As I type this I am sitting in the hotel lobby, waiting for midnight to roll round, when we will board our overnight train taking us from St Petersburg to Moscow.
We have had an amazing time on our journey through Russia so far and we already feel as if we have seen so much, never mind the fact we still have the most iconic city of Russia to go!
Back in March when we booked this tour with four of our friends, Hamish, Sally, Brook and Steph, we knew we were in for a very cold and different New Years. I've always wanted to go to Russia, so this trip has been a dream realised and despite the lengthy bureaucratic process one has to go to just to get into the country, it has already been worth every effort.
St Petersburg hasn't disappointed and it is even prettier than we could have imagined.
We landed on Sunday evening slightly disoriented thanks to the +4 hour time difference, and were picked up by our tour leader and driven to our very central and HUGE hotel with very informative commentary. Our guide was very informative from the word go, and after a quick introduction to the tour, we all headed out for dinner, choosing a local Russian restaurant down the road. Straight away we were met with the authentic Russian experience - seedy decor circa 1980 which could barely be seen through a haze of cigarette smoke. Step right up for the cliche Russian experience! We fumbled our way through the menu, which threw a few surprises of the good and bad kind our way, had a few beers, and then set off for a quick walk to a local mall in search of a cossack hat! As Sally and Hamish were jet lagged, we went back to the hotel at 11pm.
This is where things took a turn for the worst. Given it was 7pm UK time I found it very difficult to get to sleep and unfortunately lay there wide awake until 6am when I eventually drifted off for two hours. Brad was in a different position altogether and woke up at 1am with a stomach bug. The water in St Petersburg has giardia in it but we have been careful not to drink it - that said, perhaps the salad leaves had been washed in it, or he caught something entirely unrelated. Either way, he spent the night lying on the bathroom floor violently vomiting, before retiring to bed with a migraine - great start!
Off to a shaky start, the next day was New Years Eve, so we had no choice but to brave the day with a smile. We kicked off the day with a tour of the city, seeing all matters of beautiful sights. Kicking through parks in knee deep snow, taking photo after photo of glorious colourful churches, dressing and undressing every five minutes to counteract the sub zero temperatures and then the steamingly warm interiors - it was the perfect way to start the tour.
The real fly in the ointment was the face that the Hermitage Museum - perhaps the most famous museum in the world - was closed! New Years is the biggest holiday in the calendar for the Russians and the city effectively shuts down for the two day holiday, which meant the Hermitage was closed. We were all unbelievably gutted to say the least, but St Petersberg provided more than enough to keep us entertained!
At 2pm we were off to explore on our own, well in our cosy six pack really. The first stop was the garish and colourful Church of our Saviour's Spilled Blood, which apparently has an entire interior made from mosaic. I say apparently as we wouldn't know - it was closed! Our ill feeling was appeased greatly by the fact we learned we will be visiting its bigger and better counterpart in Moscow.
Right across the road was a cute wee souvenir and craft market, which we all left clutching at least one set of Babushka dolls! We then walked along the frozen river Neva - St Petersberg's main river, which despite its 850m width, was completely iced over. We watched a barge break through the ice for what we later learned was to set up for the evening's fireworks, wondering how on earth Russians are so fond of ice swimming.
Here's a little unknown fact for you - St Petersberg is referred to as the 'Venice of the North', as it is made up of 49 islands and 61 tributaries connecting to the main river. You learn something new every day...
Our next stop was the exquisite Palace Square, where we would be spending New Years. To rub salt in the wound, we saw the amazing Hermitage from the outside, before setting off on our way down the main st, Nevsky Prospekt - naturally written all in cyrillic, so no one could understand whether they were on the right track. Nevertheless we made it home, via Tekempo - an amazing crepe fast food restaurant (crepes are a national dish here). I managed to get an hour nap, before we were layered up and on our way to dinner.
Our tour included a traditional three course meal, complete with canapes and a liquid called Semogot which is 60 per cent alcohol and absolutely disgusting! To make matters worse pork goulash was on the menu, alongside potato pancakes. After dinner we were dropped off in Palace Square, where it seemed the entire city was out to celebrate with us. Despite the cold the time passed quickly, thanks to a group of men from Uzbekistan who took a liking to Brad and then yours truly. While it was funny at first, getting photos and not understanding a single word the other was saying, the novelty soon wore off - on our side at least. They on the other hand, couldn't get enough of us - the mind boggles to think what we looked like to them. Either way, they thought we were hilarious looking! In the end after a few hours, we discreetly slipped off in the crowd to another spot, with Brad turning off the conspicuous glow in the dark Santa hat he was given by one fellow - it was a beacon for unwanted attention!
