Left Behind

Day 493

Once in St. Petersburg I had not problems find the metro and getting a ticket. I just couldn't find a map anywhere. Eventually I just asked someone and they told me what line to get on. Once again, thanks LP for being a crappy guidebook. Once out of the metro I found my hostel with no difficulties. After showering I picked up a free pocket guide and headed for some lunch. Over lunch I figured out my plan of attack for the city.

My first stop was the Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood. This was were Alexander II was assassinated, hence the morbid name. I didn't know who he was, but it turns out that he was the elder brother of the Romanov that was killed in the woods with his family. The mosaics were amazing, but the place was packed. I basically took my pictures and got out.

Next up was the Russian Museum. I didn't pay extra to take photos but just took them anyway, no one said anything to me. My favorite part were the icons, especially St. George killing that pesky dragon. There were also tapestries and sculptures. Some of the rooms were more interesting than the paintings that they held. It was a really nice museum.

When I was done I spent some time at the internet cafe before going to the supermarket to get food for the week. I really wanted to get some sour cream for my pasta, but the last time that I had tried it I ended up with yogurt. This time I just kept asking until someone could tell me. The man who told me then proceeded to tell me about Left Behind. You might not remember this but way back in Ireland I had been given a synopsis of this without knowing and then had to read it out of pure boredom. He then went on about how evil credit cards were and about miracles. He especially talked about the evils of alcohol. Lastly he invited me to come to his Christian group. When he finally left me alone I put another beer in my basket, I felt that I deserved it. That was definitely the most expensive sour cream that I have ever had!

Back at the hostel some Aussies were tying up the whole stove. When it finally looked like they were done I asked "are ya'll done with the stove?" One of them looked blankly at me and then said that he didn't understand but thought I needed the stove. He then slowly, while making extra expressive arm movements told me that he would wash the pot. If I had been non English speaking I would have been really offended by the way he did this. I then pointed out that I was American and it would be just fine for him to speak to me in English.

After dinner I had a few beers and chatted with the other people at the hostel. There were a lot of people here. I was tired though, I had gotten here at 6:30 in the morning and hadn't slept much on the train. I was the first person out that night.