Visiting Sankt Petersburg

This summer we had the chance to visit St. Petersburg (Peter). We went for the mysterious twilight of the White Nights and to visit the famous Hermitage Museum.

Sankt Petersburg is the northernmost major city of the world and one of the world’s most beautiful cities. Peter has all the ingredients for an unforgettable travel experience: high art, lavish architecture, wild nightlife, an extraordinary history and rich cultural traditions that have inspired and nurtured some of the modern world’s greatest literature, music, and visual art.

Due to the city’s northern position it enjoys the phenomenon of the “white nights”, lasting from May 25-26 till July 16-17. July 22, the Solstice Day is the longest day (18 hours 53 minutes); the shortest day is December 22 (5 hours 52 minutes).
The Neva River is the city’s main waterway. The name of the river derives from the ancient name of Lake Ladoga, the Neva where it begins. In the delta, the Neva splits into three main branches: the Bolshaya Neva, the Malaya Neva and the Bolshaya Nevka. The city is located on 44 islands formed by the Neva River and 90 more rivers and canals.

The abundance of islands has led to the construction of a multitude of bridges. The longest bridge across the Neva is the Alexander Nevsky Bridge (909 meters with runways), the widest bridge is the Siniy Bridge on the Moika River (99.5 meters).

Floods occur frequently in the city. Most often they happen in autumn due to strong westerly winds. In the history of the city the Neva has risen above ordinary level more than 300 times.

A water-meter was built near the Mining Institute in 1877. A flood is registered if the water rises 180 cm above the normal level. The biggest flood was on November 7 1824 when the water rose 4.1 meters above the ordinary level.
Because of the floods some of the metro stations have anti flood doors. If you are claustrophobic is not best place to be. But after couple of times you are getting used to it. I know I did.

But enough with the history; let’s get on with the story.

We left Moscow with one of the night trains, around midnight. The midnight train is best because of the arrival in Peter at early hour. Incredible, but the train was full. A huge number of teenagers are going to have fun and enjoy the white nights.

Our hotel “Gostevoy Dom” is located near Proletarskaya metro station which is fifth metro station from train station. The hotel is a brand new and somehow hard to find. We check in fast and after a short shower we left to explore the city.

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