (1741-50) on the banks of the Fontanka River to her lover Aleksey Razumovskiy. So did that gift make him a Royal? I don't think so!!! Alexander the Great, our esteemed guide told the history ... read more

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 think of silver. Can picture it filled with scented water...presented on a cushion...and her Highness reaching forward and dunking the tips of her fingers within...another courtier with silk towel to dab the Royal fingers dry. I say dab as it was not deep enough to dunk her hands within. If you prefer more in your face grandeur then the Catherine Palace in St Petersburg is for thee. ... read more

They tell us Russians are schooled that smiling excessively is an indication of mental illness. Expecting stern demeanours...dour Stalinist architecture and constant reminders of a cold war communist past as we dance through Putin's pastures. A young couple...her long hair cascading...clasping close...his face snuggling into the nape of her neck. We turn the corner...his head arching back...lips elasticising then telescoping to plant a kiss on her cheek.She smiles. Can't forget the image of those telescopic lips. Young people everywhere...laughing...smiling...enjoying life...even older folk doing it. Where are the stern expressionless faces? Has everyone forgotten their lessons? A motorcyclist on Moscow's Sparrow Hill doing high speed wheel-stands past a police car. Repeating his screaming wheel-stands six times...us waiting for police pursuit that never comes.... read more

A birthday and Christmas present to my mum had been a trip to St Petersburg, and in September 2019 we finally went there. Since I did not want to fly my mum by herself, I had caught a train from Dortmund (where I live) to Stuttgart (where she lives) a few days prior to our trip, and then we flew from Stuttgart together. The flight was a convenient afternoon flight via Riga. We had dinner on the plane, which turned out to be a good thing to do since we waited in immigration for at least an hour. There were huge crowds of Chinese tourists arriving, and we would meet lots of Chinese throughout the whole trip. Finally, we made it through immigration and caught a taxi to our hotel, Alexander House, a beautiful boutique hotel ... read more

Days 13 to 16 of 80 Lenin - murderer, dictator, despot, and Rolls Royce owner Today we had an early start to queue for Lenin's Tomb, that is we were there around 8.10 for a 10 am open. We had seen the queues in previous days and decided we would rather spend our two hours of queuing at the front of the queue safe in the knowledge that we would be through and done by around 10.30, rather than join later with an indeterminate exit time. TripAdvisor reviews had shown that there is no mercy in just closing entry at 1 pm on the dot - the tomb is only open on 5 days a week, for 3 hours - whether or not there are people still in the queue who may have been there for ... read more