St Petersburg - The Rest

Church of the Spilled Blood - Sadly, not open for us to visit.

Church of the Spilled Blood - Sadly, not open for us to visit.

Church of the Spilled Blood - Sadly, not open for us to visit.

I find it interesting that we witnessed three forms of architectural cultural in St Petersburg: 1) Czarist Opulence - Rich, exhibitionist, conspicuous; 2) Soviet 1950's functionalism - Dreary, bleak, depressing (at least to my eye); and 3) Modern - Something to compete with London, Silicon Valley, Hyderabad. Here's an example of number two. You've seen number one in other galleries. And there are a couple of number three examples later here in this gallery.

Modern, TechnoChic.

Modern, TechnoChic.

We mostly ate in 'food courts' in shopping areas. Interesting to see American brands reinterpreted ... and Russian brands competing head-to-head.

We mostly ate in 'food courts' in shopping areas. Interesting to see American brands reinterpreted ... and Russian brands competing head-to-head.

We mostly ate in 'food courts' in shopping areas. Interesting to see American brands reinterpreted ... and Russian brands competing head-to-head. Know these guys?

We had Russian crepes filled with cheese and ham here. Good.

Nancy ordered one of these. Question: Draft or Bottle? Bottle she said, and they grabbed an empty bottle and drew off a draft into the bottle.

Nancy ordered one of these. Question: Draft or Bottle? Bottle she said, and they grabbed an empty bottle and drew off a draft into the bottle. Tasted like Molasses (me) and Prunes (Nancy).

We mostly ate in 'food courts' in shopping areas. Interesting to see American brands reinterpreted ... and Russian brands competing head-to-head.

This is one of my favorite photos from the trip. Why? Look at the girl on the left - yelling. Look at the kids in the foreground - could be Topeka. And then the sign and the menu hit you over the head - we're not in Kansas anymore, Dorothy.

We mostly ate in 'food courts' in shopping areas. Interesting to see American brands reinterpreted ... and Russian brands competing head-to-head.

We mostly ate in 'food courts' in shopping areas. Interesting to see American brands reinterpreted ... and Russian brands competing head-to-head.

When we returned to our ship - they were refueling. I spent a couple hours watching this. Only interesting if you're in a foreign port with nothing else to do.

When we returned to our ship - they were refueling. I spent a couple hours watching this. Only interesting if you're in a foreign port with nothing else to do.