There are additional photos of buildings, etc. in St Petersburg Extra Views
The enormous Palace Square is effectively the heart of the city and was the setting of many events of worldwide significance, including the Bloody Sunday (1905) and the October Revolution of 1917.
This double triumphal arch is very theatrical.
The square is used for concerts: Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney & Elton John among others have played here.
At the centre of Palace Square is the red granite Alexander column, the tallest of its kind in the world.
The Bronze Horseman is one of the symbols of the city.
A fine example of a Baroque Orthodox cathedral. The Navy's main church.
The tallest building in St Petersburg. It is a brooding monster with no charm at all.
Tsar Alexander II was assassinated on this spot in 1881. He was riding in a carriage when an anarchist threw a bomb under it. Being bullet-proof, it had little effect. Unfortunately the Tsar then got out to look at the commotion. That was when another accomplice threw the bomb that killed him. A case of curiosity killed the cat!
The grimly-named church was erected over the very spot of the assassination.
Originally called The Imperial Russian Ballet. Then after the Revolution, The Soviet Ballet. Then it was named after the leading Bolshevik leader in "Leningrad", Sergey Kirov after his assassination in 1934. After the break-up of the USSR, Bolsheviks were no longer popular, so it was renamed the Mariinsky. Until that is the next politically correct name comes along.
A pompous statue facing St Isaacs. The only technical point of interest being that it was the first equestrian statue in Europe with only two support points (the rear hooves of the horse).
This is one of a pair of lighthouses on the Neva river opposite the Peter & Paul Fortress.
This building (based on St Peter's in Rome) is bit out of proportion. The colonnades being so dominant & the church being a relatively secondary architectural feature in the middle.
