When people tell me they are going on a cruise, I joke and tell them cruises are for old people. We dont see ourselves as old as we are still fairly active. Yesterday, boarding the bus, and then boarding the boat, my preconcived idea was confirmed. Maybe it is my perception of ages but a lot of people on this river cruise appear to be a lot older than us. Of course that doesnt mean we dont associate with them or be friendly toward them. In fact we met some lovely people at Dinner last night and had a fantastic meal with them. It will be different for us doing this cruise as we are normally riding motorbikes around the country, not cruising rivers and on tour busses.
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| The Tzar Bar |
Our ship is the MS Rossia. She is a well appointed ship with a nice dining room, a Presidents Lounge, a Tzar bar, and sun deck. We have a boat deck room with a double bed, table and chairs, private balcony and ensuite. Wifi is available throuout the ship however free Wifi is only avalable in the lounge and bar. For 20 euros you can have Wifi in the room as well on 1 device
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| Ann on the Sun Deck |
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| The Presidents Bar |
The staff are all super friendly and we get a staff member assigned to our room to assist us.
Today we had some excursions to some fantastic locations. After a drive around tour ot the city we eventually stopped at the St Nicholas cathedral of the Epiphany. This is a functioning cathedral and a service was in progress when we visited. It was a truly moving experience, especially for Ann with her Russian heritage.
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| The winter palace |
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| The Cathedral of St Nicholas of the Epiphany |
From here we went to the fortress of Peter and Paul. This is the burial place of the Tzars and an amazing place steeped in history. Of significance to us was the Order of St George and the crypt of Tzar Nicholas II. Ann's Grandfather was a decorated colonel in the White Russian Army and was awarded a presentation watch from him. He also received the order of St George, a golden sword, several orders of St Anna, St Vladimir and St Stanislav, and the Star of Romania.
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| Inside the Cathedral of St Peter and Paul at the fortress. |
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| The crypt of Tzar Alexander II |
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| Tzar Nicholas II and his family |
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| Orders of St George and St Anna |
We had a bit more of a tour of the city and then off to Catherine Summer palace.
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| The Summer Palace |
This palace was destroyed in WW2 by the Nazis and has been meticulously rebuilt and restored. One room had amber panels with images, frames and all different designs from hand cut amber. These panels have all disappeared during the war but one surfaced in the late 90s. The room and palace has been rebuilt as close as possible from images from before the war. The image from before and seeing this now is an amazing transformation. Anyone coming to St Petersburg must visit this
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| Ornate sculptures adorn the walls |
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| Gold leaf adorns the entire interior moldings. |
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| View from the gardens |
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| The lake and boat house |
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| The avenue of trees leading to the palace |
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