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.