The Gatchina Palace with its private apartments built by Alexander 111 for his family. This medieval style palace. which architectually is 'reserved' in palace terms is surrounded by grounds that include parks and lakes cab be found at Privokzalnaia Ploshchad. A far more lavish palace is Mramornyi Dvorets (The Marble Palace) which dates back to 1768. It was commisioned by Catherine The Great as a present for her lover Grigiry Orlov and contains 32 types of marble inside and out. It took 17 years to complete and Orlov died before it was finished. Today it is part of The State Russian Museum and it the home to a permanent exhibition of 'Foriegn Artists in Russia'. It is located at Millionaia Ulitisa 5/1.

The 250 metre long drawbridge Dvortsovyi Most, though only 90 years old, is particularly pretty at night when its fully lit. In the summer it is opened at night to allow shipping to pass by. It can be found close to the Winter Palace. One of St Petersburg's imposing sights is the Monument to the 'Heroic Defenders of Lenningrad' situated at Ploschad Pobedy. The monument is dedicated to the defenders of Leningrad in WW2 includes an underground Memorial Hall which chillingly documents these experiences. Admission Free.

The famous Saint Petersburg State Circus can be found at Gosvdarstvennyi Tsirk. The circus which was originally formed in 1877 includes camels ridden by monkeys, motorbikes ridden by bears and tip-toeing elephants along with traditional acts such as acrobats, clowns and strongmen. Performance times and reservations can be made on tel + 7 812 210 4411.

Restaurants In St Petersburg

named The Russian Restaurant on the corner of Sadovaya and Gorokhova (nearest metro Sadovaya), this restaurant offers Russian food at very reasonable prices. The menu is in Russian but this is not a problem as all the food is visible and you can indicate your choice. The dishes which are mainly chicken or pork and are accompanied by vegatables, potatoe and rice. The Petrogradskaya Bistro at Kamennoostrovskiy Prospekt, Mira Ulitsa offers a wide range of food. The choice includes borscht (meat dumplings), pasta, and other hot dishes as well as salads deserts and sandwiches. Extremely clean restaurant which is very fairly priced. The Grand Hotel Europe opposite the Symphony Hall offers exceptionally good torts with whipped cream and other deserts as part of its 'afternoon tea' menu in its Mezzanine Cafe which is reasonably priced. Meals in the hotels main restaurant are in comparison very expensive. The Dostoevsky Watering Hole, 82 Moike is a coffee shop which sells vegatarian food, cakes and vodka. Fairly priced whatever your preference! Probably one of the most bizaare restaurants in Europe can be found at Kazanskaya ul 35.

The Russian Comrade Restaurant has two distinctly different dining rooms offering the same menu. One room, (pro the old Soviet lifestyle) is dedicated to the memory of Lenin screens old black and white movies on televisions screens accompanied by modern music. The other room which has opposing political sentiments has an air of chaos about it with various items the wrong way up. On the walls there are very graphic and explicit murals depicting Lenin's sex life with different lovers. Oh and by the way it offers good food is which is predominantly traditional Russian but accompanied by a few international bistro dishes. The service is good and the prices are average. Well worth the experience.