Catherine's Palace

My original plan was to find a trip that included the Peterhof Palace and Gardens but it seems that these are not visited by groups in the winter. However, Catherine's Palace at Pushkin provided many of the images that I had in my mind when thinking about a trip to Russia. There was enough snow and the grey skies were perfect. These images are straight from the camera - there are quite a few metal statue coverings that I think I will remove but these images will give an idea of the beauty of the lake and gardens.

Three Architectural Icons.

The Peter and Paul Fortress, built by Peter the Great in 1703, is the oldest landmark in St. Petersburg. The needle-like spire of the cathedral rising from the bell tower of Peter and Paul reaches a height of 404 feet. Inside the cathedral are the extravagant tombs of almost all the Russian rulers since Peter the Great and a very ornate ceiling.

Smolny Convent of the Resurrection (Voskresensky) consists of a cathedral and a complex of buildings surrounding it, originally intended for a convent. It is considered to be one of the architectural masterpieces of the Italian architect Francesco Bartolomeo Rastrelli, who also redesigned the Winter Palace and created the Grand Catherine Palace in Pushkin, both of which we are due to visit.
The Singer building is a seven-storey building, built in modern style (1902-1904) for "Singer" manufacturing company.

St Petersburg at Sunset

I spent two 'evenings' in the City as the light faded. The first two shots are of Nevskiy Avenue showing the Christmas lights and the Kazan Cathedral.

The Church of Saviour on the Blood reflects in the Griboyedova Canal.

The next evening I concentrated on the view up the Bolshaya Neva, of the embankment buildings on Vasilyevskiy Island and of Dvortsovyy Bridge.

Park Inn at Dawn

A couple of images of the Hotel that we are using in St Petersburg. It is enormous (1,200 rooms) and very characterless but comfy and quiet enough. Dawn is not till 10.30 am so it is not difficult to be out before the sun comes up.

Golden St Petersburg

Yesterday afternoon, the city was bathed in golden light during our visit. Two of the images were taken along the river showing the skyline. The domes of the Saviour Church next to the smoke from the power station and the new glass building next to the historic Battle Cruiser Arora show the contrast of old and new in the city. The dome of St Isaac Cathedral can be seen both far and near in the next two images. Finally a view along one of the many canals.

Smolenskoye Cemetery

I visited the Smolenskoye Cemetery on a frosty New Year's Day. It rivals our Highgate Cemetery for atmosphere being mainly unmaintained and showing damage from the Soviet era. Up to 800,000 people are estimated to have been interred at Smolensky Cemetery before the Russian Revolution, making it the largest 19th-century cemetery of St. Petersburg.
The cemetery is the traditional burial place for academics from St. Petersburg University, actors, writers and artists. I am looking forward to processing these with Silver Effex and getting the best out of the files.

Snow Shower in St Petersburg

I was so excited when it started to snow while I was in Palace Square - only an occasional shower was forecast and that is what we got. However, I couldn't have been in a better place for the snow.
It didn't stay around on the city as it was followed by light drizzle. I took the opportunity to look round an outside art gallery at pictures of St Petersburg in a 'normal' winter.

St Petersburg - Romantic City

As you can see, my main reason for the trip, to photograph St Petersburg in the snow, has failed but it is still a beautiful city even on a grey overcast day. Romance is everywhere - both in the architecture and with the many bridal couples around the city. They have a civil marriage (maybe also a religious service) and then they take to the streets visiting all the main sites in the city's history for photos. At some stage they attach a padlock to a bridge (or tree in Moscow) and throw the key into the river so their union cannot be broken (well that is the theory).

Last Morning in Moscow

A very grey day for the visit to the Kremlin so we did not see it at its best. The first two are for Tricia - yes they still goose step when changing the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
I liked the contrast of the modern building and the traditional onion domes.

Gorky Park Moscow

Two of the dozens of snowmen in Gorky Park - they run snow machines to create enough snow when nature doesn't oblige. They also have the strange habit of putting leg warmers on their lamp standards and tree trunks. But, of course, what I enjoyed most was the huge ice skating rink and trails. I took a great many shots so expect to see one or two more when I can sort them on a larger screen.

Novodevichy Convent

The Convent with all its gold leaf and coloured brickwork looked great on a sunny crisp morning.