After breakfast this morning our day began with a tour of the interior of St. Isaac’s Cathedral and a walk up the 276 steps to the top.

The interior space of the cathedral is simply breathtaking. Nearly all of the artwork consists of mosaics rather than murals or other painted artwork. This is due to the climate and the realization that other forms would not survive for long. The Cathedral was converted to a museum by the communists in 1931. During the siege of Leninigrad during WWII the basement was used as storage for other artwork from around the city. Thankfully there was little damage done to the structure. It was camouflaged by having the dome painted, but the Germans also used it as a landmark for aerial bombing and mortar fire.

From the roof, the 360 degree view of the city was spectacular – despite the cloudy weather.

As we departed the colonnade the rains of St Petersburg went from a drizzle to a downpour. The one block walk back to the hotel left us drenched. With only a few minutes to dry off we were on the bus to our first official tour of the day. We drove about an hour south to the town of Pushkin to visit Catherine’s summer palace.

The palace is on the southern edge of St Petersburg and at the time of WWII was really in the countryside. It was occupied by the Germans during the siege of Leningrad. When they were finally driven out they laid mines in the palace which were defused but virtually all of the palace had already been looted and burned. An ongoing restoration has been underway since shortly after war ended.

Upon returning to the hotel we had dinner around the corner from the hotel and then it was off to an evening show. We saw a Cossack dance and music show that was quite entertaining. Then back to the hotel to prepare for Saturday’s early departure from the hotel as we’ll be boarding the river boat tomorrow evening.

Today consisted of a bus tour around the city during the morning with several stops for photo opportunities. The last stop was at a former port situated across the Neva River from the Peterhof Fortress where at noon every day they fire a cannon round to mark the time.

Then it was back to the hotel. We walked around the block to a Georgian restaurant recommended by our guide Ivan.

At 3pm we departed for our afternoon tours. The first stop was at Yusopov Palace. This was owned by a relative of the last Czar and was the location of the murder of Rasputin. After that we took a boat ride around the city and then back to hotel about 6pm.

We then walked a few blocks to Stroganoff Steak House. I passed on their specialty since the stroganoff featured a mushroom base. I opted for a steamed perch out of nearby Lake Ladoga which was a good choice! We were back to the hotel about 10pm and lights out shortly after.