St.Petersburg: sights to see
Sergey Soldatov
St.Petersburg was built to be the capital of Russia and 200 years
of its history were connected with the life of the Romanov dynas-
ty and Russian aristocracy. It was here where the first Russian
"perestroyka" started and the main landmarks of the country's his-
tory took place in St.Petersburg. Our city witnessed the revolution
of 1917.
Now it's the second largest city in Russia.
* The Hermitage - the world's largest collection of pieces of art.
Former residence of Russian emperors.
* Peter and Paul's Fortress - the city's cradle. Located in the
center of the city.
* The Summer Gardens - park in the down founded nearly 300 years
ago. Along the paths - beautiful sculptures ma-
de by Italian masters in XVIII century.
* Cruiser Aurora - symbol of revolution of 1917. Open for visi-
tors.
* The Smolny - headquarters of the Bolsheviks at the time of the
revolution in 1917.
* Nevsky Prospect -the main street in the city. Approximately
2.5 miles long. It starts from the Alexander
Nevsky Monastery and ends near the Hermitage.
Opposite the Hermitage - the Admiralty.
* Kazan Cathedral - built as a memorial to the war with the Napo-
leon. There is a section devoted to the history
of the Russian Orthodox Church and Catholicism.
* St.Isaac's Cathedral - one of the largest cathedrals in Europe.
Magnificent interior. Behind the cathedral -
a huge statue to Peter the Great - Bronze Hor-
seman.
* Cathedral of the Bleeding Saviour - a unique piece of old Rus-
sian church architecture. Worth seeing by all
means.
Museum of Ethnography of the Peoples of the former USSR - cus-
toms, traditions and the way of life.
Navy Museum and the Museum of Artillery - history of Russia' navy
and artillery.
Petrodvoretz (Peterhof) - a former summer residence of Russian
tzars. Rivals the French Versaille - regular
park, statue and fountains. Great beautiful
palace (Katherine Palace) right in the center
and several small palace in different corners
of the park. Good transport connection with
the city - hydrofoil from down along the Neva
River and across the Gulf of Finland.
Other former summer residences in the suburbs of St.Petersburg -
Pushkin, Pavlovsk, Lomonosov (Oranienbaum), Gatchina.
While staying in St.Petersburg one may visit a small old Russian
city of Novgorod - 3.5 hours by bus.
For travel arrangements:
Sergey Soldatov
Travel agency "Uniwest Co.,Ltd."
v...@uniwest.spb.su