Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The term-limited Putin becomes prime minster, keeping a close watch on
the presidency of his handpicked successor, Dmitry Medvedev. (Cynical
onlookers dub the arrangement a “tandemocracy.”)
2008-2012
Surprise! A conveniently timed change in the law allows Putin to return as
president, while Medvedev swaps roles to become prime minster. Russian
protesters and international observers alike grumble about “reforms” that
shore up Putin's power.
2012
2014
The Russian city of Sochi, on the Black Sea, hosts the Winter Olympics.
2016
Russia hosts the World Cup.
What'sWithAlltheWeddings?
It's a Russian tradition for bride and groom to visit about
10 different parks and monuments around town on their wedding day and have their
photo taken.
Getting Around St. Petersburg
ByMetro:
St. Petersburg has one of the most impressive people-movers on the planet—at
rush hour, it's astonishing to simply stand on the platform and watch the hundreds upon
hundreds of commuters pile in and out of each train. For a tourist, the Metro's usefulness
for getting around the city center is limited—but it's essential for longer trips. And it's
worth taking at least once just for the experience.
You enter with a metal token (
zheton,
жетон), which you can buy for 28 R—either at
the ticket windows, or from automated machines in station entrances (in Russian only, but
easy to figure out: push button labeled Купить жетоны—“buy tokens,” select the number
of tokens you want, then insert money). A 10-journey pass is sold at ticket windows only
(265 R, valid 7 days, cannot be shared). There are no day passes.
Signs in the Metro are fully bilingual and easy to follow, and maps of the system are
posted widely. Each of the five lines is numbered and color-coded. It also helps to know
the end station in the direction you're traveling. Unlike most European subway systems,
transfer stations (where two lines meet) have two names, one for each line. Some stations
in the center have flood doors along the boarding area that open only when trains arrive.
Trains run from about 6:00 in the morning to a little after midnight. The official website
(
www.metro.spb.ru
)
is in Russian only.
Though St. Petersburg's Metro is not as ornate as Moscow's, some stations are works of
art, often with themes from the communist era (work on the system started in the 1940s).
Pushkinskaya (which celebrates the writer Pushkin) and Ploshchad Vosstaniya (which cel-
ebrates the 1917 revolution) are the most interesting stations in the center. Farther out,
Avtovo (celebrating auto workers) is generally considered the most beautiful station. It's
OK to take pictures in the Metro, but you can't use a flash.
Because bedrock is far beneath the city surface, the Metro is very deep. The Admiraltey-
skaya station is nearly 350 feet below ground. The escalator ride alone takes a good three
