St. Petersburg

We were lucky to find a visa free trip to St Petersburg from Lappeenranta in Finland. The journey was a rather long ferry and bus trip but well worth it. It was our first trip ever to Russia and very interesting. In central St.Petersburg and especially around the touristy areas, things look very European and signs of the Soviet era are minimal.Our hotel was in Vasilevsky, directly across the river from central St. Petersburg, but in an interesting, more residential neighbourhood that allowed us to go to more local restaurants and shops. Merchandising in shops is rather backward and local supermarkets make the Frankfort Spar (in the town near our farm ) look posh.Sometimes from the street you can hardly make out it is a shop. The older fancy shopping arcades on Nevsky are glitzy in a 50s sort of way, but the stores look like you would need an appointment just to enter. There are newer western style chain stores and high end designer shops too. We did a great canal trip but St. Petersburg is best discovered on foot. The Russian Orthodox churches are amazingly decorative and of course, the Hermitage was a highlight. It is an extensive and magnificent art collection housed in the Winter Palace,whose rooms would be amazing to tour, even if there was no art on the walls.