Shortly before midnight the big screens flashed to the Kremlin, in Moscow for the big countdown and annual speech from President Putin. The fact we couldn't understand anything didn't bother us - our guide, Anastacia, has explained that he says the same thing every year: 'This year was tough but the next will be better!' And then... Fireworks, lanterns, streamers and extreme party poppers galore! It was a wonderful experience!
But the fun didn't stop there - at 2am there was going to be an amazing fireworks display, so we sucked it up, ignored the freezing toes and continued on with standing in the square. The time soon flew after Brad met a Russian guy from just out of Siberia, who despite not speaking English, had us entertained for hours. We stationed ourselves along the River Neva for what was honestly the very best fireworks display we had ever seen. Set to a soundtrack of songs from famous Russian Composers, some remixed, like Tchaikovzky, we were blown away for a full 30 minutes. I'm afraid a Warehouse Boom Box will just never be the same again! We walked home with the thousands of others walking up Nevsky Prospekt like salmon in a stream - everyone was out, children, grandparents, and even monkeys and racoons!
The next morning we had opted to do an additional tour that gave more insight into the history of the Russian Tzars and the fall of the Royal family. We kicked off the tour with a visit to the fortress, which is home to a beautiful Orthodox Church where most of the Tzars are buried. They have a bloody, dramatic and at times quite evil history, but the story that sticks in our minds the most is of the last ruling Tzar before the communist uprising - the Romonov family. When the communist movement took over, the Tzar stood down and then on the advice of trusted informers, he fled with his family of four children. Sadly the train was intercepted just before Siberia and the family were held prisoner for five years before they were put to death by firing squad. 80 years later, their remains were found and after much deliberation it was decided that they would be exhumed and buried in the church. It was a lengthy and very political process, which involved the Duke of Edinburgh giving blood to prove it was the Romonovs (he was a relative) and the DNA was tested three separate times all over the world. Everyone was found, bar the youngest son and daughter called Anastacia. There have been quite a few different movies about this missing princess, including one from Disney. A woman in the States had claimed to be her for many years, but upon the findings of the Romonov family, her body was exhumed and it was found she was no relation. Anyway, recently they did find Anastacia's remains so it seems there was a lot of fantasy and mystery about not a lot at all. Russian history is just fascinating!
Lunch was included and very much welcome by the time we stopped, and our four course Russian meal went down a treat.
The final stop was the Yusupov Palace, which we were looking forward to. As we couldn't see the Hermitage, Yusupov Palace was the next best thing as this grand building is not only beautiful, but also a history hotspot. The Yusupov Palace was home to the Yusupov family, who were essentially a very rich family who were BFFs to the Tzars and had their fingers in a ridiculous amount of pies!
After a tour of the beautiful rooms, which included a theatre and ballroom, we set off down to the cellars to see the assassination spot of Rasputin - a famous prophet around 1917 and a friend of Tzar Romonov.
The story basically goes that Rasputin had been getting on a few peoples nerves due to his womanising, the fact he was German (this was during WWI when Russia were losing the war), but mostly due to the fact that he was in favour with the Tzar and the Yusupovs didn't like the advice he was giving to the Tzar. After many unsuccessful attempts to lure Rasputin to their palace (Rasputin refused as he foresaw they would try to kill him), they eventually managed to convince him to come. Felix Yusupov (the youngest Yusupov and widely considered to be the best looking man in Europe) had been plotting an assassination with four others, including a prolific officer, politician and doctor. They had packed their cakes full of poison, so much that one bite would be enough to kill four horses instantly. Well, wise old Rasputin gobbled five and barely blinked an eye! Felix was starting to panic by this stage - especially when the poisonous wine failed to have the slightest effect. Eventually he tired of waiting and shot him straight in the head. Calling out that Rasputin was dead, the doctor came down to the cellar to declare him dead when nek minute, Rasputin jumped up and chased them! They kept shooting but Rasputin managed to escape out into the courtyard, before he was shot point blank again. They popped his body in the car and dumped him in an ice hole cut into the river, but when his body was found two days later the autopsy revealed he had died from drowning. He was still alive after all of that!? Now all these years on, it has been revealed that apparently MI6 had something to do with his death. Rasputin was telling the Tzar to withdraw from the war and of course, Britain didn't like that as it meant they would have to face Germany on their own. There you go - your very own James Bond tale straight out of 1917!
With six more hours to kill before our overnight train, we then set off for the Kazaan Cathedral where we watched a small part of an Orthodox mass service. They have no instruments in Russian Orthodox churches, but amazing acapella choirs and we were keen to hear a few songs.
