St Petersburg

After a really decent train ride, we arrived into St Petersburg, the last city on our Russian adventure. Being largely exhausted, we took a cab straight to our hostel (cheaper than the train). Took us awhile but we got there and we were in for a surprise. Unfortunately, not the good kind. The hostel was rated at 9.0/10.0 and we expected a solid place but we did not get what we expected. The room was decently sized but the toilet and the common area was very small. Moreover, the toilet was the inhabitants unofficial smoking corner. In summation, it was not too good. The one plus point was that we were able to meet with some nice locals and had a few drinks with them (Esecially David 😉 ) Regardless, we were determined to let it knock us down. First order of business was to visit The Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood. This church was very similar to St Basil’s Cathedral in terms of the colour and shape (exterior only). However, the interior was a whole other story. The entire design and artwork in the church were mosaics! The entire church was built out of mosaics! It was incredibly unbelievable. The amount of effort that must have gone into the church was mind-boggling. The rest of the day was spent walking around and exploring the city. The food was pretty nice in the city, especially the DONUTS. There was a shop that sold hot, fresh donuts that was so, so tasty. The following day, we headed over to St Isaac’s Cathedral which was pretty massive. It was different from the earlier church in terms of size as it was just so huge. Another perk was the walk up to the top of the cathedral! The view from the top was really nice as we could see a majority of the city. The interior of the city was still the highlight for me tho, magnificent in terms of detail and size. The following day, we headed over to Peter and Paul fortress which was nice, but no way as near as nice as the previous two sights. All in all, St Petersburg was a really beautiful city. With the river flowing through the city and the stunning architecture in even the most normal of buildings. We may have spent a day too long in the city but it was alright having a more laid-back few days rather than the fast paced travel we had for the previous cities. Russia has been an absolute privilege to visit. Siberia, Vladimir, Suzdal, Moscow, St Petersburg, were all such a joy to visit. These were places i’d never thought i would get to see, so i am so glad this part of the trip really worked out so well. Onward to Finland!