Top Tips for St. Petersburg

After returning from 4 days in St. Petersburg, my travel companions and I have several tips for the casual traveler to Russia...

1. Bring good shoes. Walking one block takes 45 minutes. The maps are deceptive!!

2. Cash, cash and more cash.  Even when you go to Peterhof and see the rest of the world stuffed into the bridges and walkways, don't think the Russians will consider taking your dirty little credit card! Not ever! You can find some other way home!

3. If there is a nuclear war, you can go into the subways. Safety!

4. The St. Petersburg Airport is a piece of shit.  Serious. piece. of. shit.  Ugly as hell and unpainted concrete inside.  Expect poor planning where many shoving Russians will form a non-line in a tiny room with no seats.

5. If you look at a menu and see something delicious like beef stroganoff and the waiter asks if you want mashed potatoes or rice, don't be surprised when you see those extras charges on your bill. Rice and potatoes are not included! Don't be silly. You can eat meat in a sauce by itself!

6. Enjoy the incredible beauty of the Historic Heart.  The colors, statues, massive buildings and canals everywhere your eyes look!

7. If I lived in Russia, I could spend a week in the Hermitage and Peterhof alone. Those Tsars sure knew how to build massive houses and decorate with LOTS of gold!  Especially since you can only visit Peterhof (as a non-Russian) for 4 hours a day.

8. The Russian Visa. All I can say is plan ahead and enjoy filling out many useless questions, including every country and the dates you visited for the past 10 years. And 20+ questions about military training. And signed copies of your insurance policy.

9. Shoving and bumping are commonplace. I got slammed into 10+ times a day without a word.

10. Not many Russians can speak Russian. You need a map. A good one too.

11. Crappy tourists at the ballet. When did it become acceptable to take flash photographs (constantly!) during a performance.

12. Don't expect to get money from an ATM. Even if you are a Nordea bank member, don't think your Nordea card will work at the ATM there.  Ha!

13. Get ready for boobs!! And high heels! It's like a cocktail party all day everyday on the streets. But only for women. The men are just there.  

14. Smoking is still very popular. Even in restaurants.

15. St. Petersburg's white nights! At 12 pm in July it's still bright out! Thank god for black out shades :)

16. There is a surprising amount of asian food, especially sushi, on most menus.  And all sorts of pickles. Different types of pickles with all options of sauces, like apple sauce.

17. Even though this list sounds like a rant. St. Petersburg was awesome! Being in the city is like walking around in a huge museum and makes for a completely fascinating cultural and social experience.