"Saint Petersburg~ Russia at its best!" Saint Petersburg by Michael_D

Beautifull St Petersburg Russia 2004, whose cathedrals, fortresses, Neva River and Nevsky Prospect provide unparallelled beauty against a tenious backdrop of a Russian economy struggling to emerge in some viable form before things spiral out of control.

Czar Peter the Great founded the city in 1703 and proceeded to make St Petersburg a showcase of European architecture and art in what seems to be a typical Russian "we are just as good as you" move as he proceeded to mimic the very best of Europes architecture, though it had no vague similarity to other buildings in Russia up untill that time. It was his way of letting Europe know that Russia desired to be thought of as part of Europe.

He envisioned the city to be Russias "window to the West," hence the cities western classical styles of architecture...including grand street layouts by famed Italian architect Carlo Rossi, with buildings that resemble the best buildings throughout Western European cities and impressive wide sweeping city squares similar to those in Paris and Vienna instead of say Moscow and say Kazan. The world is happy he did;-)

Sadly the city was nearly destroyed by the Germans during World War II when the nazis surrounded the city, blockaded commerce/food and supplies while mercilessly watching 100s of thousands of Russians die of starvation or freezing to death. There are a large number of touching memorials to the strength and perserverence of the Russian people during the Nazi Siege throughout present day St Petersburg.

Church of the Spilled Blood

AS TEDIOUS AS THESE LISTS LOOKS at first..bear with me;-)

I could easily spend a month just looking at JUST the bridges of SPB.

One could spend twice that much time and still not see all the cathedrals in St. Petersburg

St. Petersburg is endowed with hundreds of churches representing scores of faiths, but is probably most renowned for its unparalleled collection of Russian Orthodox Cathedrals.

-Alexander Nevsky Monastery -
is a beautiful complex of churches and prestigious cemeteries that shelter the graves of many Russian cultural giants including Tchaikovsky, Dostoevsky, Glinka and others.

-The Cathedral of Peter & Paul-
(1712-1733), with its gleaming landmark needle-thin spire, magnificent Baroque interior and burial site for most of the pre-Revolutionary Russian Tsars.

-Church of the Resurrection -
Commonly referred to as the Savior on the Blood Church because it was built as a memorial on the spot where Emperor Alexander II was assassinated on March 1, 1881.

-Smolny Cathedral
(1748-1754)located on Ploshchad Rastrelli, is one of the most beautiful churches in St. Petersburg. Its dazzling cupolas and Baroque style architecture rise majestically above the banks of the Neva River.

-St. Nicholas' Naval Cathedral -
The golden Baroque spires and domes of the Theophany (1753-62) rise above the bland residential and commercial buildings in an especially picturesque part of the Northern Capital's historic center.

-St. Sampson Cathedral-
(1728-1733 - The five enchanting golden Baroque style cupolas rise dazzlingly above the far end of Sampsonievsky garden. The church was originally built in memory of the Russian victory at Poltava on July 8, 1709.

-Transfiguration Cathedral-
(1827-29) - rises above Transfiguration Ploshchad close to Liteyny Prospect.

-Trinity Cathedral-
(1828-35) - The large blue-domed Cathedral is located a short walk across the footbridge from St. Nicholas Naval Cathedral and is a fine example of classical edifice built by the renowned Russian architect Vasily Stasov.

-Vladimir Mother of God Icon Church -
Completed in 1783, this beautiful and historic Church is one of the oldest and most unique churches in St. Petersburg with it's combination of baroque and classical architectural styles.

And yet, this is just a partial list!

You will find NO city MORE beautifull and no people MORE friendly that that of "Peter".

Bridges in St. Petersburg

St. Petersburg was built on the delta of the River Neva and is spread out over numerous islands of varying sizes, frequently prompting the nickname the "City of 101 Islands". The only way to allude to the sheer NUMBER of bridges is to LIST them.And this is NOT ALL of them;-)

During the summer months when the river isn't frozen, the bridges across the Neva open at night to allow ships to pass up and down the river. .

-Alexander Nevsky Bridge-
at 905.7 meters is the longest bridge in St. Petersburg. Built in the 1960s, it is also one of the most modern.

-Anichkov Bridge -
The first bridge to span the Fontanka River combines strict and simple form with high art.

-The Bank Bridge -
a colorful reminder of St. Petersburg's glorious past. The charming chain footbridge spans the picturesque Griboedov Canal.

-Blue Bridge-
the widest bridge in the Venice of the North at 97.3 meters (321.1 feet) and is an important part of the St. Isaac's Ploshchad architectural ensemble. The bridge stands in front of the Mariinsky Palace.

-Bolsheokhtinsky Bridge
(1909-1911) uniquely combines the modernist and Romanesque architectural styles.

-Egyptian Bridge -
Built in the 1950s, after the original chain bridge of the same name tragically collapsed into the Fontanka River.

-Leutenant Schmidt Bridge -
The first bridge to unite the banks of the Neva River and the first bridge on the course from the Gulf of Finland plays an important role as an entryway for sea-going vessels.

-Lions Bridge -
has four majestic cast-iron lions that appear to ingeniously and mysteriously guard the passageway onto the charming chain footbridge.

-Lomonosov Bridge-
boasts four picturesque towers topped off with cupolas with round ball-like golden urns combines middle-age architectural style with eighteenth century Russian realism.

-The Palace Bridge -
Renowned for the view of the SS Peter and Paul Fortress through its raised spans, offers some of the best views of the Vasilevsky Island Spit.

-Trinity Bridge -
is modernist styled is considered one of the most expressive bridges in the city. The enchanting silhouette of the drawbridge consists of varying arching spans which rise gradually to the bridge's center.

-Exchange Bridge -
Spans the Maly Neva River and links the Vasilyevsky Island Spit and Petrograd Side.

-First Engineer Bridge -
sparkling green and gold it connects the old wooden Summer Palace of Empress Elizabeth with the historic Summer Gardens (Letniy Sad) and today remains one of the most richly decorated bridges.

-Italian Bridge -
Spans the Canal Griboyedova in the heart of the historic city center between Nevsky Prospekt and the Church on the Spilled Blood.The 19th century classical-styled Italian Bridge adorns the canal with its wonderful ornately decorated lampposts, lamps, railings and girders.

-Tuchkov Bridge -
The first bridge to span the Maly Neva River and connect the city's largest island Vasilyevsky Island with central St. Petersburg

-Volodarsky Bridge -
combines a simple and clear-cut design with an innovative flexible arch support system to create a unique industrial drawbridge design.

-Lower Swan Bridge -
spans the mouth of Swan Canal between magical Letny Sad and historic Mars Field.

• Pros:the buildings look dreamily wonderfull
• Cons:The weather isnt;-)and the visa process is NOT fun
• In a nutshell:nichy voh!