Our final stop for the evening was a Russian buffet type cafeteria which are littered everywhere and are perhaps one of the cheapest and very best ways to try out the local cuisine. We spent a few hours here with the rest of the group laughing ourselves sick - never more so when Sally had the misfortune of slipping over and ending up wearing her bowl of goulash!
Love to all!
We have had an amazing time on our journey through Russia so far and we already feel as if we have seen so much, never mind the fact we still have the most iconic city of Russia to go!
Back in March when we booked this tour with four of our friends, Hamish, Sally, Brook and Steph, we knew we were in for a very cold and different New Years. I've always wanted to go to Russia, so this trip has been a dream realised and despite the lengthy bureaucratic process one has to go to just to get into the country, it has already been worth every effort.
We landed on Sunday evening slightly disoriented thanks to the +4 hour time difference, and were picked up by our tour leader and driven to our very central and HUGE hotel with very informative commentary. Our guide was very informative from the word go, and after a quick introduction to the tour, we all headed out for dinner, choosing a local Russian restaurant down the road. Straight away we were met with the authentic Russian experience - seedy decor circa 1980 which could barely be seen through a haze of cigarette smoke. Step right up for the cliche Russian experience! We fumbled our way through the menu, which threw a few surprises of the good and bad kind our way, had a few beers, and then set off for a quick walk to a local mall in search of a cossack hat! As Sally and Hamish were jet lagged, we went back to the hotel at 11pm.
This is where things took a turn for the worst. Given it was 7pm UK time I found it very difficult to get to sleep and unfortunately lay there wide awake until 6am when I eventually drifted off for two hours. Brad was in a different position altogether and woke up at 1am with a stomach bug. The water in St Petersburg has giardia in it but we have been careful not to drink it - that said, perhaps the salad leaves had been washed in it, or he caught something entirely unrelated. Either way, he spent the night lying on the bathroom floor violently vomiting, before retiring to bed with a migraine - great start!
Off to a shaky start, the next day was New Years Eve, so we had no choice but to brave the day with a smile. We kicked off the day with a tour of the city, seeing all matters of beautiful sights. Kicking through parks in knee deep snow, taking photo after photo of glorious colourful churches, dressing and undressing every five minutes to counteract the sub zero temperatures and then the steamingly warm interiors - it was the perfect way to start the tour.
The real fly in the ointment was the face that the Hermitage Museum - perhaps the most famous museum in the world - was closed! New Years is the biggest holiday in the calendar for the Russians and the city effectively shuts down for the two day holiday, which meant the Hermitage was closed. We were all unbelievably gutted to say the least, but St Petersberg provided more than enough to keep us entertained!
At 2pm we were off to explore on our own, well in our cosy six pack really. The first stop was the garish and colourful Church of our Saviour's Spilled Blood, which apparently has an entire interior made from mosaic. I say apparently as we wouldn't know - it was closed! Our ill feeling was appeased greatly by the fact we learned we will be visiting its bigger and better counterpart in Moscow.
Here's a little unknown fact for you - St Petersberg is referred to as the 'Venice of the North', as it is made up of 49 islands and 61 tributaries connecting to the main river. You learn something new every day...
Our next stop was the exquisite Palace Square, where we would be spending New Years. To rub salt in the wound, we saw the amazing Hermitage from the outside, before setting off on our way down the main st, Nevsky Prospekt - naturally written all in cyrillic, so no one could understand whether they were on the right track. Nevertheless we made it home, via Tekempo - an amazing crepe fast food restaurant (crepes are a national dish here). I managed to get an hour nap, before we were layered up and on our way to dinner.
Our tour included a traditional three course meal, complete with canapes and a liquid called Semogot which is 60 per cent alcohol and absolutely disgusting! To make matters worse pork goulash was on the menu, alongside potato pancakes. After dinner we were dropped off in Palace Square, where it seemed the entire city was out to celebrate with us. Despite the cold the time passed quickly, thanks to a group of men from Uzbekistan who took a liking to Brad and then yours truly. While it was funny at first, getting photos and not understanding a single word the other was saying, the novelty soon wore off - on our side at least. They on the other hand, couldn't get enough of us - the mind boggles to think what we looked like to them. Either way, they thought we were hilarious looking! In the end after a few hours, we discreetly slipped off in the crowd to another spot, with Brad turning off the conspicuous glow in the dark Santa hat he was given by one fellow - it was a beacon for unwanted attention!
Shortly before midnight the big screens flashed to the Kremlin, in Moscow for the big countdown and annual speech from President Putin. The fact we couldn't understand anything didn't bother us - our guide, Anastacia, has explained that he says the same thing every year: 'This year was tough but the next will be better!' And then... Fireworks, lanterns, streamers and extreme party poppers galore! It was a wonderful experience!
