June 29

Our last day in St Petersburg. We did some sightseeing around the city then visited the Faberge Museum (fabulous!) then the Peter and Paul Fortress built (you guessed it) by Peter the Great. Another Beautiful Russian Orthodox church. This one is the burial place of the family members of the Tsars, including the one niece who survived the Revolution and was finally buried only a couple of years ago.

Art Deco apartment building

Catherine the Great monument

Art Deco building

Faberge Egg

Faberge Egg Clock

Renoir Painting

St Peter & Paul Fortress Church

St Peter & Paul Fortress Church

 

Tombs of Alexander II and his wife

Peter the Great

June 28

The Hermitage collection is contained in a number of buildings. The Hermitage itself is the name given to a small retreat area within the Summer Palace. It was the Summer Palace that our tour group visited. The setting here is almost as stunning as the artwork within. This is probably the third largest museum/art gallery in the world and contains an amazing collection of art, dating back to the Pharaohs.

Summer Palace - The Hermitage

Entrance

Parquetry Floor

Chapel

St George Room

Micro-mosaic table top

Micro-mosaic table top

Rooster alarm clock

Mosaic floor

Sculpture gallery

Malachite Vase

Rembrandt - Return of the Prodigsl

Rembrandt - Abraham and Isaac

De Goya - Veneration of the Magi

Jasper Vase

Cleopatra

June 28

The Gardens at Peterhof, Peter the Great's country retreat, are full of fountains. Our guide wasn't sure the exact number but if you counted each jet it was in the hundreds.The palace and grounds were extensively damaged by the Nazis during the siege of St Petersburg but were painstakingly restored after the war.

Peterhof palace

Self operating mini fountains

Thursday June 27

St Catherine's Palace was designed by her predecessor, Tsarina Elizabeth I to rival Versailles but became known as Catherine's Palace when she became Tsarina. It is stunning in it's beautiful architecture and decorations. The few pictures here can't do it justice.
The amazing thing is that the communists preserved these places and put an enormous effort into repairing them after all the destruction of WWII. Many of the ornaments were taken to storage in Siberia and the statues were buried in the grounds. The Amber Room which we couldn't photograph was paneled in Amber! They didn't have time to take down the panels so covered them in Hessian and painted it but Hitler had sent art experts with the army who knew what they were looking for so they stole the lot. The current Amber Room is a reconstruction.

Entrance Stairway

Ballroom

  

Dining Room

Timber inlaid bureau

Elizabeth I

Gardens and Main Entrance

Catherine's private retreat

Part of the extensive gardens

Palace from rear gardens