Frist Day Without Mum and Dad!

Well, I must fess up - I missed them!!! We had a nice sleep in - in our bed again and went and enjoyed the sunshine, having lunch at a local restaurant - and yes I did say sun. We came home and sorted out our wardrobe - as we can get in it again - no cases to fight around! And organised our next holiday, we are off to Barcelona in 3 weeks. In the meantime, back to our usual routine tomorrow!

The Grand Finale

Friday night we met Nick and Jo for dinner at Brick Lane - it was a good night. Jo had her ear thing with her and we all had a good look in Josh's ears - check out the photos!

On Saturday we walked around Canary Wharf, got some last bits and pieces then

had lunch before Mum and Dad left for the airport at 4pm. Josh and I slept in our own bed - first time in 2 weeks - AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

Sunday - Headed Home

Josh and I had a sleep in - i would say nice but since i had to take antihystamines to stop myself from getting sick from the dust - i wont! Anyway we slept to our hearts content and after lunch we where picked up in the taxi, 3 of us and a case squashed onto the back seat!!! Typical really of our experiences and went back to the UK! Mum and Dad are staying with us for a week before heading back to NZ next Saturday night.

Saturday St Petersburg

Procession at the Peter and Paul Fortress Memorial at Mars Field Summer Gardens

View of the Hermitage from across the river Vasilievsky Island Monument Cathedral in the Peter and Paul Fortress Wall of the fortress

Today we went to Vasiliesvsky Island then to the 'Peter and Paul Fortress'. The fortress was founded by Peter the Great in 1703, it was a prison, also a cathdral. We walked along the wall and had some great views of the city. At midday the cannon's went off and a military procession was held - very exciting! After the fortress we went along the embankment to see the Filed of Mars - participants in the February Revolution of 1917 where buried here and a monument was errected over their graces. In 1930 it was transformed into this park. Memorial was again the eternal flame. We walked through the summer gardens - designed for the palace orginally and layed out to resemble the park at Versailles in France. It was built from 1710 - 1714.

Friday - St Petersburg

Kazan Cathedral

Church and art square down Nevesky Prospect St Nicholas Cathedral On the boat before it left - check out Josh's scarf! Marinsky Palace

Church of the Saviour on the Spilled Blood Inside the Church the decorations are all Mosaics - really beautiful and amazing. Outside the church on one of the many cannal bridges - look at the stupid red hat i wore to keep warm! The Anichkov Bridge - built at Peter I's behest in 1715 - one of the first bridges in St Petersburg.

St Issacs Cathedral

We spent today checking out the sights, we started at St Issac's cathedral. It started being built in 1818 and wasn't finished until 1858. We climbed 262 steps up up colonade, around the drum of the dome and looked over the city. We also went inside the church and where allowed to take pictures - for a charge - athough they charged us! It costs just over £6 pounds each time we went into a church or up the colonade, plus £2 to take photos - such a rip! We then went to the 'Church of the Saviour on Spilled Blood' or 'Church of the Resurrection'. It was modelled partly on St Basils in Moscow, built between 1883 and 1907 on the spot where Alexander II was blown up by the 'People's Will Terroisits Group' in 1881. We had lunch then walked down Nevesky Prospect - the main road and took photos of all the sights. At 4pm we wenton a boat ride around the cannals and had a good commentary and all the sights where pointed out to us. St Petersburg was created to resemble Vennice with all the cannals. The boat ride was freezing, we where all huddled under blankets, eventually Josh and i finished the ride inside. Despite the cold it was good.

I maganged to negotiate some antihystamine tablets from the pharmacy today as well - to deal with all the dust in the apartment! The government control the central heating - there was an artricle about it in the paper today! and they where kind enough to turn the heating on today - and boy did it make a difference! Oh and did i mention that yesterday we put the dishwasher and the washing on at the same time and we blew the power!!!!!

The temperature outside has increased which is good - fron 6 - 7!!!!!!!!

Thursday - St Petersburg

Palace Rooms inside the Hermitge Hermitage Courtyard Palace Square - General staff building in the background

Inside the Hermitage Navigating our way aroudn the exhibitions The Jordon Staircase

We spent the entire day today at the Hermitage. It's 5 linked buildings that hold a collection of art. The buildings served as a palace until 1917. Some of the rooms are still displayed as palace rooms. Josh liked the Matisse paintings and took numberous photos of them however, he was on his blackberry and missed the room with the only two da vinci's (the madonna litta dn The madonna with a flower) - ha ha! The day was good - Josh was all 'arted' out by the end of the day and enjoyed some beers with Dad. However, the plus side was that it was nice and warm!

Wednesday - St Petersburg

The lift -don't think anybody services it - we where told it doesn't always work - it stops working in the winter! The door to the apartment building. The apartment building.

Josh playing the piano in the master bedroon Master bedroom Kitchen/Lounge Before the central heating was on - it was freezing, even inside. The 6 flights of stairs we had to walk up to get the the apartment - we walked up the stairs rather than catch the lift, you will see why in the photo above.

After not much sleep we arrived in St Petersburg at 7am - we waited at the station for 30min for our ride to arrive then we had to wait in a cafe for our apartment to be ready at 10.30 - the place was gross!! Check it out! We had the whole place to ourselves at least! It was clean in the bathroom and sheets etc - but so much dust! We went for a walk around the centre adn them came back for a sleep. Josh and I slept most of the afternoon. Mum and Dad went for anotehr walk and mum had her bag pick pocketed! Whilst she was reading a menu someone undid her bag and took out the camera case, luckily the camera was not in the case and all they took is some batteries! They went down the sideway where they saw the men go and found the camera case in the rubbish bin! To finish a turely lazy day we had over priced Pizza Hut for dinner.

Moscow - Tuesday

Lennins Masoleum Church of Christ the Saviour Josh on the lion statues in the church gardens Train Platform - our train is the blue one - these are the carriages Mum's standing in front of the engine bit - check out how old it is - lucky we made it. Today we went our seperate ways in the morning. Josh and I went to Lennins Mausoleum. We where searched and our cameras had to be left in the coat check then we actually saw his embalmed body! Josh and I visited the White and Case Moscow office after lunch then met Mum and Dad at GYM. Inside GYM was this amazing supermarket that sold nice food all seperatly like an the old days! We went in the afternoon to see the cathedral of Christ the Saviour, the origninal church was built 1839 - 1883 to comemorate Russia's vicotry over Napolean. Starlin got rid of all the cathedrals, including this one, and made it into the worlds largest swimming pool, for 50 years! Over 2 years it was re-built and made back into a church for Moscow's 850th Birthday, costing US$350 million. The Frescos inside where beautiful, but again - no photos allowed. In the evening we went for dinner at a local place then caught the night train to St Petersburg. We caught the metro to the train station - with our cases and mum being a first timmer at cases on escalators went to put her case on the escalator in front of her and almost took out undeserving metro riders, until josh intervened. WE made it to the train by dad giving someone a 'golden handshake'. The cabins where cosy to say the least and we arrived in St Petersbug at 7am. The cabins where sleeper cabins and had 4 bunk beds in them - you should have seen the debarcle to get the cases in!