July 9 2012 - Sightseeing with Group

After breakfast in the hotel we all jumped in the van to take a city tour. Our guide Sergei was like a walking Encyclopedia! He told us so much information about buildings, architecture and people as we drove through the city. We took a special tour through St Peter and Paul's Fortress which is located on the banks of the Neva River. Our group was allowed to climb the bell tower for a magnificent view of the entire city. Our guide there loved our climbing group because alpinists had saved the spire of the bell tower during the Nazi occupation. Another highlight of the tour was taking a boat ride through the canals of the city. It was a lovely way to view the architecture closely. The buildings are painted in the most extraordinary colors of yellow, pink, green and blue. Dinner was eaten at a traditional Russian restaurant with a menu that had to have had 12 pages! Back at the hotel we packed up to be ready for our early departure the next morning.