St Petersburg

The Aurora, which fired the blank shot at the Winter Palace in 1917 which started the Revolution.

Petrodvorets, a modest estate built by Peter the Great, which was used by Germans in WWII and is now largely a reconstruction.

The

More surpurlatives

We have seen:-

• Ballet Giselle in Hermitage Theatre - small, beautiful and part of the Winter Palace


• Opera - "Eugene Onegin" - in Mariinsky Theatre - the most beautiful theatre I have ever seen, 6 circles - 3 persons deep - decorated in gold with a royal box. Wonderful production, three of us went from the group, it is part of the Festival of White Nights - it was light at 11.05 as we left. There are no photos check google.


• Tombs of the Tsars, including Peter the Great, Catherine the Great and Nicholas and Alexander et al.


• The Hermitage in 4 hours - I will return again on Tuesday


• Peterhof - Summer Palace of Tsars, which was taken over by Germans in WWII but restored since. - much gold, glitter and fountains but it was raining.


• Dostoevsky's apartment where he died


• Restaurant we had lunch in was the building where the settlement was signed to sell Alaska to the US in 1860's.


• And of course more Churches

Tour ends tomorrow morning but I stay here for 2 more days and then go to Helsinki. It is amazing that 28 days have gone, I have slept better than at home, had no major food upsets and been constantly overwhelmed by places previously I had no interest in visiting.