Saint Petersberg, Russia

Tom and I met our friend, Joe, in Saint Petersberg over a long weekend. I returned to Kyiv on a Monday, and the boys went on to Moscow. Then, we all met up in Kyiv again for a couple of nights before Joe flew to Germany, and then back to Colorado. Here are some pictures of our adventures in Russia!

This is the Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood, (or the Cathedral of the Resurrection of Christ, it's official name). It was built on the site where Tsar Alexander II was killed and was dedicated to his memory. We rented an apartment right up the street, which overlooked the canal that runs by the church.  

 Inside the church, the walls are covered with mosaics. There are no paintings here, only tiny tiles!

 The spot where the Tsar was murdered. The cobblestone from the road shows through the floor here.

 Joe and I sitting on a bench at SS Peter and Paul Fortress, which was founded by Peter the Great in 1703.

 Mobile toilet in the Fortress. They don't mess around!

 Joe, behind bars with a guard.... Right where he belongs!

 Fist bump!

 The line was out the door at Burger King!

 The boys on the metro escalator.

 Tom found this book in the English section of a book store. A very, very strange translation.... "It is an enjoyable comic romp through a retarded part of a backward country, a picturesque series of grotesque portraits, situations and conversations described with Gogolian humor based mainly on hyperbole." Whoa!

 The Hermitage.

 Canal tour of Saint Petersberg with the boys!

Bread.