The second city in Russia we visited during the tour was the beautiful St. Petersburg. One of its most famous and popular visitor attractions is the palace and park at Peterhof which means “Peter's Court” (also known as Petrodvorets). The bus picked us up from Pulkovo-1 domestic airport, where we flew from Moscow. It's noon time, so we directly went to the restaurant in the Peterhof area called "Dorado". I like the restaurant ambience, it's hommy and beautiful. The traditional Russian meal was served, it's very delicious especially for the main course. It's started with fresh salad as the appetizer, continue with beef stroganoff then closing with yummy apple sharlotka.
After lunch we relaxed outside the restaurant. The weather was very nice, fresh, cool with the shiny sun and very clear blue sky. We liked to sit on the bench in front of the restaurant while waiting for our friends to wait their turn using the restroom as it's only available one for woman and one for man.
Just walking distance we could see the palace, unfortunately the palace & museum were under renovation so we could not enter it. St. Peterhof, built in the 18th century by Peter the Great was one of UNESCO World Heritage Site. Lucky that the dome was not covered with the renovation activity, so we still could take beautiful picture of the palace. Anyway we still could enter its huge beautiful park.
The lower garden called Nizhny Sad, at 1.02 km² comprising the better part of Peterhof's land area, are confined between the 16 metres height cliff and the shore, stretching east and west for roughly 200 metres. We could see the lavish of Russian emperor's lifestyle, also understand the monarch's wealth and taste for luxury. The park was full of beautiful golden statues with many fountains and green grass. Fortunately we visited on the spring, when the famous fountains are in operation (May to early October).
The main attraction were the Grand Cascade and Samson Fountain, it was very elegant and artistic. The Grand Cascade is modelled on one constructed for Louis XIV at his Château de Marly, which is likewise memorialised in one of the park's outbuildings. The most famous ensemble of fountains, the Grand Cascade, which runs from the northern facade of the Grand Palace to the Marine Canal, comprises 64 different fountains, and over 200 bronze statues, bas-reliefs, and other decorations.
The fountains of the Grand Cascade are located below the grotto and on either side of it. Their waters flow into a semicircular pool, the terminus of the fountain-lined Sea Channel. In the 1730s, the large Samson Fountain was placed in this pool. It depicts the moment when Samson tears open the jaws of a lion, representing Russia's victory over Sweden in the Great Northern War, and is doubly symbolic created by Mikhail Kozlovsky. When taking picture near the fountain, we had to be careful as the water splash could wet the camera's lens.
As we didn't have enough time to buy souvenirs, we stopped by in a small stall in the areas as my sister and mom were interested to its stuffs. We didn't have any Rubel, lucky that the friendly woman seller would like to accept Euro, so we could start bargaining to get the competitive price :-)
After getting the souvenirs, we walked to the shore, as we didn't have enough time to explore it, we just stopped in the middle of the way, taking pictures on the bridge where we could see the shore and the palace on the opposite site. As time ticking we returned to the cliff, anyway we still stop by to take picture on the small forest, unfortunately no much leaf at that time as spring just started, some benches were available for guests to enjoy the environment and taking a rest.
The same cliff that provides a setting for the Grand Cascade houses two other, very different cascades. West of the Grand Palace is the Golden Mountain, decorated with marble statuary that contrasts with the riotous gilded figures of the Grand Cascade. To the east is the Chess Mountain, a broad chute whose surface is tiled black and white like a chessboard. The most prominently positioned fountains of Peterhof are 'Adam' and 'Eve' which occupied symmetric positions on either side of the Sea Channel, each at the conjunction of eight paths.
The beauty of the gardens, the charm of the fountains, and the luxury of the palaces all make for a memorable experience. Actually we need more time to explore the whole area as we haven't visited the museum, the shore and the upper garden.
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