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Attractions of Saint -Petersburg

              St. Petersburg is a Russian port city on the Baltic Sea. It was the imperial capital for 2 centuries, having been founded in 1703 by Peter the Great. The city remains Russia's cultural center, with its world-famous museums, palaces and theatres.

The Hermitage is one of the largest and oldest museums in the world. It was founded by Catherine the Great. The museum includes masterpieces by Leonardo da Vinci, Picasso, Renoir, Vincent van Gogh, Rembrandt and many others. Experts say it would take 11 years to examine about 3 million exhibits in the Hermitage.

Nevsky Prospekt is the main street in St. Petersburg which was cut through thick woodland in 1718. Kazan Cathedral with its impressive colonnade is located just in the heart of the street. The prospect is lined with numerous cafes, restaurants and shops.

Church of the Saviour on the Spilled Blood with its colourful domes and bright mosaics was constructed in the early 20th century on the spot of the 1881 assassination of Tsar Alexander II. Used by the Soviets to store potatoes during the Second World War 900-day siege of the city by Nazi forces, the church was finally reopened to the public in 1997.

Peter and Paul Fortress was one of the first buildings to be erected in St Petersburg in 1703, including the Baroque Peter and Paul Cathedral, which is the final resting place of almost all of Russia’s pre-revolutionary leaders (Peter the Great, Catherine the Great, Nicholas II and others). Other sights include an impressive statue of Peter the Great named “The Bronze horseman”, a working mint and the cells where revolutionaries were held.

Mariinsky Theatre was first opened in 1860. The theatre has long been one of the world’s most prominent venues for ballet and opera. Its dance school trained such world-famous ballet dancers as Rudolf Nureyev and Vatslav Nijinsky.

While the State Hermitage displays fine art from all over the world, the Russian Museum contains home-grown masterpieces. Opened in 1898, the museum exhibits everything from priceless orthodox icons to paintings by such famous artists as Surikov, Vasnetsov, Aivazovsky, Kandinsky. Among outstanding works are “The Last Day of Pompeii” by Karl Bryullov, and Ilya Repin’s “The Zaporozhye Cossacks Writing a Letter to the Turkish Sultan”.

The gold-domed 19th-century St Isaac’s Cathedral is one of St Petersburg’s most famous landmarks. It offers wonderful views of the city from its gilded viewing platform. Statues of the apostles stand guard at the top of St Isaac’s, while its massive doors are decorated with biblical scenes. Inside, the cathedral boasts a vast ceiling painting by Karl Bryullov as well as St Catherine’s Chapel.

Vasilevskiy Island - the largest island in St Petersburg which offers a bizarre selection of attractions including a pair of 15th-century sphinxes from Egypt on the river side and a museum of biological oddities “Kunstkamera” where you can see the skeleton and the heart of Peter the Great’s gigantic personal servant. The island is also home to the 19th-century Rostral Columns whose torches are lit on special occasions. It’s a great place to wander along the banks of the Neva river.