This is a sprint not a marathon!

In the past two days we have covered a vast amount of Russian history in not so vast amount of time.

Yesterday we went to Peterhof Palace, which is on the Bay of Finland in the Baltic Sea. It was built by Peter the Great and expanded by Empress Elizabeth. It is called the "Russian Versailles" for good reason. It was absolutely huge as well as being ornate, and full of everything a royal could need for the summer months. There are also extensive grounds with other buildings and a smaller Marly Palace much like the Petite Trianon at Versailles. There are also some trick fountains that are pretty funny and technologically advanced for that time. We spent a couple of hours just wandering the grounds as well as an hour on a tour of the palace itself. We took a boat back to St.Petersburg, which after all that walking we all fell asleep on.

Today we went first to the museum/memorial for the Siege of Leningrad. It was very beautiful but also very typical of the soviet union taste for arcitecture. Lots of dark colors and low lighting, along with music glorifying Russia. I had no idea how long they were under siege - 900 days and nights starting May 9, 1941. We just missed the big anniversary parade and rememberance ceremony that they have every year.

After that we went to whats called the Hermitage. It is the Winter palace built by Catherine the Great, which she filled with artwork from all over the world. We spent about 2 hours trying to see as much of it as possible. Along with paintings, there were also ancient antiquities, furniture, sculptures, and the palace rooms themselves. I was so busy looking at the rooms most of the time I didn't absorb most of the art. The floors were all inlaid wood, and the rooms were all so grand and each had its different little theme. We spent most of our time looking through the Western European Art and the palace furnishings, along with other Russian culture things.

We also went to the ballet tonight where we had AMAZING seats. We sat in one of the boxes right by the stage that would have been used by the aristocrates of the czarist times. We saw a sequence of Strivinsky composed ballets, each a little different but all based on Russian folk lore. I really enjoyed the last story about a bird that the prince has to capture, and by pursuing it goes on a little adventure. The costumes and props were phenominal.

Tomorrow we are going to the Russian Museum (yay another one!) and for a boat ride on the canals. After that we leave by train for Moscow, where I do not know if I will have internet, so you may have to wait until I figure out the internet situation in Volgograd. I'm really excited for my first real train ride.