words from the world

Early in the morning, I try to talk with the young Russian grandmother who hosts me. She explains me how to go to Pushkin and Pavlovsk, 25km south of Saint-Petersburg : walking up to the Sennaya square, then subway up to Moskovskaya station and finally minibus up to Pushkin.
She had just forgotten to tell me the minibus number! There are at least 20 different buses around the square near the metro station exit. More over, noboby speaks English here and I've almost gone back to the start point. After one hour of drag, I find the 287 bus goes to Pushkin and the 286 and 299 ones go to Pavlovsk (4km south of Pushkin). I repeat a few times the word "Tsarkoye Selo", the driver nods and drops me off in front off the park entrance, half an hour later. Calm and serenity are the master wordsaround the lake and the morning events are quickly forgotten. The stroll is accompanied by some nice buildings such as bridges, chinese pavilion, fountain and the pyramid where Catherine II buried her dogs. The jewel of this park is the Catherine's palace ; here are some pictures of it.





After a few hours spent in this park, I go to Pavlovsk, 4km to the south. A pedestrian way runs alongside the main street from Tsarkoye Selo up to Pavlovsk. I get in the park through the gate in front of the train station. This wide park is a real wonder. Harmoniously designed, we would think being in a small forest where the paths invite you to go for a walk. We can also rent a bike or a boat to discover the park in another way. At the top of a hill, the yellow-clad Great Palace erects. .



The day ends and I go back to Saint-Petersbourg by train.
The next day, the weather is rainy and windy. I walk for a few hours inside Saint-Petersburg visiting different monuments, Peter and Paul's fortress, Saint-Isaac's and Kazan's cathedrals and the summer garden. A real pleasure.





At 0h40, I take one of the several Moscow nighttrains. Aaaaah, a foretaste of the transsiberian train!