But the fun didn't stop there - at 2am there was going to be an amazing fireworks display, so we sucked it up, ignored the freezing toes and continued on with standing in the square. The time soon flew after Brad met a Russian guy from just out of Siberia, who despite not speaking English, had us entertained for hours. We stationed ourselves along the River Neva for what was honestly the very best fireworks display we had ever seen. Set to a soundtrack of songs from famous Russian Composers, some remixed, like Tchaikovzky, we were blown away for a full 30 minutes. I'm afraid a Warehouse Boom Box will just never be the same again! We walked home with the thousands of others walking up Nevsky Prospekt like salmon in a stream - everyone was out, children, grandparents, and even monkeys and racoons!
The next morning we had opted to do an additional tour that gave more insight into the history of the Russian Tzars and the fall of the Royal family. We kicked off the tour with a visit to the fortress, which is home to a beautiful Orthodox Church where most of the Tzars are buried. They have a bloody, dramatic and at times quite evil history, but the story that sticks in our minds the most is of the last ruling Tzar before the communist uprising - the Romonov family. When the communist movement took over, the Tzar stood down and then on the advice of trusted informers, he fled with his family of four children. Sadly the train was intercepted just before Siberia and the family were held prisoner for five years before they were put to death by firing squad. 80 years later, their remains were found and after much deliberation it was decided that they would be exhumed and buried in the church. It was a lengthy and very political process, which involved the Duke of Edinburgh giving blood to prove it was the Romonovs (he was a relative) and the DNA was tested three separate times all over the world. Everyone was found, bar the youngest son and daughter called Anastacia. There have been quite a few different movies about this missing princess, including one from Disney. A woman in the States had claimed to be her for many years, but upon the findings of the Romonov family, her body was exhumed and it was found she was no relation. Anyway, recently they did find Anastacia's remains so it seems there was a lot of fantasy and mystery about not a lot at all. Russian history is just fascinating!
Lunch was included and very much welcome by the time we stopped, and our four course Russian meal went down a treat.
The final stop was the Yusupov Palace, which we were looking forward to. As we couldn't see the Hermitage, Yusupov Palace was the next best thing as this grand building is not only beautiful, but also a history hotspot. The Yusupov Palace was home to the Yusupov family, who were essentially a very rich family who were BFFs to the Tzars and had their fingers in a ridiculous amount of pies!
After a tour of the beautiful rooms, which included a theatre and ballroom, we set off down to the cellars to see the assassination spot of Rasputin - a famous prophet around 1917 and a friend of Tzar Romonov.
The story basically goes that Rasputin had been getting on a few peoples nerves due to his womanising, the fact he was German (this was during WWI when Russia were losing the war), but mostly due to the fact that he was in favour with the Tzar and the Yusupovs didn't like the advice he was giving to the Tzar. After many unsuccessful attempts to lure Rasputin to their palace (Rasputin refused as he foresaw they would try to kill him), they eventually managed to convince him to come. Felix Yusupov (the youngest Yusupov and widely considered to be the best looking man in Europe) had been plotting an assassination with four others, including a prolific officer, politician and doctor. They had packed their cakes full of poison, so much that one bite would be enough to kill four horses instantly. Well, wise old Rasputin gobbled five and barely blinked an eye! Felix was starting to panic by this stage - especially when the poisonous wine failed to have the slightest effect. Eventually he tired of waiting and shot him straight in the head. Calling out that Rasputin was dead, the doctor came down to the cellar to declare him dead when nek minute, Rasputin jumped up and chased them! They kept shooting but Rasputin managed to escape out into the courtyard, before he was shot point blank again. They popped his body in the car and dumped him in an ice hole cut into the river, but when his body was found two days later the autopsy revealed he had died from drowning. He was still alive after all of that!? Now all these years on, it has been revealed that apparently MI6 had something to do with his death. Rasputin was telling the Tzar to withdraw from the war and of course, Britain didn't like that as it meant they would have to face Germany on their own. There you go - your very own James Bond tale straight out of 1917!
With six more hours to kill before our overnight train, we then set off for the Kazaan Cathedral where we watched a small part of an Orthodox mass service. They have no instruments in Russian Orthodox churches, but amazing acapella choirs and we were keen to hear a few songs.
Our final stop for the evening was a Russian buffet type cafeteria which are littered everywhere and are perhaps one of the cheapest and very best ways to try out the local cuisine. We spent a few hours here with the rest of the group laughing ourselves sick - never more so when Sally had the misfortune of slipping over and ending up wearing her bowl of goulash!
Love to all!
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