St Petersburg, Russia

We arrived in St. Petersburg, Russia on September 5, 2017.  It is difficult to get Russian visas so coming on a cruise ship is the easiest way to see some of this country.  If your tour operator is licensed correctly with the government and you stay with your guide at all times, the operating company provides you with a temporary 2-3 day visa.  We were a little nervous as we had booked with through Viator with a private company other than the excursion provided by the ship.  TJ Travel proved to be an excellent company and we would highly recommend them.

We were first given a brief ride around the city.  The older structures are gorgeously ornate, colorful and beautiful.  The newer buildings are rectangular, plain and quite drab.

St. Petersburg was founded in 1703 by Peter the Great, the czar who consolidated Russia.  It is the second most populous city in Russia and was the imperial capital for 2 centuries.  For a time it was called Leningrad.

This Bronze Horseman, commissioned by Catherine the Great is one of the most famous symbols of the city.

            This Cathedral of St. Isaacs in another one of the city's most famous buildings.

We arrived early at the Hermitage,  the world's largest museum of art and culture which is comprised of 6 buildings.  The most famous is the Winter Palace directly behind Steve.  The museum was founded in 1764 when the Empress Catherine the Great acquired an impressive art collection from a Berlin merchant named Gotzkowsky.

Our tour company was able to get us into the museum first thing so that we avoided wasting time waiting in long lines.  That was one of the reasons we picked this company.  There was so much to see in such a small amount of time.

                                   We were so happy not to have to wait in that line below.

The little auburn haired lady in the lower right hand corner was our guide for two days.  Her English was very good and she was very helpful and informative.  She kept warning us of pickpockets and reminding us to watch our step.

                            There are many famous paintings contained within this museum.

                         This was a canal you can see when you looked out one of the windows.

                                       See the long lines waiting to get inside the Hermitage.

Next we went to the Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood.  This church was built by the imperial family on the site where Alexander II was fatally wounded in 1881 by nihilists.

Just outside of this amazing church was a canal.  There are several throughout the city and  we were able to get someone to take our photo.

                              Next we were taken to a restaurant for a traditional Russian lunch.

Steve enjoyed his stroganoff and I enjoyed my borscht, the famous Russian beet soup.  It had beef chunks and lots of chopped up vegetables.  Steve was willing to taste it and was surprised that it wasn't too nasty.  In fact, he thought it was kind of good.

This little area of the restaurant must have been designed with kids in mind.  There were pet rabbits and a reading corner.  It was really cute.

                        This was the cute bathroom.  The toilets are behind the yellow doors.

After lunch we were taken to the river to board a hydrofoil, which was an enclosed speed boat which would take us down the river to the Peterhof Palace in Petergof.  It is called the Russian Versailles in the Baroque style.

In the background you see the Hermitage with the famous Winter Palace in the turquoise color.

Here is the famous Peter and Paul Fortress which we will see on the second day of our visit.

The Peterhof Palace is known for its 64 fountains with water supplied by natural springs.  There are no pumps to move the water.  The elevation differences create pressure which drives the fountains.  Amazing indeed!

During WWII German troops occupied the palace and left this gorgeous place in ruins.  The people started the renovation process immediately after the end of the war and it still continues today.  We did not see inside any of the buildings put were very content to wander the beautiful grounds.

We saw this wedding party having photographs taken.  It was a beautiful setting but quite chilly that day.  I felt sorry for the bride.

There are many buildings on the grounds which were used by various members of the imperial family.

As we took the bus back into the city and to our ship, the sun was setting and made even the drab buildings glow.

                                       Below is a photo of the famous Peter & Paul Fortress.

That evening we went to an old theatre to see traditional Russian songs, dances and comedy.  The audience was comprised of people from several ships that were in port that day.  How coincidental was it that we met a couple from the Bountiful area in Utah who had submitted their papers for a public relations mission?  They had been training for several months already.  There were on one of the other ships in port.

The program was colorful and the music was happy and fun.  We especially loved the folk dances which we had really wanted to see.  We hope that the Russian people never lose their bright, colorful, happy traditions.

This was inside the building as we were walking down the stairs and waiting to exit.  We had to go up several flights of stairs to the theatre.

The next morning, November the 6th began with a visit to a couple of the subway stations.  There are several stations that have been decorated with beautiful artwork and marble walls to bring beauty to the masses.  Trust me, they need some beauty.  The people of the city do not look happy.  They seldom laugh or even smile.  They walk quickly and don't make eye contact.  They wear black, white and gray and have very little color on their clothing.  It just feels kind of sad and without a lot of hope.

                                            Note the mosaic mural behind the turnstiles.

 After the subway excursion, we drove out to Pushkin, the Village of the Czars, to see Catherine's Palace in rococo design and the famous Amber Room.  You never get to see the entire palace but all the lavish decor gets tiresome after awhile anyway.  As we were walking from our bus to the palace we passed this band playing music for the tourists.  A lot of the Russian music is wonderful and vibrant.

 The tables were set with exquisite dishes which I am sure are only a small part of the options.
Everything is so opulent and lavish, if the peasants had seen all of this extravagance, they probably would have revolted sooner.

 The blue porcelain stove in the corner is to heat the room.  I imagine these palaces got pretty cold in the winter.

 Once again, the Germans used these palaces during WWII and absolutely plundered them and left them in ruins.  Restoration has been a long and expensive process.

 Here is a huge line of Chinese tourists.  We ran into a lot of them.  They tried to figure out ways to skirt the lines, but it doesn't work in Russia.

 I loved the park and grounds surrounding the palace even more than the inside.

We spent two entire days with the same guide and group in St. Petersburg.  We were fortunate to have a very delightful group.  One family had members from Europe, US and S. America.  They all met up on this cruise and excursion for an amazing reunion.

 As we left the palace, we literally walked down the street where our tour company had reserved a place for us to enjoy another traditional Russian meal.  Mostly the food was good.  I really liked the borscht since it was served hot.  I don't think I would care for it served cold.

 After lunch, we headed back through the city to the Fortress of Peter and Paul.  It was not only used as a fortress to protect the city, it was also used as a prison and an execution ground up into the 1920's by the Bolshevik government.

 The public perception, by design, was that it was a symbol of government oppression and that thousands of prisoners where held, abused and tortured there.  Sources I read said that wasn't the case but that perception was created to help turn the people against the czars.

 Included inside the fortress are several buildings in addition to the prison which includes the Cathedral of Peter and Paul were most of the Russian Czars and their family members were entombed.  There is still a functioning mint and a city museum inside the fortress.

 We are grateful that we were able to spend two days seeing some of the most famous and interesting sites around St. Petersburg, Russia.  It really made us appreciate of our freedoms as American citizens.  We feel that the opportunities for us to grow individually are boundless under our form of government.  We felt the sadness, lack of hope and oppression that surrounds the people of Russia.  They don't seem happy or spontaneous at all.  I understand their reliance on vodka.  It is so sad.