Saint Petersburg is a beautiful city and I recommend to start getting to know it with a city tour. Itinerary depends on where you are staying in the city but in general description will be like this: We go to the Nevsky Prospect passing Gostiny Dvor (The oldest shopping mall in Russia – middle of 18th century), the Kazan Cathedral – the main cathedral of St. Petersburg, Singer headquarters (yes, exactly the famous sowing machine maker, he did not invent it but was a marketing genious!). Who does not know Beef Stroganoff? Famous dish – sliced beef with creamy sauce- we will see the family nest manor of the Stroganoff family.

We’ll pass by the house which used to host one of the most famous confectionaries of its time where Alexander Pushkin, a great Russian poet went to drink his last lemonade and then headed for a duel, the last one in his life… Little Sea Street (Malaya Morskaya street) with Cat House  and a Mansion where «Mustache Fairy” used to live (it was a powerful lady, noble countess Natalia Golitsina, a very famous family name in Russia). We’ll see a house where Piotr Chaikovski lived and died, great Russian composer and author of the Swan Lake, Sleeping beauty, Nutcracker and many other masterpieces.

St. Isaac’s cathedral – we’ll hear a story why the architect postponed building of the Cathedral. Monument to Nicholas I. His horse stands on 2 hooves and supported by its tail. It was a super new thing for those times! Famous Astoria Hotel where Adolf Hitler planned to celebrate his victory over Leningrad which he planned to conquer very fast. Copper Rider (we’ll find out why it’s called copper though it’s made of bronze and why the stone it stands on was so popular among tourists of the 18th century). Annunciation Bridge where in 1917 Aurora ship used to stand and gave a shot in the air thus marking the sign to attack the Winter Palace. Academy of Fine Arts where the most famous artists of Russia studied, Split of the Basil Island with its Rostral Columns, Peter and Paul Fortress with its Cathedral, Matilda Kshesinskaya House, ballet dancer and lover of the future last tsar of Russia – Nicholas II. Aurorа military ship, Summer Garden with its balls, Michael’s Castle where Paul I, Russian emperor who was called Russian Hamlet, lived just 40 days, was plotted against and strangled. That’s just a small part of what we’ll see.  Usually the city is combined with visits of Savior on the Spilled Blood Church, St. Isaac’s Cathedral and Peter and Paul Fortress. Come and join me!

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