The Russian Museum

Yesterday, we went to the Russian Museum. There was a special temporary exhibit going on with lots of A.N. Plastov's works. It was very interesting. Most of the art was 20th century, 30's to 60's. A lot of them were very Soviet-looking. We even saw some printed fabrics with little hammers and sickles and airplanes and other symbols. For most of it, we weren't allowed to take pictures, but in the permanent exhibits I did take some pictures of the paintings that I really liked.

Peterhof Again!!

On Thursday, we went to Peterhof again. It was very, very nice. The fountains were still working, and we got to see the other half. It was very pretty. The fountains have now shut down for the winter, so it's a good thing we saw them when we did!!! The weather wasn't super, so all my pictures have a cold sort of effect... :(

It Snowed

The title says it all!!!! I was so excited the other morning when I saw the beautiful flakes falling down. The snow didn't stick, but at least it happened!! Kristina and I started feeling all christmassy and we were singing christmas songs!! :) It snowed for an hour or so, and then stopped. :( Right in the middle of "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year. :P

The snow was coming down pretty hard, but it was too soggy from the rain the day before for it to stay.

Another Park

Another very beautiful park just down the street from the metro station. I didn't get lots of pictures, but I got a few, I hope that's sufficient.

Pushkin (Tsarskoye Selo)-- Catherine's Palace: Catherine Park

We walked around in Catherine Park yesterday. We didn't have super weather, but I did manage to get a few good shots of the outside of the palace, and the park shots you already saw in my "Fall in St. Petersburg" post. Unfortunately, I don't have many pictures from this excursion. We will be going back though!

St. Isaac's Cathedral

Two days ago, (wow, I'm behind!) we went to the beautiful St. Isaac's Cathedral. A rival for such grandeur and opulence cannot be found anywhere in the world. It is an architectural wonder, an incredible work of art. The 112 massive red granite columns that make up the cathedral's majestic facade, each weighing 114 tons, are set in bronze plinths and topped with similarly designed bronze caps. The mere prospect of all that being lifted and put into place without our modern heavy machinery and technology, all that done by hand, completely blows me away. How incredible. The magnificent interior is nothing if not overwhelming.
Well, without further ado, I welcome you to St. Isaac's Cathedral.

Those granite columns I was talking about....

The view from the colonnade. You can see the whole city!!!

The Interior:

Each chandelier weighs 1 ton!!!

Fall in St. Petersburg

We've gone to a lot of different parks in the past few days, and, being behind on my blogging, I decided to combine the less major ones into one post: describing fall. The leaves are so beautiful and perfect for pictures, that this seemed to be the best way to present them.
The pictures you are about to see are from three different parks: Alexandria Park, Park Pobedy, and the Catherine Park in Pushkin. Enjoy!

Alexandria Park: We had AMAZING weather that day, and I was able to get some great shots!

Little Miss Lucy lost her other top tooth!!! And more to go, she has a couple more "looth" ones! :)

Park Pobedy: A lovely park right near where Mom lived when she was here! Just two metro stops away.

We waited a LOOOOONG time for the sun to get to the right spot to take this picture.

Pushkin- Catherine Park: We went with Papa's cousin and her daughters and our grandmother. It was very nice, but the weather wasn't super. Mostly cloudy...

A crown of leaves for Princess Lucy!!!