St. Petersburg: Day Three

After a stop at a souvenir shop to buy nesting dolls, we pay a visit to Prince Vladimir Cathedral. Only one more church and one more palace to go on this trip...

We then take a ride on the Metro. There are no photos because it's strictly forbidden to take them. Why? Security... The stations through which we entered and exited weren't anything special anyway, containing little of the art we'd heard of. Its other distinction is that it's the deepest subway system in the world. Our guide mentioned that St. Petersburg is slowly sinking in the same way that Venice is, so the builders drilled deep to reach bedrock.

Emerging from the metro, we found ourselves in the middle of a typical big-city street scene for the only time in our entire three-day tour. You can spot our motherly guide, Anna, on the right of this picture as she herds us together.

*
Check out the Mickey D's sign.

*

A closer look at the Golden Arches and a strange debris-catching contraption (?) attached to the building.

And now it's time to follow these eager shoppers

to the Kuznetchny Market, St. Petersburg's version of Pike Place.
Our indefatigable Anna bears her sign proudly as she leads us in. Look carefully and you can notice the mike Anna wears. We were issued little receivers and earpieces each day, allowing us to listen to her in any kind of crowd. Very useful technology, as she could speak conversationally and quietly in any situation.

*

We took a lot of photos here for a few reasons. First, we do like our food, don't we? Second, there was a lot to see, produce and people. Third, it was thankfully less crowded than many of the other places we visited.

*

*

*

*


Honey is a specialty of the market.

*

We sneak off to check out the meat counter.

*
Hey Butch!

This one could use a little more cutting up.

Let's check out the seafood.

*

*

Pickles anyone? Garlic?

The caviar department is not for the bargain shopper.

*

Always take time to smell the flowers.