St. Petersburg

Built by imperial degree on a marsh, this city defies all the notions one has of a city...European, Nordic, Central Asian. The pastel colors of the buildings change with the light, and the light changes every 15 minutes. We spent our short time there experiencing the white nights, when night is the most beautiful time of day, and the river reflects the sky and the wind dies down just a bit. Many people compare it to Paris, because of the beautiful streets that line the river like the Rue D'Orsay, or to Venice, because of the canals, or to Rome, because of the Italian statues and opulence...but it is like none of those things because all of this is done through the prism of Russia...so it is so much more.