St. Petersburg has very strange history.
It was built in the middle of the swamp by Russian emperor Peter the First. He hired the best European architects to build him a city from Europe, but in the middle of the swamp.
Many Russian writers wrote their most dark novels about St. Petersburg. The dark atmosphere can often be felt in the city, especially in the winter.
This dark atmosphere together with European architecture and swamps beneath create an enjoyable mixture on those photos.
Advertisement:
This is a typical St. Petersburg yard.
Most of the yards have only one entrance with an arch, standing closed like wells.
This is a College.
And this is Post.
This is another yard.
And this is the ship in the harbor.
This is a swimming pool and a coffee shop.
Another place in the city.
This is a carwash.
The slogan on the last photo is “The worst thing you can do with this city is to renovate it”. That’s truth for some sort of native dwellers, they are really fond of the dark side beauty of this city.
Nice photos! I really love them, a nice other view on the city for a change. The only images we get to see here on television is the nice side of the city.
Zombietown (photos)…
[link][more]…
Interesting. Washington D.C. was also built on a swamp, as were parts of Boston.
I find it troubling/annoying that even Russia is infected with huge amounts of bad graffiti. It would not be so troubling to me IF the graffiti were not so “American” looking– it seems grafitti art styles haven’t changed much since the 1980′s, and I’d think that in distant countries they’d have a different style, but no. . . it looks like average American graffiti. (Don’t get me wrong– I’m not opposed to graffiti if it’s done well, if it is truly “art” and not just annoying scribbles.)
I’m sure you will get some Russians complaining about how you are making the motherland look bad again. . . *sigh*, relax people, EVERY country has its ghettos.
I often visit this city. I just love it
You can live here (Saint_Petersburg) for years and never notice any of this places. I’m still living here, at least – and I did not notice. I can’t even say, where these places are.
(c), AFAIR – http://valkorn.livejournal.com/368276.html
Few photos are just wonderful! You may look some of my photoworks in the same style here:
http://photofile.ru/users/marius42/1364233/
I love this site. I’m from Canada. I’ve been to Peter. It’s my favorite European city so far.
I just love your website and this little photo essay made my day! More, please! (I am also quite fond of the “abandoned city” essay that you posted awhile back.) I’ve noticed a fair amount of criticism about your English grammar. I wouldn’t take it to heart, if I were you. Your “Russian English” is part of this websites very personal charm. Keep up the good work! You have created a most instructive and entertaining window into your country.
Mark
p.s. — You might be interested in taking a look at my website, San Francisco Hotel Project, as there are many photos of urban decay in it.
I just love your website and this little photo essay made my day! More, please! (I am also quite fond of the “abandoned city” essay that you posted awhile back.) I’ve noticed a fair amount of criticism about your English grammar. I wouldn’t take it to heart, if I were you. Your “Russian English” is part of this websites very personal charm. Keep up the good work! You have created a most instructive and entertaining window into your country.
Mark
p.s. — You might be interested in taking a look at my website, San Francisco Hotel Project, as there are many photos of urban decay in it.
The design of Saint Petersburg is partly based on the city of Amsterdam, which also is built in a swamp area.
Czar Peter spent quite a bit of time in Amsterdam and other Dutch places to learn about ship-building.
interesting side of petrograd. i wonder why do you all write saint petersburg when official name of the city is petrograd. as far i as know, name sankt peterburg was abandoned in 1914 at the begining of world war 1, when the name was proclaimed to be too german….
St.Petersburg – city which can look as you wish to see it.
For Example: http://www.enlight.ru/camera/index_e.htm
The pictures are very interesting, but very negative! I was born and raised in Moscow and visited St. Pete several times. The city is very beautiful and very charming – all you see is a wonderful streets and new hotels!! Hey, I saw some buildings in New York – I think they are much worse….
Nice photos, yeah. But why can’t you set a link to the autor’s blog? It’s Interwebs, after all.
http://valkorn.livejournal.com/368620.html
To the author of this website:
STOP STEALING OTHER PEOPLE’S WORK!!!
That sick person obviosly spend all their time flinging mud at Russia. Just wondering, does somebody pays money for it indeed? Probably not a big deal, just $100 – 200 per monts’ eah?
>Have you made a post in this blog critizing those who are flinging mud at America
I disagree with that people but that’s YOUR job to make such kind of posts. I wouldn’t like to take the bread out of your mouth man.
Is it astonishing that I don’t criticize people who talk about a country where I’ve never been and never seen it by my own eyes? That’s my standard: don’t talk about things you’re incompetent in. It looks like you haven’t such necessary standard for any cultured person.
[...] [link][more] [...]
What tje GDP are you talking about? I haven’t see things labeled “Made in USA” for lasted decades! (They were earlier days, I still remember..)All manufactured goods are producing in China and other South-East countries, almost all oil is producing in Middle East, Russia and some in Norway and South America.
What do produce the USA nowdays, tell me please? Virtual and paper dollars? Armed conflicts around the world?
No, thanks, I don’t buy it..
(Btw, me and all people whom I know around have got rid of paper dollars they had.)
[...] Ghost town St. Petersburg. [...]
Yeee… Piter – 4ever!!! =)
Interesting comments from a well-named poster. It’s my first exposure to her particular variant of the common polarized position. At least Russia has taught her the art of “extremalism”.
Like no other, Piter is a city that speaks to your soul, even if you don’t know you have one. I live there by choice and am a much better person because of it.
Anton;
You don’t see “made in the usa” because you can’t really stamp that on a knowledge based product. Not to mention that it doesn’t really matter where a product is made anymore, but now it’s along the lines of who’s profiting.
i like St. Pete. i lived there for many years and i saw such ugly places there. but, for the God’s sake, you can see the same in other parts of the world, in the so called developed countries.
oh yes, well it’s the muslims that are taking over Russia but Russia is a Christian country, why don’t Christians come to islamic countries and occupy them, nooo that woun’t ever happen because you islamic poeple are intollerable to any chriticism. Why keep on complaining to us of bad treatment to islami if they are the ones who would kill Christians to go to heaven?
these places just make this beautiful city even more interesting
No comments of Ms. India (or what’s her nickname again)??? Now, I’m confused.
I would live there.
I would also live in Berlin.
My friend joked that going to a major city in Russia for me would be like going back home to NY.
Of course, this was an overgeneralization and he meant not a bit of it negatively, as we both know he would drop everything and live there in a heartbeat.
Hi there. I really appreciate the nice points you made. I dont think Ive actually thought about it in that way. I can really appreciate how you approached the subject matter and what you said really gave me a new perspective. Thanks for taking the time to write this all out. Fantatic precise info.
I know, how it is necessary to act, write in personal
Nice photoshots. I am from San Diego, California, USA.
It reminds me of my childhood in the early 1950′s. When in elementary school they whould show anti Soviet Union
propaganda films showing only the worst of the people
and the country. We were always told how terrible the Russians and communism were, ect. (also this was recently
after the savage distruction of Russia during WW2 so it looked really bad)
As I got older I came to study and appreciate the people
of Europe and the Soviet Union. In High School I had a
subscription to ‘Soviet Life’ I got from the Russian
Embassy. (That disgusted my parents) (Asked my Library
about that magazine a couple years ago and they couldn’t
find any record of it ever being written!)
Any way today is the first to visit ‘englishrussia.com’
and I really enjoy it.
I wish Russia (?names? Eastern Europe), China and the
USA could just hug, and be best friends. This has nothing to do with the web site but I’m on a rant. I beleive it
is only our leaders and not the people who cause the
hatred between our countries.