 A WALK INTO A
CAPTIVATING OLD
WORLD
St Petersburg, Russia
"Невероятный" ('Unbelievable!' in Russian). I had to pinch myself. I was in St Petersburg! City of the Romanov's. When I immersed myself in Anna Karenina in my youth and fell in love with that culture, I never dreamed I would one day set foot in St Petersburg. But here I am, in a city with such a striking history created by one indomitable man, Peter the Great (no, the city was not named after him). I had waited years to be here and I told my son, Sean, how lucky he was to see the city at the ripe old age of 13.
 The St Petersburg of old was steeped in enchantment but I did not know what to expect after the Bolsheviks had ravaged the city and turned it into the featureless Soviet metropolis known as Leningrad. As we cruised the city in a modern air-conditioned coach, I was pleased to see that much of the old world charm had been restored and historic buildings blended with newer structures in a comfortable fashion. The guide explained that all the new shops featuring Armani, Vuitton and other upscale labels were not allowed to change the facade of the buildings. No structure tried to beat the world record for the tallest or glitziest. Every building, Baroque or Soviet influenced, were the same height, 3 to 4 stories in pastels of pink, yellow or blue.
 The people of St Petersburg believe that their city is the best in the world and capable of overcoming any trials and tribulations. This was reflected in the voice of our tour guide as she explained the symbolic significance of the equestrian statue of Peter the Great, the inspiration for Alexander Pushkin's poem "The Bronze Horseman". The monument depicts their hero as a proud leader, gallantly leading Russia forward. According to legend, no enemy forces can take St. Petersburg while the "the Bronze Horseman" stands in the middle of the city.
Indeed the revived city seemed to have recovered from its tragic history and some of its glorious past had re-emerged. The gleaming golden domes of St. Isaac's Cathedral, the resplendent Summer and Winter palaces, the magnificent Cathedral of Spilled Blood, the jaw-dropping Amber Room in Catherine's palace were only a few of the amazing sights we managed to cover in two days (all that our cruise ship allowed).
 Then there was the world-renown Hermitage (meaning a place of solitude). Can you believe that this majestic home of Catherine the Great now houses two million exhibits and would take a art connoisseur 10 years to fully take in all the artworks and sculptures? We only had two hours to cover the highlights but even that was enough to last us a lifetime. Unlike the Louvre and the National Museum, we were able to get up close and personal with the likes of Rembrandt, Leonardo da Vinci and Rubens as well as Van Gogh, Matisse, Monet and Valezquez. Surprisingly, videos and stills were allowed at a fee.
 Another interesting aspect of the city were the canals. Peter the Great wanted to re-create the wonder of Venice in St Petersburg and so canals were constructed across the city. No, he did not capture the romance of Venice but it was still fun seeing the gorgeous city from the waterways. The Neva river ran right across St. Petersburg and the road bridges built over it rivaled the Pont Alexander III in Paris. You could tell that Peter the Great had a grand vision - to make a flowering paradise out of his city and by the looks of the many statues and monuments immortalizing him, it was clear the city loved him for it.
 In the short time, we saw Catherine's Palace in Pushkin, The Hermitage and the Cathedral of Spilled Blood. Details of these visits are covered in a separate articles because to include them here would not do them justice. We were not required to have a visa if we traveled with a local tour guide (as arranged by the cruise ship) but that meant we could not wander anywhere on our own. The food we sampled were bland tourist food and I dearly wished we could have explored more of the city and seen it through the eyes of a local.
One thing for sure, if I had the opportunity to visit St Petersburg on my own with perhaps a Russian friend, I would do it in a heartbeat. The difficulties are the language barrier (as English is not widely spoken here), the dangers of the streets (we were constantly reminded of petty thefts and pickpockets by the Russian guide) and unscrupulous taxi drivers and street vendors (I had heard a tale of a taxi driver taking tourists to a deserted area and robbing them). But if I never went back, I would happily listen to my Faberge egg musical box, line up my Matrioshka dolls, go through my photographs and re-live my brief but enchanting time in St. Petersburg.
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