Ok, my day just got better somehow.
We walked over a couple bridges to a hydrofoil ship that goes to the island where Peter the Great created his pleasure palace. It was used for balls and meeting state dignitaries. The ship cruise was cool and Alexandria talked about the various islands around and answered any questions I had about Russia. She was in college to be a "immediate translator" and knew English and French. She was planning on changing her major though to be a geologist.
Anyway, the ship drops us off in the middle a a windy cold morning. We wander our way down for a quick coffee and bite to eat first. Hot dog in a grilled roll with a hole poked into it and a cappuccino. The walk up was long as the gardens surrounding the palace were enormous. There were fountains everywhere and they all ran using the power from the springs themselves. Pumps were not required.
The place had been originally built in 1720, but the Nazis had destroyed a lot of it during WWII. I couple have spent probably a couple days just going to palace, through all the park area with its building and fountains. Seriously, the place was gigantic.
We started with the palace itself. It was incredible. Each room had its own theme. Different wallpaper, furnishing, artwork. The two that really stuck out for me was the portraits room, which was nothing but portraits from floor to ceiling. And not of nobility, they deliberately had a cross section of every walk of life. Young, old, beautiful, ugly, peasants, nobility, craftsman - all manner of folk.
Pimp my ride bitches...
The other room that was cool was the room that I could tell at a glance was Peter the Great's favorite. It was all wooden with intricate carvings of various crafts. All that was in it was a desk and a globe. It was basically a study room for one person where he could collect his thoughts before going out and conquering things. Unfortunately, no photography was allowed in Peterhof. So I have nothing for the inside. The outside, however, was open to the public and there were many amazing things to be seen.
The fountains and garden area was huge.we only covered a very small portion of it and seen a variety of fountains and pavilions.
A fountain Lewis Carroll would have been proud of, with dragons.
We spent an hour or two just walking around the park and shooting the breeze. I had lunch there at a pavilion/restaurant. A spicy salami soup with olives and a bad of sour cream, a hot chocolate, and fried pork slices with cheese on top.
After this it was getting close to the time to get back on the hydrofoil, but we had time to hit a small building called the hermitage (smaller case). There were two stories and the idea was that the servants stayed on the bottom floor and a table was winched up to the top floor. So meals were prepared, clothing arranged, etc. without the servants ever knowing how was on the top floor.
We hit the hydrofoil and headed back to the main strip. The hydrofoil dock was actually right in front of The Hermitage, or winter palace. Apparently, a hermitage can be one of two things. Either it denotes a place where someone can be alone (usually religious) or a huge building where a family (and their bazillion servants) can have a winter residence. Or something. I never really got why it was called The Hermitage.
Regardless, it was the winter palace of Peter the Great and Catherine the Great. Now however, it was the biggest art museum in Europe. Kind of. apparently The Louvre and The Hermitage go back and forth with that honor by building new branches onto both buildings. Kind of a uber art pissing contest. The funny thing is that the Russians have more art. There is a huge warehouse on the outskirts of St. Petersburg where the have all the art they can't fit into The Hermitage.
The tour was really quick as the tour itself was scheduled for two hours in The Hermitage and you could easily spend a week there and not hit everything. Alexandria took me to a dozen exhibits that sounded good to me or where her favorites with only a couple minutes in each spot. One of the coolest things was the Peacock Clock. A massive gift from one of Catherine the Great's lovers. It was a wind up mechanical clock that was basically a life sized forest scene with a peacock that spread its feathers every hour.
After this it was getting close to the time to get back on the hydrofoil, but we had time to hit a small building called the hermitage (smaller case). There were two stories and the idea was that the servants stayed on the bottom floor and a table was winched up to the top floor. So meals were prepared, clothing arranged, etc. without the servants ever knowing how was on the top floor.
We hit the hydrofoil and headed back to the main strip. The hydrofoil dock was actually right in front of The Hermitage, or winter palace. Apparently, a hermitage can be one of two things. Either it denotes a place where someone can be alone (usually religious) or a huge building where a family (and their bazillion servants) can have a winter residence. Or something. I never really got why it was called The Hermitage.
Regardless, it was the winter palace of Peter the Great and Catherine the Great. Now however, it was the biggest art museum in Europe. Kind of. apparently The Louvre and The Hermitage go back and forth with that honor by building new branches onto both buildings. Kind of a uber art pissing contest. The funny thing is that the Russians have more art. There is a huge warehouse on the outskirts of St. Petersburg where the have all the art they can't fit into The Hermitage.
The tour was really quick as the tour itself was scheduled for two hours in The Hermitage and you could easily spend a week there and not hit everything. Alexandria took me to a dozen exhibits that sounded good to me or where her favorites with only a couple minutes in each spot. One of the coolest things was the Peacock Clock. A massive gift from one of Catherine the Great's lovers. It was a wind up mechanical clock that was basically a life sized forest scene with a peacock that spread its feathers every hour.
The second hand was a dragonfly that spun around.
I seen Leonardo, Dutch masters, impressionists, etc. The thing is - I've seen so many art galleries that the art starts to blend together unless its something truly new. I doubt I will go back to The Hermitage. There is a Russian museum that I'm more interested in as it would give me an insight into the Russian culture.
So I tipped Alexandria 500 rubles (I have no idea whether that was a good tip or not, she seemed happy) and headed back to the hostel to relax. I read for a bit and then decided to walk around the local area a bit. Its got a slummy feeling to it, but the reality is its just middle class working folk walking their dogs and kids around the block. Lone women were walking the streets, which is generally a good sign that a neighborhood is safe.
I ended up trying to find an open restaurant somewhere that was open late on Sunday and not having much luck. I finally found what appeared to be a hipster kind of place up the block a bit. They had an eclectic menu but one in English, so I figured I would give it a shot. I had a beer (no idea what - the waiter spoke very little English), Tom Yum Kah (spicy coconut milk sup with seafood), and beef stroganoff. The soup was great but the stroganoff was the best I've ever had. Small portions though, but very intense flavor. I'll have to remember this place.
Welp, off to hit the hotel and sleep in tomorrow (no tour).
I ended up trying to find an open restaurant somewhere that was open late on Sunday and not having much luck. I finally found what appeared to be a hipster kind of place up the block a bit. They had an eclectic menu but one in English, so I figured I would give it a shot. I had a beer (no idea what - the waiter spoke very little English), Tom Yum Kah (spicy coconut milk sup with seafood), and beef stroganoff. The soup was great but the stroganoff was the best I've ever had. Small portions though, but very intense flavor. I'll have to remember this place.
Welp, off to hit the hotel and sleep in tomorrow (no tour).
I should imagine the stroganoff would be great in RUSSIA!!!!
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