We just got back from a two week trip to St. Petersburg where I was working to support the President's visit to the G20. Although I didn't get to see the President this time, it was certainly an interesting time to be involved, with the whole Syria issue and all. It also provided a nice second chance to see St. Petersburg outside of working hours. We also had a great time sampling the culinary offerings of Russia's former capital, which seem to be much more diverse and of higher quality than what we generally find in Moscow.
We are only in Moscow for a total of two days between St. Petersburg and our next trip, so I wanted to get this posted, but it will have to be quick.
Since I was there to work, most of my sightseeing had to happen early in the morning or late at night. One of my favorite things was to take my camera on my morning runs when the water in the canals was still perfectly still.
Although I was a bit disconcerted by a number of men dressed in black who were climbing down from the church and hopping over the fence and running away as the sun rose. I'm hoping they were just photographers.
The first week of work was fairly quiet, so I made it out in time to do a whirlwind tour of the Hermitage when they were open late. This was something I desperately wanted to see but didn't have time for the first time we visited.
The decor was equally amazing as the artwork, which varies from Ancient Egypt to Monet, and includes some very famous pieces.
There was also an interesting exhibit on ancient Siberian culture, which was particularly nice since we are heading there for our next trip...
And of course, what good would a palace be if it didn't have some great views?
Beyond sampling cuisines including French, Spanish, Italian, German, Indian, Cuban, Russian, and more, we discovered Eliseev's delicatessen, which is an amazing collection of some of the most sumptuous treats. In addition to enormous oysters costing over $30 each, and tins of caviar at over $1,000, there are more affordable delights like chocolates, and my currant favorite - French Macarons!
On the weekend, I had Saturday off, so we went out to visit Smolny Cathedral and then took a boat tour along on of the canals, which is a nice relaxing way to see the city. Maybe too relaxing as for about the first 30 minutes, Aiden was so quiet that we thought he might be getting seasick. But he put our fears at ease as he stood up midway through the tour and started shouting at the top of his lungs, very much back to himself.
And Sunday morning before I had to go to work, we made it out the the Nevskiy Monastery, which is host to two cemeteries of famous Russian figures like Dostoyevskiy and Tchaikovskiy...
Overall, it was a great professional experience, and bringing Aiden and Stephanie along made it much more enjoyable than it would have been alone. I think they also enjoyed the change of pace and made the most out of their time there. On our last day, we went to a Cuban restaurant, where Aiden became obsessed with a 1950's Buick that had been converted to a table. Unfortunately, it was reserved, but we had quite a challenge to keep him in his seat once he discovered it.
So, now back to packing and off on another adventure...
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