Saint Petersburg, Russia: Local Curiosities

Home
Saint Petersburg, Russia: Local Curiosities

Welcome to the most beautiful city in Russia!

26/03/2021

Peter began the work on St Petersburg, the city that bears his name. He had the city built on marshy soil. During the building of the city thousands of people died.

25/03/2021

If any proof is needed for the extravagance of Russia's Imperial rulers, then it can be found in the fact that, in less than two centuries, the Romanov Tsars established not one but two suburban estates - at Tsarskoe Selo and Pushkin - that, in terms of grandeur and excess, outstrip even Versailles. What is more, at Tsarskoe Selo, the 18th century saw the construction of two vast and truly exceptional palaces, both surrounded by extensive landscaped gardens with diverse and fascinating decorative architecture.

24/03/2021

Everyone's looking forward to May 27 -- St. Petersburg City Day 2021!

16/03/2021

Palace Square

St. Petersburg's main city square is a massive open public space right in front of the Winter Palace. The Alexander Column, built in the 1830s of a single piece of red granite, stands 47 meters tall at the center of the square. It was commissioned by Alexander I to commemorate the victory against Napoleon. Many major events in Soviet/Russian history have taken place right on the square-Tsar Alexander II was shot here in 1879, and Bolshevik troops started the Revolution here in 1917 by storming the Winter Palace, where the royalty lived. Since then, the square has also been used for marches and demonstrations, from military parades to celebrate Victory Day (which marks the end of WWII) to New Year's Eve celebrations.

15/03/2021

Peter and Paul Fortress

The Peter and Paul Fortress was originally a fortified area meant to protect the state from foreign attacks. It was constructed in 1703 and then extended and modified for the following four decades. While the fortress never saw any actual combat, it still has a dark story behind it, as it served as a prison and ex*****on quarters during the Bolshevik revolution in the early 20th century. Today, it's part of the State Museum of the History of St. Petersburg.

Within the walls of the fortress and surrounded by beautiful gardens and stone paths, there are several buildings. Perhaps the best known is the 18th-century Peter and Paul Cathedral, the final resting place of Russian czars. Prison cells, a city museum, and the Saint Petersburg Mint building (founded in 1724 to manufacture coins and still in operation) are also located within the walls of the fortress.

13/03/2021

Well, the weather leaves much to be desired today 😊

12/03/2021

Nice weather downtown today!

11/03/2021

Nightfall.

10/03/2021

There are nearly 300 museums in the city, and the city holds The Night of Museums Festival annually.

09/03/2021

Column without supports. The Alexander Column, 47.5 meters high and weighing about 700 tons, is crowned with an angel figure with a cross. The column is not fixed and is held by its own gravity. At first, citizens were afraid to pass by the column and avoided it. Then the author of the monument, Auguste de Montferrand, began to stroll every day near the column, convincing the citizens of his actions about the safety of his building.

08/03/2021

St. Petersburg has a weird monument that has been stolen 7 times. On a stone embankment of the Fontanka tributary stands a small statue of a bird, known to locals as Chizhik-Pyzhik, a reference to a famous comic song (which has its own story). Tourists toss coins at it in the hope of making their wishes come true. And more enterprising people have even nabbed the sculpture for themselves, no fewer than seven times. But on each occasion, the sculpture was invariably returned to its rightful place.

05/03/2021

There are a few St. Petersburgs in the USA. The largest of them is located, ironically, in the sunshine state. Florida’s fifth most populous city is known for its gorgeous weather, golf courses, warm bay, and scorching beaches -- things that don’t feature too much in Crime and Punishment and other works set in Russia’s northern capital.

04/03/2021

The length of the Neva River is only 74 km, but despite this, it flows through the territory a little less than the territory of Italy. The Neva delta includes the lakes Ladoga, Onega, Saimaa, Ilmen, as well as the Svir, Volkhov and Vuoksa rivers. In the world there is only one similar water system - the Great Lakes in North America. The main river of St. Petersburg Neva carries more water than the Don and the Dnieper combined.

02/03/2021

Fun factoid: Our city has actually had three names throughout history: Saint Petersburg, Leningrad and Petrograd.

01/03/2021

There are over 300 bridges in St. Petersburg 😮

28/02/2021