Two Palaces!

On Friday, we took a guided “Two Palaces” tour to Tsarskoye Selo (The “Tsars’ Village”)/ Catherine’s (Summer) Palace which is in the town of Pushkin (named after the famous Russian Poet), as well as to Peterhof, Peter the Great’s Summer Palace on the Gulf of Finland. Our guide, Nikolai, who we found on Tours by Locals, was fabulous!

Catherine’s Palace was actually built for Catherine I (wife of Peter the Great who ruled for a short two years after his death) but was expanded by Elizabeth and Catherine II, her 18th-century successors. It was spectacular. The façade (designed by Italian-turned-Russian architect Rastrelli) is something like 300m long, and it includes tons of beautifully decorated interior rooms gilded with gold leaf.  It was actually a museum even before WW2, and when Russia entered the war with Germany, they actually moved some of the palaces treasures elsewhere for (rightful) fear that they would be looted. However, the building was still greatly damaged by fire and the war and both the interiors (particularly the Amber Room, whose mosaics took up to 11 million dollars to recreate) and exteriors had to be majorly reconstructed.

a rainy day in Tsarskoye Selo

original entry staircase clock

Cupid, waking up in the East

  

Gilded Hall of Mirrors

Golden Hallway

The Green Room

Empress Elizabeth (Petrovna)

Portrait of Catherine the Great

While you can't take photos in the Amber Room, you can take pictures of/into it, from just outside it!

  WW2 photo

Palace Grounds & Gardens

  

Mirror shot

Looking for birds to feed... (sunflower seeds in hand!)

View through the gilded Palace Gates

Nearby gardens of Alexander's Palace, where Nicholas II lived and stayed in house arrest

We, not entirely palaced-out, headed west to Peterhof/Petrodvorets, or the “Russian Versailles,” (Peter I's Summer Palace), which is best known for its gardens and (64) fountains, which are actually and amazingly driven by gravity alone (no pumps here!!).

Lower Gardens' Central Fountain

Central Statue of Samson (Russia), conquering the lion (Sweden)

Gulf of Finland 

("We should have tried to hit [nearby] Helsinki, Finland or even Talinn, Estonia!" exclaimed K [to add more countries to our "list"-- neither of us has been to either)

"Umbrella Fountain"

This trick fountain "goes off" on the hour in the afternoon!

 Roman Fountain

 

The sun came out on our way back!

Gorgeous, eh??