Photos and Videos

Two 105-foot "rostral columns" commemorating Russian naval victories stand guard on the shores of the Strelka, or eastern tip of Vasilevskiy Island.

Photos & Videos

Simply St. Petersburg

Two 105-foot "rostral columns" commemorating Russian naval victories stand guard on the shores of the Strelka, or eastern tip of Vasilevskiy Island.

Two 105-foot "rostral columns" commemorating Russian naval victories stand guard on the shores of the Strelka, or eastern tip of Vasilevskiy Island.

The city's first tramway line opened 100 years ago. Today, the tramway museum on Vasilevskiy Island runs historic tram cars down city streets on special occasions.

The rooftops of St. Petersburg, as seen from the kolonada, or colonnade, of St. Isaac's Cathedral.

The slender, golden 18th century spires of the Admiralty and Peter and Paul Cathedral stand out amid the smokestacks and shipyard and construction cranes of latter-day St. Petersburg.

The Grand Cascade outdoor fountains at Peterhof, outside St. Petersburg, features 142 water jets spouting from 64 outlets, including golden classical statues.

The Nevskiy Prospekt subway station sign at the Grand Hotel Europe. St. Petersburg's metro system, built in the 1930s, features some of the deepest subway stations in the world.

City authorities have begun erecting bilingual Russian-English information signs to help foreign visitors orientate themselves.

The 156-foot-high Alexander Column, built in 1830, commemorates Napoleon's defeat in wintry Russia.

The Winter Palace, the dome of St. Isaac's Cathedral and the towers of the Admiralty as seen from the Peter and Paul Fortress.

The famed bridges over the Neva River include the Dvortsoviy Most, or Palace Bridge, seen here at sunset with Tsar Peter the Great's Kunstkammer museum in the distance.

The bay windows of the Winter Palace, considered the finest example of Russian baroque architecture.

This pink confection on the Moyka River -- home to the noble Stroganoff family, whose chef invented the dish Beef Stroganoff -- is now part of the Russian Museum.

The colorful onion domes of the Church on the Spilled Blood are a rare dash of Russian design on St. Petersburg's otherwise baroque, western skyline.

The 205-foot-high blue baroque towers of the Smolniy Convent cathedral offer commanding views of the Russian city.