MEMORABLE TRIP TO ST. PETERSBURG
To start with, I'd like to tell you some words about Saint Petersburg (unofficially Peter).
Saint Petersburg is Russia’s second largest city. The city lies in north-western Russia, at the
eastern end of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. Peter was the first Russian city built
in imitation of western European cities.
Well, my dad has 2 close friends from St. Peterburg. And it′s not surprising. Because he
studied at Military Transport University of Railway Troops of the Russion Federation in St.
Peterburg. Once he invited me to go with him to the reunion in Petersburg. No doubt, I agreed.
We bought two tickets for the train "Dnioropetrovsk – Saint Petersburg" and began our
memorable trip.
The train runs 1 day and 12 hours. Frankly speaking, I've never traveled so long by train.
We came to the city early in the morning. My dad didn't know for sure how to get to a hotel, so
we took a taxi. There we could relax, took a shower and had breakfast.
There was 1 free day before the meeting, so we decided not to waste our time and to visit
some attractions. We started from «Peterhof». It's a palace complex of Peter the Great.
There are 176 fountains in it. The major fountain produces a water column with height of
21 meters at 10 a.m. It has got a really fantastic view .
There's also a magic fountain that has a form of a bench. Inexperienced people would be
wetted with water, if they wanted to sit down on this bench. The water from the fountains flows
into the Gulf of Finland.
So, Peter the Great lived in «Peterhof» in the summer time and in winter he spent his time
in historic Winter Palace (now the Hermitage Museum) that stands in the centre of the city.
The Palace has 1084 rooms and 1945 windows. The building of the General Staff is opposite the
Winter Palace. And in the centre of the Palace square there is the Alexander Column.
But the most I liked in this city were bridges. My dad and I decided to go on the night
excursion. A group of people travel all night around the city by bus and see tourist attractions.
We watched the drawbridges. There are 342 bridges in Saint Petersburg. The names of the
bridges are of a great diversity as well. Some take their names from geographic locations — such
as English or Italian bridges. Other names refer to the places such as Theatre bridge. Many
bridges are named after famous people - Alexander Nevsky, Peter the Great bridges. There are
"colored" bridges — Blue, Green or Yellow bridges.
Moreover, we came to St. Peterburg in June, so we were able to see white nights.
We spent all day and all night on the excursions, but we didn′t get tired. It's like a new
burst of energy. I didn′t think that Saint Petersburg made so many impressions on me.
By the way, my dad showed me the university where he studied. I envy my father that he
studied in Petersburg.
Next day my dad met his groupmates. Yet, unfortunately, we had only 3 days for our trip.
But no matter, I want to see this city once again.
St. Peterburg is a wonderful city for its history. This city is a cultural capital of Russia, it is
one of the most popular tourist centres not only in Russia but also in the word.