Soviet Republic.
Headed to the city center for a boat ride through the canals and rivers of
what the Russians like to call "the Venice of the North". A boy raced us
from bridge to bridge, waving at us as we went under the bridge. I do not
think this was all in fun, since at the end it appeared he was having to
split his tips with some thug-like guys - oh well. The bridges are all
decorated and each is a different color - the locals refer to them by color,
not by name. The congestion at some points along the waterways did remind me
of Venice.
Next I headed over to visit the Church on the Spilled Blood, so named
because it was built on the spot where Russian Czar Alexander II was
assassinated in 1881. It was interesting to discover that this church was
never opened to the public as a church. It is only after it was restored and
it was turned into a museum that it was opened to the public. Here I came
across a group of young ladies celebrating with a future bride to be.
The city center is so opulent and ornate, and the massive "sleeping
villages" (Russian apartment communities),on the outskirts are so
utilitarian looking. In the city center luxury cars are numerous, and in the
suburbs the few cars that one sees are compact and economy models.
We were lucky to be here on a Sunday with only one other cruise ship in
port!
