End of the Line

Emblazoned with "Fosters" - is nothing sacred!!
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Toni & David (with me tucked safely away in Toni's handbag) took the overnight train to Saint Petersburg. On arrival at the station, they found a taxi that took us to our hotel (the Kristoff) which was located near Nevsky Prospekt which was a pleasant surprise after the disappointment of the one in Moscow. After settling in they took a walk along Nevsky Prospekt, and took in the sights of Kazan Cathedral (modelled after St Peters, Vatican), the monument to Catherine the Great, the Anichkov Bridge (famed for its four bronze sculptures of men taming wild horses), Church on Spilled Blood, St Isaacs Cathedral and finally sighting the very impressive Winter Palace. Toni's camera was working overtime but she was taken aback when she came across a lovely 18th-19th century ablazoned with the "Fosters" logo!!

"Life here is pretty darn good"
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The following day, after learning that on the first Sunday of the month, visitors have free entry to the Hermitage, they walked back to the Winter Palace. Even if it hadn't have been free, they wouldn't have missed the one thing that Toni wanted to see in Saint Petersburg. Before entering the palace, they wandered around Palace Square and admired all the buildings that lined the square. They crossed the square, and entered the vast green and white building which used to be an official residence of the Russian Tsars, The vast Hermitage collections are displayed in six buildings, the main one being the Winter Palace. Toni was more interested in the decor of the rooms. She can't even recall any of the treasures that they housed!! The rooms were just awesome!! Every room and hall was different, and of course full of people gazing at ceilings, walls and floors. I am sure that some of the visitors probably looked at the paintings and the other pieces of art that are housed here. I even found a couple of resident cats who told me that  'life here was pretty darn good!' They spent hours here, but it was worth it!

I even found a couple of resident cats who told me that 'life here was pretty darn good!'