Ermitáž:
Státní Ermitáž zabírá šest velkolepých staveb nacházejících se podél nábřeží řeky Něvy, přímo v centru Petrohradu. Vedoucí úlohu v tomto unikátním architektonickém souboru hraje Zimní palác, rezidence ruských carů, který byl postaven podle návrhu Francesca Bartolomea Rastrelli v 1754-62. Tento komplex, se tvořil v 18. a 19. století, byl prodloužen o východní křídlo budovy generálního štábu Menshikov palác a nedávno postaveného archivu.

Put together throughout two centuries and a half, the Hermitage collections of works of art over 3 000 000 items, present the development of the world culture and art from the Stone Age to the 20th century. Today the Museum is creating its digital self-portrait to be displayed around the world. Computer technologies enable the State Hermitage Museum to provide people from all over the world with wider access to information about the Museum and its treasures.

Among the Mighty Handful most notable compositions were the operas The Snow Maiden -Snegurochka-, Sadko, Boris Godunov, Prince Igor and Khovanshchina, and the symphonic suite Scheherazade. Other prominent Russian composers include Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninoff, and in the 20th century Stravinsky, Prokofiev, Scriabin, Shostakovich and Alfred Schnittke. Of these, Tchaikovsky remains the most well-known outside Russia, and his fame as the country most famous composer is unquestioned. He is best known for ballets like Swan Lake and The Nutcracker.

The first important Russian composer was Mikhail Glinka 1804-1857, who added religious and folk elements to classical compositions, composing pioneering operas like A Life for the Tsar and Ruslan and Lyudmila though these operas were distinctively Russian, they were based on the Italian tradition. Lidiya Ruslanova performing for Soviet soldiers during the Great Patriotic War. Lidiya Ruslanova performing for Soviet soldiers during the Great Patriotic War.

Russian dance - Russian women In old times in Russia the word barynya Landlady was used by simple folk as a form of addressing to a woman of higher class. Barynya - original fast Russian folk dance with fancy foot stomping and traditional Russian squatwork -prisyadka-, sudden knee-bending and jumps. The Barynya dance is an alternation of chastushkas and frenetic dancing. Russia has a long history of classical music innovation.

Glinka and the composers who made up The Mighty Handful after him -Rimsky-Korsakov, Mussorgsky, Balakirev, Borodin and César Cui- were often influenced by Russian folk music and tales. This same period saw the foundation of the Russian Music Society in 1859, led by composers Anton and Nikolay Rubinstein. The Mighty Handful and the Russian Music Society were rivals, with the former embracing a Russian national identity and the latter musically conservative.

Probably the most familiar symbol of St Petersburg is the equestrian statue of Peter the Great, installed in 1782 on the Senate Square. Considered the greatest masterpiece of the French-born Etienne Maurice Falconet, the statue figures prominently in the Russian literature under the name of the Bronze Horseman.

The Palace Square is dominated by the unique Alexander Column /1830 - 1834/, the tallest of its kind in the world and so nicely set that no attachment to the base is needed. A striking monument to Generalissimo Suvorov, represented as a youthful god of war, was erected in 1801 on the Field of Mars, formerly used for military parades and popular festivities. Saint Isaacs Square is graced by the Monument to Nicholas I /1856& - 1859/, which was spared by Bolshevik authorities from destruction as the first equestrian statue in the world with merely two support points /the rear feet of the horse/.

The public monuments of St Petersburg also include Mikeshins circular statue of Catherine II on the Nevsky Avenue, fine horse statues on the Anichkov Bridge, a Rodin-like equestrian statue of Alexander III by Paolo Troubetzkoy, and the Tercentenary monument presented by France in 2003 and installed on the Sennaya Square.

Nádherný Petrohrad:
Rivers and Canals in Saint Petersburg is often called The City of 300 Bridges. It is built on what originally was more than 100 islands created by a maze of rivers, creeks, canals and other bodies of water, with the Neva river being the main waterway. Some of the most important events in the city history are represented by particular monuments. The Russian victory over Napoleon, for example, was commemorated by the Narva Triumphal Gate /1827 - 1834/, and the victory in the Russo-Turkish War, 1828-1829 - by the Moscow Triumphal Gates /1834 - 1838/. Following this tradition, the Piskarevskoye Cemetery was opened in 1960 as a monument to the victims of the 900-Day Siege.

When Peter the Great was designing the city, he is said to have conceived it as another Amsterdam, with canals instead of streets and citizens skillful in sailing. This is why initially, there were only about ten bridges constructed in the city, mainly across ditches and minor creeks. By Peters plans, in the summer months, the citizens were supposed to move around in boats, and in the winter months when the water froze to move in sledges. However, after Peters death, new bridges were built, as it was much easier way of transportation. The first bridge across the Neva appeared in the 19th century. The Liteyny Bridge drawn at white night.

Today, there are 342 bridges of different sizes, styles and constructions, built at different periods. Some of them are small pedestrian bridges, such as Bank and Lion bridges, others are huge transport arteries such as almost one kilometer long Alexander Nevsky Bridge. The nearly 100-metres-wide Blue Bridge, claimed to be the widest in the world, spans the Moyka River. There are bridges decorated in medieval styles with lions, horses and griffins, and there are modern styles lacking any decor.

The names of the bridges are diverse as well. Some take their names from geographic locations such as English, Italian and Egyptian bridges. Other names refer to the places such as Postoffice, Theater and Bank bridges. Many bridges are named after famous people - Alexander Nevsky, Peter the Great, Lomonosov bridges. There are colored bridges - Red, Green, Blue and Yellow bridges.

A familiar view of St. Petersburg is a drawbridge across the Neva. Every night during the navigation period from April to November, the bridges across Neva are drawn to let ships pass through the city. The most breathtaking views of drawing bridges are the ones taken during the white nights.