Baltic cruise (Day 8 – St Petersburg)

We had a very long, very full day today, with a tour of many of the city’s highlights (more palaces & churches), including a guided tour of the Hermitage Museum (only Paris’ Louvre is bigger) and the Peter and Paul Fortress, the city’s original citadel founded by Peter the Great. There is no way to see anything other than a fraction of the Hermitage exhibits within a couple of hours, but what we did see was well worth seeing.

The Museum, and indeed the whole city, was so busy; it’s clear that tourism is a major thing here. Also, Russia is about to celebrate 300 years of naval power on Sunday with Navy Day, so a number of destroyers, submarines and other vessels have already arrived on the Neva in preparation for the event – quite a sight to see so many of them on the river.

The drive in through the city outskirts from the port passes a number of tower blocks which look as bleak and depressing as you image old Soviet housing to be, although I guess many aren’t quite as Spartan on the inside these days. I imagine this city looks and feels very different in the winter! There’s also a lot of construction/infrastructure work going on, including a new stadium for the 2018 World Cup.

We continue to be lucky with the weather; still hot and dry, if a little more hazy today.

 

Main photo – The Winter Palace, Hermitage Museum

Extra – Winter Palace Grand Staircase