GOODBYE WINTER?

I couldn't resist posting one more winter scene before I hang up my snow boots for the summer! This is taken from my corner window in the main room and is over the top of the little park. I might paint this one.

THE WEATHER

IS looking more promising now but I keep my fingers firmly crossed as it is only April 9.

We have mini icebergs floating down river from the Gulf of Finland which I will try to capture on camera over the weekend.

Yesterday the sun shone all day and when we came out of the ballet performance of Don Quixote at 9.00 p.m. it was still broad day light. The light didn't fade until 9.40. The very long daylight hours are arriving really fast.

The problems with the weather in April are two-fold.

The DUST is horrendous. Once the snow and ice recedes the filth left behind has been ground down by the ice to very fine dust which casts a fine layer over the ground and over everything else. The traffic stirs it up horribly and makes it really unpleasant to walk next to the road with dust blowing in the eyes and nose. The street workers exacerbate this problem by trying to sweep it up with garden brooms (the witches type) and all they achieve is to whip it up more. This would be a nightmare for anyone with lung problems.

They close the PARKS for the whole of April! Yes, just as the weather is nicer and there are the inkling of tiny buds on the trees and the birds are singing, they CLOSE THE PARKS! Well, this is very frustrating as I have been longing for my daily exercise routine to resume and discovered this yesterday when I ventured out in running clothes and trainers. I was not defeated, however, as I trotted along the roads with dust flying in my eyes and nose!

The reason for closing the parks is to get them in order for the summer. Understandable because the paths and grass have had an absolute hammering over the winter, I just wish it was done one at a time!

Whilst waiting for Mike to show up at the Alexandra Theatre last night, I stood with all the others waiting for their partners to show up, opposite the theatre along the park railings in the beautiful sunshine, 6.30 and warm on the face, a well deserved treat!

RANDOM BLOG FODDER

I have met a lady who has recently arrived. She comes from Berlin and speaks excellent Russian. We were chatting about her childhood in Eastern Germany and the compulsory Russian lessons (she is finding that pretty useful now!) and I went on to ask her about where she was when the Berlin Wall came down.

She told me that when they heard the news from a neighbour it was all very confusing and they didn't believe it at all. They turned on the television to see the leader of the country more or less say that 'OK, we give in, we believe the wall is coming down, so be it'.

They were amazed and slightly afraid. Her and her husband and children all held hands and walked through some broken down wall to Western Germany. They were really afraid that the wall would be barred and they wouldn't get back again.

Her husband very quickly made the decision to take the car and to move the family immediately over to the west. He had a good job in the communist factory as a manager of an enormous power machinery organisation who were then taken over by a huge western company and he became a very successful executive within that company.

This story warms the cockles of my heart!

WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?

After an evening tour of the Hermitage to take a look at the temporary exhibition of the history of the 'Silk Route', one of the privileges of living in this City and being a 'Friend of the Hermitage', we decided to take a light, late supper at a nearby Azerbaijani restaurant.

I ordered what I thought was a chicken kebab salad only to receive, to my horror, the above! You can see it was enormous (not to mention almost rubber-like) and the vegetables you can see surrounding it are all pickles! As Mike had a very modest looking meal, this looked horribly greedy! I took it home in a doggy bag to make soup from it. I had to cook it for ages to make it tender, well, what with the economy and all that!

Wouldn't it have been nice if the young waitress had suggested that it might not be the right choice for madame?

A DOG!

There is a habit of dressing dogs in this City in the winter for obvious reasons but I found this dog in his outfit particularly appealing. He looks like a workman on his way to a job!

ANOTHER APRIL FOOL'S JOKER!

This handsome hunk I pass nearly every day on my way to the shops. There are four of them, one on each corner of the bridge. This is the most gorgeous and actually the bandanna and hair only emphasises his beauty! I never pass him without a glance! Oh yeah, the horse is quite nice too.

APRIL FOOL

Some people here hate any relics left from the communist era. Quite understandable really. Others feel that they represent an important reminder of recent history of Russia and should remain. This particular Lenin statue stands outside Findlyanskiy train station, St.Petersburg's main station and it's really imposing. However, some jokers thought it would be fun to blow a hole in the back of Lenin's pants with dynamite! This was apparently quite a big explosion and the authorities were not amused, however, I think everyone else read the article in the local paper with slight amusement. Of course, it was dangerous and that isn't funny but Lenin will be repaired only to the extent of making it safe and then will remain with the damage to the seat of his pants. I think that is a fair compromise!

RANDOM BUT INTERESTING!

FISHING WINTER STYLE

This chap seems to be enjoying himself out on the main river. Sometimes they put a tent made of polythene around them to keep warm. Doesn't look much fun to me and I am not sure if I would eat fish out of the Neva.

THE ICE BREAKER

I love the impression the ice breaker leaves on the river. They break it up quite regularly. The river isn't passable until the ice is gone though. I think they break it so there is some movement or the ice cracks and then builds into sort of icebergs which when on the move would put pressure on the bridges. That all sounds feasible doesn't it?

THE SWIMMING POOL CHURCH

During the soviet times a lot of churches were made into public swimming pools (unimaginable but true). This morning I was invited with the International Women's Club to visit the above church to pick out some paintings which have been donated by the artist Matt Lamb to the Club to auction for charity. The paintings are being stored in this church. You can see the stands at the side which were used when it was converted to a public swimming pool and the church has decided to keep in place. What a reminder! Personally, I think it's easy to imagine it as a swimming pool.

ICE IS NICE

OR ICE CAN BE NICE!

Here are three examples of what ice is all about at the beginning of March in St.Pete's.

First, let's look at the size of the icicles. Yes, they would and DO kill people. A lot of people here say they have had close encounters with them. When the temperature rises slightly, they are likely to drop off from a high building without warning (they don't shout 'fore'!). They weigh a kilo or two at best and several kilos at worst. On the thawing days I am almost inclined to walk around wearing a crash helmet. However, the buildings are obliged to cordon off the areas of danger but they are not to be trusted so extreme care must be exercised. At the same time as perusing the tops of the buildings for falling ice burgs, don't for one minute take your eyes off the pavement as you are likely to go flying on very hardened ice, in places several inches thick. I sympathize with the authorities because it thaws and re-freezes so often that it is impossible to keep it safe. However, this does make the trip to the supermarket far more fun than normal.

Now let's take a look at the drainpipes. Again, when there is a thaw, you can be walking along the street when suddenly you hear a large rumble noise coming from somewhere above and quickly moving downwards before the ice simply shoots out onto the pavement, sometimes containing bottles and glass, (people party on the rooftops here). Make sure at this point that you aren't standing in front of one of the city's enormous drainpipes. I think the picture above speaks for its self.

Thirdly, see the man walking on the river? He is employed by the city to pick up rubbish from the ice on the canals. You may be able to see, a way in front of him, a ladder out across the ice. That is where his workmates are, watching out for his safety. Is that a joke?