Inside Catherine Palace

None of the pictures I took inside the Palace do justice to the grandeur and decadence. The expression of gilding the lily may have been based upon this place.

The craftsmanship is great. The art is marvelous. But the gold covering everything is just too much. It is unnecessary except as a means to flaunt wealth. Wealth that is being used for no purpose except to show off.

I could not help wondering how many common people in Russia were barely surviving while the Tsars lived surrounded by obscene expressions of wealth. It was nice to visit. But I would not want to live in this place.

Tsar's Village

Located in Tsarskoye Selo (Tsar's Village), this is one of the summer residences used by the Russian Tsars. It is called Catherine Palace because it was the favorite palace of Catherine, wife of Peter the Great.

The original palace was built in 1717. It was torn down by order of Empress Elizabeth and replaced with a larger palace that was finished in 1756.

It has been largely restored and is open to tours. This picture only shows part of the 325 m (350 yard) long palace. It is a monument to both the wealth of the Tsars and their extravagance.

Russia

Our next port of call for our Baltic Cruise after Germany was St. Petersburg, Russia. We were greeted on the dock by a local band. This was the only stop on our cruise where we had to go through Immigration Control. Of course, that means you get a stamp in your passport!

If you are visiting Russia by cruise, you either have to get a visa before the cruise, or you can go on a tour arranged by the cruise line. So even if you normally do not book tours with a cruise line, this is one time when you should.

We were docked in St. Petersburg for two days. We went on one tour each day. St. Petersburg is all about Peter the Great, the first Emperor of Russia.