I am a few days behind on my posts but will now have time to catch up a bit.  This post is highlights of our day on Sunday, Sep 15th.

After chugging along Nevsky Prospekt for some shopping, we made our way to St. Isaac’s Square where a free, public tennis match on a clay outdoor court was put in the for the day, between Russia’s #1 Mikhael Youzhny and Dmitri Tursokov.  It was a public event to promote the St. Petersburg Open and was a light-hearted and fun match and we got to see a couple of Russian players up close.

Being at St. Isaac’s Square it was time to visit St. Isaac’s Cathedral which was high on our list of must-do’s.  The first thing we did was head up the several hundred steps of the tower for a fabulous 360 degree view of St. Petersburg.

Next we went into the spectacular cathedral filled with marble and gold.  As in so many Russian Orthodox churches we have visited, there was a long line of the pious at particular icons holding personal meaning, usually to visit their namesake saint, sometimes on their name day (comparable to a birthday).

After touring the cathedral, we went to the ironically-named Idiot (for Dostoevsky’s novel of the same name), where the city’s intellectuals and British ex-pats were reputed to gather.  We saw neither but it was a wonderfully cosy spot another great Russian meal!