Oto in Motherland: a (huge) photo log

[Otohiko]

Buildings on the Admiralty Quay


Cheap Chinese food place on the Admiralty Quay


y halo thar?


The admiralty building in its usual decrepit state



*to be continued*

[Otohiko]

Another wedding party near St. Isaac’s Cathedral and the Admiralty

Note where they appear to be coming out of

One of the doors to the St. Isaacs Cathedral. You can see how huge this is.


Columns

Oh hi

(again, good size comparison)

Moo


*to be continued*

[Otohiko]

A spiral staircase leading to the upper colonnade of the cathedral, the most popular observation deck in an otherwise-low-built city.




Coming up to the Colonnade…



*to be continued*

[Otohiko]

One of the 4 small cupolas on the corners of the cathedral


Astoria Hotel from above


Birds’ eye views:

The high-rise buildings you see in the background of this one are the newer part of Vasilievski island where I lived.


Neva and the Menshikov Palace at the centre


A locked spiral staircase leading higher still.

(too bad it’s locked )

*to be continued*

[Otohiko]

Looking down at the traffic below


Kazan Cathedral at centre


Winter Palace in the middle, Admiralty and the fortress on the left, Palace square and Alexander’s column on the right


Isaakeevskaya Square below, with the statue and city hall


Square, slightly right. The large wooden cupola of the Ismailovsky Cathedral, seen under restoration on the right, was destroyed in a fire just before I went back to Canada


*to be continued*

[Otohiko]

Senate Square, with the Bronze Horseman just out of view behind the trees


The exit?


Just one more picture!
Saviour-on-the-Blood in the centre, Palace Square on the left, very far on the right – the white rising spires of Smolny Cathedral


Coming down


Snapping a picture as I go, catching the Ismailovsky cathedral which would burn a couple of weeks later.


*to be continued*

[Otohiko]

The Bronze Horseman


St. Isaac’s Cathedral, again

I’ll never get over the impression of mass it gives. A fantastic building.

Richly-decorated house on Manezhny Boulevard


For some reason this one stuck out in my memory – a gate into nowhere (that is, I remembered exactly where it was from back in the day, and had no trouble finding it – it’s not an official landmark or anything)


The old historic storehouse complex New Holland, presently under reconstruction by a French architect


*to be continued*

[Otohiko]

Moika river


Building


Moika again




*to be continued*

[Otohiko]

Mariinsky Theater, also known as Kirov Theatre, home of the most famous Ballet troupe in the world



Construction site for 2nd hall of the Mariinsky Theater – except the project for it was scrapped. They’re still clearing it, waiting for a new project to be approved.




*to be continued*

[Otohiko]

Synagogue


Possibly the neatest and best-maintained building in the city




I’ve now entered Dostoyevski’s Petersburg, vividly described in Crime and Punishment. Dostoyevski was very exact about geographical detail; I wasn’t, but the overall area still gives the same impressions.




*to be continued*