Holiday Day Six - St Petersburg

Hi Everybody,

St Petersburg sits on the banks of the River Neva and it was founded in 1703 by Peter the Great

It has changed names several times in its history and was once the capital of Russia

This has to be one of the most famous sights  associated with this city and this is the Church of the Spilled Blood and it is beautiful.

The domes are covered in gold leaf and it is truly a spectacular sight to behold

Going inside this church is a must as it is just as beautiful inside as it is out.

This is the inside of this magnificent building and every inch of it is covered









But I must warn you of Pick Pockets here as in any big city and you won't know about it until they are well gone ... with your wallet.

There is so much to see and do here and it is a really busy city with lots of slow moving traffic.

Two days was not nearly long enough to see all the wonderful sights

There is a palace on every street corner and it would take you years to visit them.

But another place to visit is the Winter Palace and I could have spent hours in there looking around the rooms.

The gold is everywhere and as long as you don't use flash you are allowed to take photographs.

The walls here are white and gold and the floor is simply wonderful.

Imagine going dancing to a grand ball dressed in all your finery on a floor like that.

And gold chandeliers are everywhere ... many many of them to each room

This is the throne room and it was huge.

I don't have the space to show you all the pictures I took and they do not do justice to what your eyes can see.

Never the less I hope you have enjoyed just a little glimpse into Russia

This is the Hermitage and holds a vast collection of over four million items.

Our guide told us it would take 12 years to see all the things in here and of course they are not all on display at the same time.

It was wonderful inside and I could have spent hours in there ... but our time was limited

This next one is a painting and NOT a photo.

The reason it is a painting is because the actual building is covered in scaffolding and polythene as the restoration work is carried out in the summer months.

This is Smolny Convent and it was originally built as a church.

But the story our guide told us is that someone committed suicide and so it was never consecrated and therefore it couldn't be used as a church and these days it is used as a convent instead.

 In the afternoon we visited the Peter and Paul Fortress and this was  very busy but worth the wait.

 Once again an abundance of gold and marble and inside are the tombs of all the Russian Tsars and their families throughout history

 But this was the saddest moment for me as this is where the remains of Tsar Nicholas and all his family are interred

The story of Anastasia has been romanticised down the years saying that she survived when the her family where murdered by the Bolsheviks on 1917

But her remains where found with the rest of her family  when they where found in 1998

It was a very sad tribute to them and very beautifully kept in lovely surroundings

Russia is a place that you cannot visit unless you have a visa but if you are on a cruise then the visa is done for you by the cruise company.

It is is so well worth it and the opulence of this city will amaze you.

These pictures do not show the real colors of this wonderful city

Now to bring you back to present day this is to let you know that I will be on Create and Craft at 9am tomorrow the 20th August.  Then later in the day I have a two hour show at 12 noon so please join me if you can 

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx